The main objective of this work is to simulate the axisymmetric and flat sheet extrudate in the extrusion process. A series of extrudate swell measurements for HDPE melts are carried out using an optical micrometer attached to the capillary rheometer, in order to study the effect of different die characteristics, temperature (isothermal and non-isothermal), gravity and wall slip on extrudate dimensions. The flow simulations are performed for axisymmetric (capillary dies) and flat (slit dies) extrusion. The flow simulations are performed using integral (K-BKZ) as well as differential (PTT) rheological models. The effect of rheological properties is investigated and some conclusions are drawn regarding the ability of different models to capture the extrudate swell behavior of certain HDPE melts.
