Source’s Link : https://medium.com/@josephdaniel2340/modernizations-and-innovations-in-structural-foam-molding-297a94b4af50
We know that structural foam molding is the first choice for producing strong plastic parts with minimal weight, but do you know why? The secret lies in its process, which is quite similar to traditional molding methods with a couple of upgrades. Like traditional injection molding methods, Structural Foam Molding is also a method of injecting molten polymer into a pre-designed mold, but the addition of a chemical blowing agent makes it different and somewhat better than other methods.
What makes structural foam molding different from other molding methods?
In simple terms, there’s an inert gas added into the melted polymer before or at the time of injection. It acts as a chemical blowing agent that expands and gives a uniform foam-like core structure to the end products. Low-pressure is used for injecting the melted polymer, thereby allowing enough time for the inert gas to get the job done.
As a result, final parts built through this method are around 10-30 less heavy than solid plastic parts. So basically, structural foam molding is all about producing light-weighted plastic parts with a decent strength. The ability to produce plastic parts with a high strength-to-weight ratio is unarguably the main reason why this method is popular nowadays. However, structural foam molding also offers many more benefits when the production is done using advanced machines and latest equipment.
Ahead in this post, we’ll explore other noteworthy attributes of this manufacturing method.
- As we have earlier mentioned, low-pressure is used for injecting the melted polymer, allowing you to produce plastic parts with minimal or no sink marks at all. Thus, fewer secondary operations are needed, which eventually lowers the overall production cost.
- End products built through foam injection molding have decent impact-resistance ability due to honey-comb core structure. Thus, there’s nothing wrong in saying that structural foam molding produces durable products.
- Plastic parts built through this method also have decent sound deadening and thermal insulating properties, again thanks to the foam-like core of the products. Moreover, structural foam molded parts offer better electrical insulating properties compared to solid parts.
- Since low-pressure is used for injection process, it allows you to use aluminum molds, which are less expensive compared to other alternatives, thereby cutting down the production cost without compromising on the quality.
- Freedom to use aluminum molds doesn’t only help to cut down the production cost, but it also offers faster production cycles, thanks to better heat transfer rate of aluminum. In addition, aluminum molds may last as long as steel molds because of low pressures.
Having these many advantages, structural foam molding is most probably the best choice for lightweight plastic parts, but at the same time, you must not forget that the mold quality and machinery can have a serious impact on the final products. Taking this into consideration, we aim to deliver optimal results at iMold USA, LLC with our advanced technology and high-end molds, and all this at very affordable and competitive prices.
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