Lecture 6
Lecture 6
Resistance to corrosion
Electrically resistant
Easily formed
Recyclable
FORMS PLASTIC COMES IN
Profiled sheets, rods, tubes and bars
Moulding compounds
Foam
Casting compounds
THERMOSETTING PLASTICS
Permanently
1. Granules of plastic powder are poured or fed into a hopper which stores it
until it is needed.
2. A heater heats up the tube and when it reaches a high temperature a
screw thread starts turning.
3. A motor turns a thread which pushes the granules along the heater
section which melts then into a liquid.
4. The liquid is forced into a mould where it cools into the shape (in this case
a sphere).
5. The mould then opens and the sphere is removed.
INJECTION MOULDING (USES)
High volume, automated industrial
manufacturing process.
Golf tees
Spoons
Wash basins
Buckets
Product casings
EXTRUSION
Hose pipes
BLOW MOULDING
Several variations to the process, producing various
sizes
Finish is not as high a standard as injection moulding
Good mould allows:
Uniform thickness
Complex shape
Good quality of production
Fast process
Little waste
Features that allow for identification:
Mould separation lines
Flash lines
Any shape of bottle or container
Transparent, opaque or coloured
BLOW MOULDING
Handles
Door knobs
Light switches
Vacuum forming
VACUUM FORMING (USES)
Packaging items that have complex shapes
Trays
Dishes
Margarine tubs
Toys
Light panels
OTHER PROCESSES
Calendering: Thermoplastics are squeezed
between hot rollers forming thin sheets or film
Casting: useful for thermosetting plastics.
Molten plastic poured into mould
Bending: thermoplastics heated along a line
using strip heater, folded to desired angle.
Bending jig sometimes used to hold in place.
Fabrication: joining together using a
variation of fixings and adhesives
Coating: powered thermoplastic melts on
surface of heated product.(dip coating)
Forming: Layers o glass fibre matting and
polyester resin formed over a mould. Resin
cures it hardens giving rigidity to fibre/resin
matrix. Thermoplastic formed by heating
whole sheet till soft then pressed between two
formers.