SPE Library
The SPE Library contains thousands of papers, presentations, journal briefs and recorded webinars from the best minds in the Plastics Industry. Spanning almost two decades, this collection of published research and development work in polymer science and plastics technology is a wealth of knowledge and information for anyone involved in plastics.
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Conference Proceedings
THE FIVE FACTORS THAT CONTROL TOOL ROOM PERFORMANCE
Steven Johnson, May 2012
Molding shops and mold builders realize more and more that the continued practice of a re- active “fixes it when it breaks” maintenance strategy is an exercise in futility. Excessive tooling and labor costs, missed production shipments and repeating part quality issues caused by knee jerk solutions and quick, cheap repairs stifle company growth. Changing a long standing re-active maintenance culture involves understanding the “5 factors of focus” that control tool room performance.
THERMOFORMABLE LIQUID CRYSTAL POLYMER (LCP)
Bing Lu, Achim Hofmann, Paul Yung, May 2012
Thermoforming is an economical process for forming large shape products. High performance liquid crystal polymer (LCP) has high thermal stability, excellent dimensional stability and high chemical resistance, which offers new application opportunities in demanding applications. In this paper, a new thermoformable LCP resin is compared with injection molding LCP on mechanical, thermal and rheological properties. Sheet extrusion and thermoforming process conditions are discussed.
EVALUATION OF LONG-TERM PERFORMANCE OF GFRP FOR HOT WATER APPLICATION BY INJECTION MOLDING
Masahiro Muto, Kazushi Yamada, Hiroyuki Nishimura, May 2012
In this study, the long GFR-PPS and short and long GFR-SPS were tested to evaluate the long-term performance at the elevated temperature in water and in air. As a result, tensile strength of there after 10000 hours at 150°C in hot water decreased to 60% or less due to degradation at the interface between matrix resin and GF.
COMPARATIVE STUDY OF WOOD-PLASTIC COMPOSITES BASED ON BIODEGRADABLE POLYMERS
Nattakarn Hongsriphan, May 2012
This research was performed to compare mechanical properties of wood-plastic composites based on PLA and PLA/PBS blend. Wood-plastic composites were prepared by melt compounding 70 wt% plastics; PLA, PLA/PBS 70:30 wt% blend, or PP; and 30 wt% pine wood fibers. A suitable coupling agent was used to improve compatibility between polymer matrix and wood fibers. Tensile, flexural, impact and fracture toughness were evaluated and compared. Phase dispersion and interfacial adhesion was studied by SEM.
PORCERAX II, 101 HOW TO PROPERLY MANUFACTURE, USE AND MAINTAIN YOUR PORCERAX INSERTS.
Russ Bowen, May 2012
Properly used and maintained Porcerax II, the self venting mold steel, will allow molders to reduce cycle times, injection pressure and scrap due to short shots, sink, and material burning. Design considerations should include: 1. Resins used 2. Surface finish of plastic part required 3. Size of problem area 4. Proper thickness of insert 5. Proper venting on cavity and backside of insert for optimal venting. 6. Molding vertical walls with Porcerax II 7. Ability to remove the insert for periodic cleaning
ADSORPTION AND BARRIER PROPERTIES OF PET/PP BLEND IN INJECTION MOLDING
Tadshi Otsuka, Ayako Kurosawa, Kazushi Yamada, Hiroyuki Hamada, May 2012
This research was evaluated the adsorption and barrier properties of PET, PP. The results showed that MVTR of the blend samples decreased with increasing PP contents while the residual rate of L-menthol decreased when increasing PP contents in blend. Therefore, the adsorption amount of a model compound, L-menthol tended to increase with increasing PP contents in the blends. However, the barrier effectiveness of the blends has been improved by the contribution of the PP.
ENVIRONMENTAL STRESS CRACKING OF POLYCARBONATES EXPOSED TO SUNSCREEN AND HAND LOTION
Brian E. Ralston, Suresh Donthu, Paul Ledwith, Adam Kramschuster, Jason McNulty, May 2012
Three general purpose polycarbonate (PC) resins and one PC-siloxane copolymer were injection molded, then exposed to isopropyl alcohol (IPA), hand lotion, and SPF 30 sunscreen while under strain. The hand lotion exhibited the most aggressive environmental stress cracking (ESC) behavior. Effects of molecular weight, polymer composition and annealing are addressed. Scanning electron microscopy of an ESC fracture surface is also presented.
NITRILE RUBBER-BASED NANOCOMPOSITES PREPARED BY LATEX COMPOUNDING OF POSS MODIFIED CLAY
Elana C. Lewis, Sarah E. Morgan, May 2012
Nanocomposites of HNBR latex and modified clays were prepared by latex blending. The results of x-ray diffraction show that using a reswell technique with trisilanolphenyl POSS with MMT and rubber provides a large d-spacing as well as a mainly exfoliated structure. Modified clay in the latex affords no change in thermal degradation temperature. POSS modified clays successfully provide thermal stability and an intercalated or exfoliated structure when mixed with latex rubber.
DEVELOPMENT OF DRYLESS PELLET -APPLICATION OF PELLET ENGINEERING
Megumi Setomoto, Kazuhiko Iyagawa, Hiroyuki Inoya, Kozushi Yamada, Hiroyuki Hamada, May 2012
This study was carried out to clarify a relationship between moisture absorption fraction and higher-order structure of dry-less recycled PET pellets. Karl Fischer moisture titration, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), microscopic Raman spectroscopy and scanning electronic microscope (SEM) were used to characterize the pellets to determine distinct structures that differentiates the dry-less pellets with normal pellets.
NOTES ON THE MICROPELLETIZATION OF POLYMER RESINS
William Aquite, Daniel Kasperek, Natalie Rudolph, Tim A. Osswald, May 2012
Manufacturing spherical polymer micropellets has been possible with a new technique that uses air to impose surface disturbances on an extrudate. Observations of experimental results considering properties of the melt are taken as the starting point for a deeper understanding of the behavior of polymer resins of interest in the production of micropellets. Such relationships include aspects of material properties as well as processing conditions.
THE AMERICA INVENTS ACT: SIX KEY CHANGES IN U.S. PATENT LAW
Steven J. Grossman, Beth A. Filip, May 2012
On September 16, 2011, the President of the United States signed into law the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act. This law includes some of the most significant changes to U.S. Patent Law since the early 1950’s, changing the U.S. patent system to a “first to file” system. The Act also introduces procedures, such as post grant review and supplemental examination, and alters existing procedures such as inter-partes re-examination.
EFFECT OF FIBER SURFACE TREATMENT ON THERMAL AND MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF JUTE MAT REINFORCED POLYCABORNATE COMPOSITES
Smith Thitithanasarn, Kazushi Yamada, Hiroyuki Nishimura, Hiroyuki Hamada, May 2012
This paper presents the possibility of using natural fiber as reinforcement for engineering thermoplastics composite. Jute mats from waste coffee bag were treated by thermoset resin such as flexible epoxy resin (FE) to improve their thermal resistance prior to compression mold with polycarbonate (PC). The effects of epoxy contents on thermal properties and mechanical properties of the composites were investigated.
MICROCELLULAR INJECTION MOLDING OF POLYLACTIDE WITH TALC
Amir Ameli, Davoud Jahani, Peter Ungyeong Jung, Chul B. Park, May 2012
The effects of talc content and injection flow rate on the foaming behavior of injection-molded microcellular polylactide (PLA) were investigated. Cell morphology with a cell size of less than 20 µm and cell density of greater than 108 cells/cm3 was successfully produced. The addition of 5 wt % talc to PLA increased the cell density roughly ten times and decreased the cell size about three times. Also, higher injection flow rate resulted in finer cells with greater density.
TROUBLESHOOTING RATE LIMITATIONS FOR MELT-FED SINGLE-SCREW EXTRUDERS
Mark A. Spalding, May 2012
Compounding lines that utilize single-screw extruders as the pumping device for pelletization can be severely rate limited if the metering channel of the single-screw machine is not optimized for the process. This paper provides the troubleshooting methodology for solving this type of problem using a case study.
CASE STUDIES OF NEW APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT USING ELECTRON BEAM IRRADIATION
Daniel Yasenchak, May 2012
Developing new cost-effective polymer products is challenging in the current competitive marketplace. Electron beam irradiation is a powerful tool used to improve the properties of a wide range of materials, particularly polymers, and has been used to gain a competitive advantage in many successful commercial products. This paper reviews three case studies in the development of new polymer products using electron beam irradiation and the role of the electron beam processor.
IN SITU OBSERVATION OF THE FOAMING PROCESSES OF CELLULOSE NANOFIBER REINFORCED POLYLACTIC ACID BIOCOMPOSITES
W.D. Ding, A. Wong, T. Kuboki, C.B. Park, M. Sain, May 2012
This paper examines the effect of fiber content on the foaming behavior of cellulose nanofiber reinforced polylactic acid biocomposites. The in situ observation of batch foaming processes was conducted by using a high-speed camera. It was found that nanofiber content has a significant effect on the cell nucleation and growth in the composite foams. As the fiber content increased, the cell nucleating power increased and cell growth rate decreased.
ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF CROSSLINKABLE POLYAMIDES – A LOOK AT ELECTRON BEAM IRRADIATED MOLDED PARTS
Bill Person, May 2012
A new family of radiation-crosslinkable polyamides has been developed for the North American market. A key component in the offering is technical support for product development. Companies can crosslink the polyamide using their current equipment or that of a contract electron beam processor and replace higher cost thermoplastic resins with the radiation crosslinkable polyamide. This paper discusses the technical advantages and target applications of the radiation crosslinkable polyamide.
SYNTHESIS OF POLYHEDRAL OLIGOMERIC SILSESQUIOXANE (POSS) FUNCTIONALIZED CARBON NANOTUBES
Xiaonan Kou, Christopher M. Sahagun, Robert Y. Lochhead, Sarah E. Morgan, May 2012
Polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) was covalently attached to modified carbon nanotube (CNT) surfaces to improve nanotube dispersion. Two types of POSS were attached to multiwall CNTs. TGA, ATR-FTIR and TEM characterization of the CNT-g-POSS hybrids demonstrated covalent bonding of POSS to the CNT surface. POSS- modified CNTs showed homogeneous, stable dispersion in THF.
EVALUATION OF LONG-TERM PERFORMANCE ON COMPOSITE PIPES
Youjiro Minami, Tatsuro Ueda, Masahiro Muto, Kazushi Yamada, May 2012
The creep fracture of pipes is evaluated by the applied internal pressure. However, there were some disadvantages such as long testing time, large equipment and careful treatment on the stress rupture test. In this study, the new creep testing method which is simple and accelerated testing was proposed on composite pipes such as multilayer pipes. The results of the fluctuating internal pressure test on multilayer pipes were also described.
STUDY OF THE KINETIC OF SLIP AGENT MIGRATION IN POLYETHYLENE SHEETS
Richard James Silverwood, Farhad Sadeghi, Abdellah Ajji, May 2012
Line speeds in vertical form fill seal machine can be greatly increase by using slip agents such as erucamide. The focus of this research was to develop a tool to rapidly characterise the amount of slip agent in a polyethylene film sample. Using a Fourier Transform Infrared spectrometer, a model of the kinetic of erucamide migration in polyethylene film was developed. This model can further be used to determine one’s erucamide content of a sample polyethylene film.
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