Technique Measures Physical Properties Of Polymers As They Cool And Contract

A new technique examines the physical properties of polymers as they cool and contract. The technique is particularly useful for injection-molding companies that can now accurately predict the final properties of the products they are molding. The measurement technique, developed by England's National Physical Laboratory (NPL), will help manufacturers produce high-specification components to an extremely high standard much more quickly and accurately than previously possible.

To perform the technique, users heat a sample of material and constantly measure the volume and temperature of it as it is cooled in a specially developed apparatus. The test equipment measures the cooling process from 420°C to room temperature at rates as rapid as 250° per minute and under high pressures. The data collected using this technique has already helped molders to predict polymer shrinkage and warpage much more accurately than with previous techniques. This is because the technique more accurately copies the conditions found in real industrial processes.

Companies in the injection-molding industry or suppliers to the industry are invited to participate in further work with NPL to help develop the technique.

Materials World, the journal of the Institute of Materials, first reported this item.

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