Polymers Manufacturing

 The variety of shaping processes exists, because

of the ease with which polymers can be
processed. A variety of part geometries can be
formed.
 Many plastic parts are formed by molding, which
is a net shape process. Further shaping is
generally not needed.
 Less energy is required than for metals because
the softening temperatures are much lower.
 Handling of the product is simplified during
production due to low temperature.
 Finishing by painting or plating is normally not
required for polymers
Polymers Manufacturing
 Plastic-shaping processes can be classified
according to the resulting product
geometry:
 Continuous extruded products with
constant cross section other than sheets,
films, and filaments
 Continuous sheets and films
 Continuous filaments (fibers)
 Molded parts that are mostly solid
 Hollow Parts
Polymers Manufacturing
 The most important processes commercially are
those associated with thermoplastics; the two
processes of greatest significance are
 Extrusion
 Injection molding
 Blow Molding
 Compression Molding
 Transfer molding
 Rotational Molding
 Thermoforming
 Foam Molding
Which properties are important before processing
Production of Sheet and Film
Single Screw Extruder:
Applications
 Pipe and tubing
 Sheet and cast film (Slit die)
 Coating (electrical cables)
 Fibers and Filaments (textiles, fishing line)
 Blown film (shopping bags)
Properties of Polymer Melts
Viscosity
 Relates the shear stress experienced during

flow of the fluid and associate with the rate of

shear.

 Polymer shaping methods involve flow of the

melt through small channels or die openings.

 The flow rates are often large, thus leading to

high rates of shear; and the shear stresses
increase with shear rate so significant
pressures are required.
Properties of Polymer Melts
 For a Newtonian fluid (which includes most
simple fluids such as water and oil), viscosity
is a constant at a given temperature i.e it does
not change with shear rate.

 The relationship between shear

stress and shear strain is given as;
 

 τ=shear stress, Pa; η=coefficient of

shear viscosity, Ns/m2, and γ= shear
Properties of Polymer Melts
 For polymer melts, viscosity decreases
with shear rate. This behavior is called
pseudoplasticity and can be modeled by
the expression;
n
 k ( )

 k= constant corresponding to the viscosity

coefficient and n=flow behavior index.

 For n =1 (Newtonian fluid), k becomes η.

But for a polymer melt, values of n<1.
Properties of Polymer Melts
 Viscosity of a polymer melt is also affected by
temperature.
Properties of Polymer Melts
 Another property possessed by polymer
melts is viscoelasticity. For example the
die swell in extrusion, in which the hot
plastic expands when exiting the die
opening.
 When the material subsequently exits the
orifice and the restriction is removed, the
unrelaxed stresses cause the cross section
to expand.
Properties of Polymer Melts
 Die swell is measured for a circular cross
section by the swell ratio,

Dx
rs 
Dd
 Where rs=swell ratio; Dx=diameter of the
extruded cross section, mm; and Dd=diameter
of the die orifice, mm
 The amount of die swell depends on the time
the polymer melt spends in the die channel.
Increasing the time in the channel, by means
of a longer channel, reduces die swell.
Polymers Shaping and Manufacturing
 Extrusion is a compression process in
which material is forced to flow through a
die orifice to provide long continuous
product.
 The cross-sectional shape is determined
by the shape of the orifice.

 Widely used for thermoplastics and

elastomers to mass produce items such as
tubing, pipes, hose, sheet and film,
continuous filaments, and coated
Polymer Extrusion
 The feedstock in pellet or powder form (thermoplastics) is
fed into an extrusion barrel where it is heated and melted
and forced through a die.
Polymer Extrusion
Polymer Extrusion

 Pressure applied to the polymer melt in

three sections is determined by the
channel depth dc.
 dc is relatively large in the feed section
 In the compression section, dc is gradually
reduced, thus applying increased pressure
on the polymer as it melts.
 In the pumping section, dc is small and
pressure reaches a maximum as flow is
restrained by the screen pack and breaker
plate.
Polymer Extrusion
The screen pack and breaker plates are
used to
 Filter contaminants and hard lumps from

the melt;
 Build pressure in the metering section

 Straighten the flow of the polymer melt

 Single Screw Extrusion

 Twin-Screw Extrusion
Die Configuration and Extruded
Products

 Solid profiles include regular shapes such

as rounds and squares and irregular cross
sections such as structural shapes, door
and window moldings.
 Polymers with high melt viscosities are
used for extrusion as they hold shape
better during cooling.

 Cooling is accomplished by air blowing,

water spray, or passing the extrudate
through a water trough.
Solid Regular Profiles
 To compensate for die swell, the die
opening is made long enough to remove
some of the memory in the polymer melt.
 For shapes other than round, the die
opening is designed with a cross section
that is slightly different from the desired
profile.
Hollow Profiles
 A mandrel is required to form the hollow shapes e.g.
tubes, pipes, hoses etc.
 The mandrel is held in place using a spider legs (Section
A-A). The polymer melt flows around the legs supporting
the mandrel to reunite into a monolithic tube wall.
Wires and Cable Coating
 For wire coating, the polymer melt is
applied to the bare wire as it is pulled at
high speed through a die.

 A light vacuum is applied between the wire

and the polymer to promote adhesion of
the coating.

 It is cooled by passing the coated wire

through a water trough. The product is
wound onto large spools at speeds of up to
Coextrusion
Extrusion Defects
 Melt Fracture
The high stresses acting on the melt during its flow
through the die cause a highly irregular surface on the
extrudate.
 A sharp reduction at the die entrance, causing turbulent
flow that breaks up the melt.
Extrusion Defects
Shark Skin
 The surface of the product becomes

roughened upon exiting the die because

of friction at the interface produces a
velocity profile across the cross section.
 Tensile stresses develop at the surface as

this material is stretched to keep up with

the faster moving centre core. These
stresses cause minor ruptures that
roughen the surface.
Injection Molding
 A polymer is heated to a highly plastic state
and forced to flow under high pressure into a
mold cavity, where it solidifies.
 The molded part (molding) is then removed
from the cavity.
 The process produces discrete components
 Moldings are almost always net shape. Part size
can range from about 50 gm-25 kg
 Production cycle time in the range of 10 to 30
sec. For large parts (cycles of 1 min or longer)
 The mold may contain more than one cavity, so
that multiple moldings are produced each cycle
Injection Molding
 Injection molding is economical only for large production
quantities
 Injection molding is the most widely used molding
process for thermoplastics
Process and Equipment
 An injection molding machine consists of two principal
components: (1) the plastic injection unit and (2) the
mold clamping unit.
Process and Equipment
 Because of its dual action, it is called a
reciprocating screw.

 In addition to turning for mixing and

heating the polymer, the screw also acts
as a ram that rapidly moves forward to
inject molten plastic into the mold.

 A nonreturn valve mounted near the tip of

the screw prevents the melt from flowing
backward.
Process and Equipment
 A fixed platen and a moveable platen is
connected to the clamping unit. Its
functions is to;
 Hold the two halves of the mold in proper
alignment with each other
 Keep the mold closed during injection by
applying a clamping force sufficient to
resist the injection force
 Open and close the mold at the
appropriate times in the molding cycle.
Injection Molding Cycle
The Mold
 Two-Plate Mold
The molds generally are made of tool steels, beryllium-
copper, or aluminum alloys.
The Mold Construction
 Cavity
 Parting Line
 Distribution Channels (Gating System)
 Ejection System (Ejector Pins)
 Cooling System
 Air Vents
Mold Life and Cost
 Mold costs can be on the order of $100,000 for large
ones.
 Mold life may be on the order of 2 million cycles for steel
molds, but it can be about only 10,000 cycles for
aluminum molds.
Defects in Injection Molding:
1) Shrinkage

 To compensate for shrinkage, the

dimensions of the mold cavity must be
made larger than the specified part
dimensions. The following formula can be
2
D 
used.
c D p  D p S  D p S
Factors effecting Shrinkage
 The most important factors are injection
pressure, compaction time, molding
temperature, and part thickness.
 As injection pressure is increased, forcing
more material into the mold cavity,
shrinkage is reduced.
 Increasing compaction time has a similar
effect, (assuming the polymer in the gate
does not solidify)
 Shrinkage is lower at higher molding
temperatures. As it significantly lower the
2) Short Shots
 Occurs when a molding solidifies before
completely filling the cavity. The defect
can be corrected by increasing
temperature and/or pressure.
3) Flashing

 If polymer melt is squeezed into the

parting surface between mold plates or
around ejection pins.
 Caused by (1) vents and clearances in the
mold that are too large; (2) injection
pressure too high compared with clamping
force; (3) melt temperature too high; or
(4) excessive shot size/volume.
4) Sink Marks and Voids
 When the outer surface on the molding
solidifies, but contraction of the internal
material causes the skin to be depressed
(sink marks) below its intended profile.

 Or the shrinkage manifests itself as an

internal void because of high tensile
stresses on the still-molten polymer.
5) Weld Lines
 When polymer melt flows around a core or
other convex detail in the mold cavity and
meets from opposite directions; the
boundary thus created between two is
called a weld line.
 Higher melt temperatures, higher injection
pressures, alternative gating locations on
the part, and better venting are used to
remove this defect.
Example Problem
 The nominal length of a part made of polyethylene is to
be 80 mm. Determine the corresponding dimension of the
mold cavity that will compensate for shrinkage.
Injection Molding Machine
 Injection-molding machines are rated
according to the capacity of the mold and
the clamping force.

 Normally, force ranges from 0.9 to 2.2 MN,

but a high capacity of 45 MN can produce
parts ~25 kg.

 The cost of a 1-MN machine ranges from

about $60,000 to $90,000 approx.
Injection Molding of Thermosets
 They use a reciprocating-screw injection unit,
but the barrel length is shorter to avoid
premature curing and solidification.
 Temperatures in the barrel are kept at
relatively low levels, usually 50-125°C.

 When sufficient melt has accumulated ahead

of the screw, it is injected into a mold
(preheated 150- 230°C, for cross-linking).
 Molding cycle times typically range from 20
sec to 2 min, depending on polymer type and
part size.
Injection Molding of Thermosets
 The principal thermosets are phenolics,
unsaturated polyesters, melamines,
epoxies, urea-formaldehyde and
elastomers.
 Alternate methods are Reaction Injection
Molding, compression molding and
transfer molding that are widely used for
thermosetting polymers and elastomers.
1) Reaction Injection Molding (RIM)
 It involves the mixing of two highly reactive liquid
ingredients and immediately injecting the mixture into a
mold cavity.
 Chemical reactions leading to solidification occur and a
thermoset is produced in the cavity.
 RIM was developed with polyurethane to produce large
automotive components such as bumpers, spoilers, and
fenders.
2) Compression Molding
 Used to make rubber tires and other polymer
matrix composites. It involves;
 loading a precise amount of molding compound,
called the charge (powders or pellets, liquid, or
preform), into the bottom half of a heated mold
 bringing the mold halves together to compress
the charge, forcing it to flow and conform to the
shape of the cavity
 heating the charge by means of the hot mold to
polymerize and cure the material into a
solidified part
 opening the mold halves and removing the part
from the cavity.
2) Compression Molding
 Heating of the mold is usually
accomplished by electric resistance
heating, steam, or hot oil circulation.
 Materials for compression molding include
phenolics, melamine, urea-formaldehyde,
epoxies, urethanes, and elastomers.
2) Compression Molding
Advantages
 Molds that are simpler and less expensive

 less scrap (no gating system)

 low residual stresses in the molded parts

as the polymer flows over shorter

distances
 Cooling of the part is not required

Disadvantages
 longer cycle times
3) Transfer Molding
Cycle in the process is;
 Charge is loaded into pot

 softened polymer is pressed into mold

cavity and cured

 part is ejected.
Blow Molding
 Air pressure is used to inflate soft plastic
inside a mold cavity.
 Used for making one-piece hollow plastic
parts with thin walls, such as bottles and
similar disposable containers. Types;

 Extrusion blow molding

 Injection blow molding
 Stretch blow molding
Extrusion Blow Molding
 Extrusion process produce the polymer
melt that flows through movable mold
halves. Mold closes and air is blown by a
blow pin at the bottom.
 As the polymer solidifies, the pin is
retracted and die halves open to remove
the part.
Rotational Molding
 Also called rotomolding is used to make hollow seamless
parts such as spheres
 Genrally used for thermoplastics, but also applied to
thermosets and elastomers.
 Rotational molding favors large, hollow shapes.
 Casting
In the basic conventional casting of thermoplastics, a mixture of monomer, catalyst, and
various additives (activators) is heated to above its melting point, Tm, and poured into the
mold. The part is formed after polymerization takes place at
ambient pressure.

Flexible Mold
Degassing may be necessary for product integrity
Thermoforming
 A flat thermoplastic sheet is heated and
deformed into the desired shape.
 Widely used in packaging of consumer
products and fabricating bathtubs, internal
door liners for refrigerators.
 Thermoforming consists of two main
steps: heating and forming.
 Heating is usually accomplished by
radiant electric heaters, located on one or
both sides of the starting plastic.
Thermoforming
Plug Assist Thermoforming(Compression molding)
Polymer Foams
 The most common polymer foams are
polystyrene (Styrofoam) and
polyurethane.
 Other polymers used to make foams
include natural rubber (‘‘foamed rubber’’)
and polyvinylchloride (PVC).
 1) low density, (2) high strength per unit
weight, (3) good thermal insulation, and
(4) good energy absorbing qualities.
Polymer Foams

Polymer
Foams

Elastom
Flexible Rigid
eric

 Cellulolar---- Blown---- or Expanded Ploymer

 Assignment- Types of Foams and Processing

Parameters for each type?
Non-Traditional Machining (3lec max)
 Laser Machining (assignment on advanced laser
micromachning)
 Water Jet Machining
 EC Machining
Special Processing and Assembly
(3lec max)

 Rapid Prototyping
 Microfabrication techs
 Nanofabrication techs
Rapid Prototyping

 A family of fabrication methods to make

engineering prototypes in minimum
possible lead times based on a CAD model.
 Time savings is the main advantage of RP
 Product designers want a physical model of
a new part than a virtual prototype
 The designer can visually examine and
physically asses the part before need to
perform tests
 Creation of a prototype is an integral step
in the design procedure
Rapid Prototyping Cycle
Rapid Prototyping
 Available rapid prototyping technologies
can be divided into two basic categories:
(1) Material removal processes
(2) Materials Addition processes
 Materials removal by CNC machines

termed desktop milling or desktop

machining are used. Maximum starting
block sizes in desktop machining;
 180 mm  x-direction

 150 mm  y-direction

 150 mm  z-direction
Rapid Prototyping
 To use CNC, a part program must be
prepared from the CAD model.
 The starting material is often a solid block
of wax, which is very easy to machine.
Other starting materials can also be used,
such as wood, plastics, or metals.
Rapid Prototyping
Material addition processes
 Adding layers of material one at a time to
build the solid part from bottom to top.
Starting materials include
 Liquid monomers that are cured layer by
layer into solid polymers,
 Powders that are aggregated and bonded
layer by layer, and
 Solid sheets that are laminated to create
the solid part
Rapid Prototyping
 Control instructions (part program) in all of the current
material addition RP techniques involves;
 Geometric modeling (define enclosed voulme)
 Tessellation of the geometric model
 Slicing of the model into layers
Rapid Prototyping:
Classification

 The classification method is based on the form of the

starting material in the RP process:
 (1) liquid-based
 (2) solid-based
 (3) powder-based
Liquid-Based Rapid Prototyping
Uses liquid as the starting material, For example
 (1) Stereolithography (STL)

 (2) solid ground curing

 (3) droplet deposition manufacturing

1) Stereolithography
 A process for fabricating a solid plastic
part out of a photosensitive liquid polymer
using a directed laser beam to solidify the
polymer.
 One layer is added onto the previous layer
in each cycle to gradually build the
desired 3D geometry.
 The subsequent curing paths are defined
by the STI file.
1) Stereolithography
 Each layer is 0.076 to 0.50 mm thick.
Thinner layers provide better resolution
and allow more intricate part shapes, but
processing time is greater.
 Photopolymers are typically

acrylic, or epoxy based.

 He-Cd or Argon ion lasers,

scan speeds of STL lasers

between 500 and 2500 mm/s.
1) Stereolithography
 The time required to build the part ranges
from 1 hour for small parts of simple
geometry up to several hours for complex
parts.
 The time to complete a single layer is
givenAby the following equation;
i
Ti   Tr
vD

 The build
ni cycle time can be determined
 Ti
c layers,
forTall
i 1
2) Solid Ground Curing
 SGC works by curing a photosensitive
polymer layer by layer to create a solid
model based on CAD.
 The entire layer is exposed to an ultraviolet
light source through a mask that is
positioned above the surface of the liquid
polymer.
 (1) mask preparation, (2) applying liquid
photopolymer layer, (3) mask positioning
and exposure of layer, (4) uncured polymer
removed from surface, (5) wax filling, (6)
milling for flatness and thickness.
2) Solid Ground Curing
 The sequence for each layer takes about
90 seconds.
 The solid cubic form created in SGC
consists of solid polymer and wax. The
wax provides support to the part during
fabrication, but can be melted away later
on.
 No post curing of the completed prototype
is required, as in STL
3) Droplet Deposition Manufacturing
 DDM Involves melting of the starting
material and shooting small droplets onto
a previously formed layer.
 The liquid droplets cold weld to the
surface to form a new layer.
 Work materials include wax and
thermoplastics. Metals with low melting
point, such as tin, zinc, lead, and
aluminum, have also been tested.
Solids Based Prototyping
 (1) laminated-object manufacturing (LOM)
 (2) fused-deposition modeling (FDM)
1) Laminated-object Manufacturing
 Produces a solid shape by stacking layers of sheet stock
that are each cut to an outline corresponding to the
cross-sectional shape of a CAD model.
 The layers are bonded adhesively to one another.
 A heated roller moves across the new layer to bond it to
the previous layer.
1) Laminated-object manufacturing
 Starting material in LOM can be virtually any
material in sheet stock form, such as paper,
plastic, cellulose,metals, or fiber-reinforced
materials.

 Stock thickness is 0.05 to 0.50 mm.

 Adhesive backing is required for each layer.

 The laser is typically a 25-50W CO2 laser

 LOM part sizes can be up to 800 mm x 500
2) Fused Deposition Modeling

 A thermoplastic filament is extruded

through the small orifice of a heated die.
 A robot controlled extruder head moves in
two principal directions over a table,
which can be raised and lowered as
needed.
 When the first layer is completed, the
table is lowered so that subsequent layers
can be superimposed.
The computational steps
involved in producing a
stereolithography (STL)
file.
(a) Three-dimensional
description of the part.
(b) The part is divided
into slices. (Only 1 in 10
is shown.) (c) Support
material is planned. (d)
A set of tool directions is
determined for
manufacturing each
slice.
Shown is the extruder
path at section A-A from
(c), for a fused-
deposition modeling
operation.
2) Fused Deposition Modeling
Support Structures

(a) A part with a protruding section that requires support

material. (b) Common support structures used in rapid-
prototyping machines. Source: After P.F. Jacobs.
Powder-based Rapid Prototyping Systems
 These systems employ ceramic powder as
the starting material. There are two types
of these processes.

 Selective laser sintering (Developed by

University of Texas, Austin)
 Three-dimensional printing (Developed by
MIT)
1) Selective Laser Sintering (SLS)
 SLS chamber is equipped with two
cylinders:
 I. A powder-feed cylinder, which is raised
incrementally to supply powder to the part-
build cylinder through a roller mechanism.
 2. A part-build cylinder, which is lowered
incrementally as the part is being formed.

 The powders are preheated to just below

their melting point to facilitate bonding and
reduce distortion.
1) Selective Laser Sintering
xy galvoscanner

scrubbe
r

Schematic illustration of the selective-laser-sintering process.

Source: After C. Deckard and P.F. McClure.
1) Selective Laser Sintering
 The powder in other areas remains loose,
yet it supports the sintered portion.
 Another layer of powder is then deposited;
this cycle is repeated until the entire three-
dimensional part has been produced.
 For a ceramic part, it has to be
fired/sintered in furnace to develop
strength.
 Polymers (such as ABS, PVC, nylon,
polyester, polystyrene, and epoxy), wax,
metals, and ceramics with appropriate
2) 3-D Printing
 A print head deposits an adhesive bonding
material onto a layer of polymer, ceramic, or
metallic powder
 The part in the usual layer-by-layer fashion using
an ink-jet printer to deposit successive layers
binder on to the powder layer.

 The part is heat treated afterwards to strengthen

the bonding, followed by removal of the loose
powders.

 To further strengthen the part, a sintering step

can be applied to bond the individual powders.
2) 3-D Printing
 A layer of powder is spread on the existing
part-in-process.
 An ink-jet printing head moves across the
surface, ejecting droplets of binder on
those regions that are to become the solid
part.
 When the printing of the current layer is
completed, the piston lowers the platform
for the next layer
2) 3-D Printing
 Starting materials are powders of ceramic, metal, or
cermet, and binders that are polymeric or colloidal silica
or silicon carbide
2) 3-D Printing
2) 3-D Printing
 An example of 3-DP from ceramic powder is a ceramic-
casting shell, in which an aluminum-oxide or aluminum-
silica powder is fused with a silica binder.
 The molds have to be post processed in two steps: (1)
curing at around 150°C and (2) firing at 1000° to 1500°C.
Applications of the RP

Engineering
Tooling and
Design Analysis and
Manufacturing
Planning
• Design • Comparison of • Rapid Tool Making
qualification different shapes • Indirect RTM, such
• Reduced lead and styles to as RP fabricated
times optimise master in making a
• Reduction of aesthetics silicon rubber
design errors • Fluid flow through mold, wax model
• Property testing various orifice as investment
and assessment of design casting mold, RP
the part • Wind tunnel patterns to make
testing of different sand molds,
shapes Making electrodes
• Stress analysis for EDM
• Combining MRI to
create models for • Direct RTM
planning surgical includes, RP
procedures or fabricated mold
implants cavities inserts for
Limitations of RP

Mechanical
Limited
Part performanc
variety of
Accuracy e of
materials
prototypes
• Mathematic • STL only • Lower
al, applicable strength
• Process to than actual
related photosensiti parts
• Material ve polymers • Testing
related becomes
• Shrinkage difficult
• distortion