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."本数据集支撑了提交至《Virtual and Physical Prototyping》（《虚拟与物理成型》）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》的学术手稿，该手稿摘要如下： "多材料挤出工艺中的均匀混料，是保障增材制造中材料性能一致性的核心前提。本研究针对同轴挤出系统集成的五种静态混合器设计——分流路径式（Split Path）、螺旋阵列式（Helix Array）、全回转螺旋式（Full Turn Helix）、半月式（Half Moon）以及交叉杆式（Cross Bars）——的混炼性能展开评估，以提升多色聚乳酸（PLA，polylactic acid）颗粒的混炼效果。所有混合器均在210℃的可控挤出条件下，采用红蓝聚乳酸50/50的配比进行测试。混炼性能通过显微成像与基于机器学习的分析手段进行评估，涵盖直方图分析、聚类算法以及标准颜色均匀性指标。研究结果表明，分流路径式与全回转螺旋式混合器可实现最为均匀的颜色分布，料流偏析程度最低；与之相对，螺旋阵列式、半月式与交叉杆式混合器的混炼效果处于中等水平且一致性较差，存在可见的色带与不均匀混料现象。不过所有混合器配置的混炼效果均显著优于对照组（未安装混合器的工况）。上述研究结果为不同混合器结构的混炼效能提供了定量分析依据，为多材料3D打印中的混料策略优化奠定了基础。本研究有助于推动功能梯度材料、柔性电子以及先进聚合物基复合材料等应用场景下更可靠的挤出系统研发。"