Apparatus for mixing and processing plastic material including a delivery pump

Mixing and processing apparatus comprising:

• a mixing means for mixing a plastic material including a housing having an outlet end with an opening for delivery of mixed plastic material therefrom, a mixing element in said housing and drive means for driving said mixing element;
• and
• a gear pump connected to said mixing means for receiving plastic material from said mixing means and for pumping the plastic material for discharge from the gear pump, said gear pump including a separate drive means independent of the drive means of the mixing element of said mixing means, said gear pump including a pump housing directly connected to the housing of said mixing means, said pump housing having a suction space which is in communication with said opening at the outlet end of the housing of the mixing means to receive plastic material from said outlet end directly, said mixing means comprising a horizontal extruder in which said mixing element comprises two rotatable screws in the housing of the mixing means, said housing of the mixing means including a flange against which the housing of the gear pump is directly engaged in face to face sealed relation;
• said gear pump including gears having faces confronting end faces of said two screws in close proximity, said gears of the gear pump having axes of rotation disposed at a lower level than axes of rotation of said screws such that a lower wedge region in a nip between said screws is horizontally aligned with a suction space formed at an upper nip between the gears of the gear pump so that plastic material is fed directly from said lower wedge region of the screws to the suction space of the gear pump.