Design and Evaluation of Custom Intermixers for extrusion of blended PLA Using Machine Learning

The following data supports the manuscript titled "Design and Evaluation of Custom Intermixers for extrusion of blended PLA Using Machine Learning" submitted to "Virtual and Physical Prototyping", which details the following abstract:
"Uniform blending in multi-material extrusion is crucial for ensuring consistent material properties in additive manufacturing. This study evaluates the performance of five static mixer designs, Split Path, Helix Array, Full Turn Helix, Half Moon, and Cross Bars, integrated into a coaxial extrusion system for enhancing the blending of multi-colored PLA (polylactic acid) pellets. Each mixer was tested using a 50/50 mixture of red and blue PLA under controlled extrusion conditions at 210°C. Mixing performance was assessed through microscopic imaging and machine learning-based analysis, including histogram evaluation, clustering algorithms, and standard color uniformity indices. Results showed that the Split Path and Full Turn Helix mixers provided the most uniform color distribution, with minimal segregation. In contrast, the Helix Array, Half Moon, and Cross Bars designs produced moderate to inconsistent mixing, showing visible streaking and uneven blending. All mixer configurations, however, significantly outperformed the control (no mixer) setup. These findings offer quantitative insights into the effectiveness of various mixer geometries, providing a basis for optimizing mixing strategies in multi-material 3D printing. The study contributes to the development of more reliable extrusion systems for applications such as functionally graded materials, flexible electronics, and advanced polymer composites."

本数据集为提交至《虚拟与物理成型（"Virtual and Physical Prototyping"）》的题为《基于机器学习的共混聚乳酸挤出定制混合器设计与性能评估》的手稿提供数据支持，该手稿的摘要内容如下：
"多材料挤出过程中的均匀共混，是保障增材制造（additive manufacturing）中材料性能一致性的关键环节。本研究针对同轴挤出系统中的五种静态混合器（static mixer）设计——分流路径式（"Split Path"）、螺旋阵列式（"Helix Array"）、全旋螺旋式（"Full Turn Helix"）、半月形（"Half Moon"）、十字杆式（"Cross Bars"）——的性能进行评估，以提升多色聚乳酸（PLA, polylactic acid）颗粒的共混效果。本研究在210℃的可控挤出条件下，采用红蓝聚乳酸各占50%的共混体系对每种混合器进行测试。混合性能通过显微成像与基于机器学习的分析手段进行评估，分析方法包括直方图评估、聚类算法以及标准颜色均匀性指标。结果表明，分流路径式与全旋螺旋式混合器可实现最均匀的颜色分布，且物料偏析程度最低。相较而言，螺旋阵列式、半月形与十字杆式混合器的混合效果处于中等水平且一致性较差，存在可见的条纹与不均匀共混现象。但所有混合器配置的性能均显著优于无混合器的对照组。本研究结果为不同混合器结构的有效性提供了量化分析依据，为多材料3D打印中的共混策略优化提供了参考基础。本研究有助于开发更可靠的挤出系统，可应用于功能梯度材料、柔性电子及先进聚合物基复合材料等领域。"