TiO₂ Pigment Slurry Filtration

Pigment slurries are used in the plastics, fiber, and film manufacturing industries to add desirable properties such as surface appearance or color to the final products. Titanium dioxide, (TiO₂), is often a major component of these slurries. Filtration of the TiO₂ pigment slurry, a critical part of the manufacturing process, eliminates oversize pigment or agglomerated pigment particles. Particles that, if not entirely removed from the process stream on a consistent basis, will cause the plugging of:

• melt filters,
• screen packs, and
• spinnerets.

This Customer Application Brief (CAB) addresses the production of fibers and discusses the benefits obtained by appropriate slurry filtration using Betapure™ NT-T filters as illustrated by an application of TiO₂ and the control of surface gloss, known as delustering, of polyester fibers.