There is a huge variety of injection molding plastics available in the market. Selecting the right material plastic for molding could seem like a difficult task. However, if you look carefully at the requirements of the application, and the overall material composition, you can easily select the best plastic. Following are types of injection molding material used within industry –
- Polypropylene (PP)
- PEEK
- ULTEM
- Liquid crystal polymer
- Zenite
- Vectra
- Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS)
- Polyamide (Nylon)
- High Density Polyethylene (HDPE)
- Acetyl
- Polycarbonate (PC)
- Polystrene
- Polyurethane
- ABS + PC Blend
Selecting a material that allows for maximum efficiency at minimal cost, is the goal in almost every industry. So, how do you do that?
This post will be your handy guide for selecting the right material for injection molding process.
What to Consider While Selecting a Material for Injection Molding?
Well, everyone has encountered this question within the course of production. Before selecting any material for injection molding, we need to assess material on basis of a few parameters like material flexibility, stiffness, temperature behavioral & more. Let us look into each of these factors in detail –- The degree of chemical exposure: Different plastics react differently to chemicals. Some plastics can withstand strong chemicals, whereas others tend to break down even in the presence of soft chemicals. Depending on the nature of application, you must select the material that can withstand oils, chemicals, cleaning agents, etc.
- The flexibility of the material: You must select a material on the basis of the application or the maximum load undertaken by it. Some materials can withstand a high load and stress, while some are soft and break easily. Some materials can withstand high load and stress, while some are soft and fragile. Material flexibility can be gauged with the help of stiffness tester device on scale on 0 to 100. The higher the score, the harder is the material. Material like ABS, PC are hard materials, while HDPE, PVC are soft material.
- Exposure to high temperatures: Some properties of plastics like creep resistance, impact strength, and tensile strength may vary greatly with temperature. Also, different materials have different temperature resistance. Therefore, you must take into consideration the entire range of temperatures that your parts may get exposed to during their use.
- Material hardness and density: It is important to evaluate the type of forces that your parts may be subjected during their use. Materials perform differently under different loads. Strength of the material depends on the density, so you must select a material according to the nature of use.
- Degree of UV exposure: Many plastics are known to disintegrate when exposed to UV radiations. If your application is going to be exposed to UV radiation regularly or for a longer time, it is advisable to use UV stabilizers to provide the needed protection.
- Color of your product: This is also an important specification as certain plastics tend to change their properties once the colors are added. This is one decision you have to make before buying your material, so that you don’t get unwanted surprises once you color them!
- Economically available: Needless to say, you must consider the cost factor before buying anything. There are a variety of plastics available in the market that can serve your purpose well without costing you a lot!
- Viscosity: When building complex components, a low viscous material is usually preferred to ease flow of material in mold. This helps ensure proper filling of material within the cavity. Thus, viscosity is a crucial factor to consider for material selection.
Besides above mentioned, there are some other factors like ease of processing, availability of materials and their impact on the environment, which you must consider before making your choice. If you are unable to make a decision on the right type of plastic for your injection molding project, it is always advisable to discuss with the machining services provider. Veejay Plastic is one of the reliable custom micro plastic injection molding services provider in the US.
