Apparatus and method for pelletizing wax and wax-like materials

An apparatus for forming pellets from a wax or wax-like material having a sharp melt point that has been melted to a molten condition which comprises:

• (a) a pelletizer with a die plate having die orifices and a die face;
• (b) a first stage cooler including a heat transfer device to cool the molten wax or wax-like material to a temperature just above its melt temperature so that the wax or wax-like material remains liquid enough to have good unobstructed flow;
• (c) a second stage cooler located downstream of said first stage cooler with respect to a direction of said flow so that said second stage cooler receives wax or wax-like material initially cooled by said first stage cooler, said second stage cooler including an extruder having cooling surfaces to further reduce the temperature of the wax or wax-like material received from the first stage cooler below its melt point and to concurrently mix and re-mix the wax or wax-like material into a thoroughly mixed extrudable solid material, said wax or wax-like material being exposed to said extruder cooling surfaces to form cooled layers that are moved away from said extruder cooling surfaces and interspersed with warmer layers of wax or wax-like material into a mixture and are then returned to the extruder cooling surfaces for more heat energy reduction while said mixture is in said second stage cooler, extrudable solid material from said second stage cooler being extruded through the die orifices of the pelletizer die plate;
• and
• (d) a cutting chamber and a rotary cutter which cooperates with said die face to cut into pellets said thoroughly mixed extrudable solid material extruded through said die orifices in the absence of liquid.