Expanded polystyrene foam (also known as EPS) is a durable material that can be used in many consumer products. You can find it in almost every place, including your local grocery store (plates and cups, etc.) and local electronics stores (insulation to refrigerators, etc.). Plastic utensils, CD cases, and cloth hangers all contain Styrene. It's also a great insulation material.EPS foam in Hawaii is very popular for its durability.
These small beads must be "blown" into larger beads to create an EPS foam block. This is approximately 50 times the original size. This is known as the pre-expansion procedure. The beads are blown depending on their density using steam in an expander or steamer.
An expander is a machine where a worker inserts the raw material and turns on the steam. It can also be an automated machine that blows the stems automatically. The beads, which can be up to 50 times larger than their original size, are now called pellets. They are ready for molding.
Continuous pre-expanders can be operated without pressure. They are equipped with an open-top agitator tank that continuously feeds raw material from the bottom using an adjustable screw conveyor. Through openings located just above the tank, steam is also continuously fed into the pre-expanding area.
No matter what pre-expander they use, all of them trickle the expanded beads into the fluid bed dryer. There, the beads are dried and stabilized before being transported to the storage silos.