For decades, three roll mills have been used in many different industries, from ink, paint and food, to high-tech industries like electronics, energy storage and energy conversion. Everywhere in the coatings industry, where relatively small batches and color changes are often required, three roll mills are one of the best solutions. For example, bases for can and coil coatings are often produced on three roll mills. Also, for heat-sensitive coating systems, like UV-curable coatings, the only solution is often the three roll mill because of its huge cooling surface and perfect temperature control.
After pre-dispersion, fine dispersing takes place on agitated bead mills or three roll mills. Three roll mills typically need two to three passes to achieve the required particle size or coloristic properties. Feeding of the three roll mill is often by press out systems or pumps. Here, cleanability is one of the important advantages of the three roll mill. On only one machine is it realistic to produce small batches of different colors.
Features like cleanability, no cross contamination, very small hold ups and defined stress are still unrepeated by any other technology. But mechanical roll pressing systems or even hydraulic systems are not comparable with the fully automated machines of today.