Study on the Flow, Foaming Characteristics and Structural Strength of Polypropylene Structural Foam Injection Molding by Innovative Nitrogen and Molten Plastic Mixing Mechanism
出版日期:2023-04-28 00:00:00
著者:Huang, Chao-tsai
著錄名稱、卷期、頁數:Polymers 15(9), 2116
摘要:Plastic foam molding methods include thermoforming, extrusion and injection molding.
Injection foam molding is a one-time molding method with high production efficiency and good
product quality. It is suitable for foamed plastic products with complex shapes and strict size
requirements. It is also the main method for producing structural bubbles. In this investigation, we
developed a structural foam injection molding technology using the gas supply equipment connected
to the unique plasticizing mechanism of the injection machine and studied its influence on the
specimens’ melt rheology quality and foam structures. In the experiment, the forming material
was polypropylene (PP), and the gas for mixing/forming foaming characteristics was nitrogen (N2).
Additionally, in order to observe the rheological properties of N2/melt mixing, a melt flow specimen
mold cavity was designed and the change in the melt viscosity index was observed using a melt
pressure sensing element installed at the nozzle position. With the nitrogen supply equipment
connected to a unique plasticizing mechanism, the mixing of gas and molten plastic can be achieved
at the screw plasticizing stage, where the foaming effect is realized during the melt-filling process
due to the thermodynamic instability of the gas. It was also found that an increase in N2 fill content
increased melt fluidity, and the trend of melt pressure and melt viscosity index showed that the higher
the gas content, the lower the trend. The foaming characteristic depends on the gas thermodynamic
instability and the pressure release, so it can be seen from the melt fill path that, the greater the
pressure near the gate, the lower the foaming amount and the internal structure (SEM) after molding;
the farther from the gate, the greater the relative increase in the foaming growth/amount. This
phenomenon will be more obvious when the N2 fill content is increased.
關鍵字:structural foam injection molding technology;foaming process-sensing system;polypropylene;melt rheology;viscosity index
語言:en
ISSN:2073-4360
期刊性質:國外
收錄於:SCI
審稿制度:是
國別:CHE
出版型式:電子版