Due to the excellent material properties with regards to heat and corrosion resistance, and it’s ability to withstand different outdoor elements and weather, parts and components molded from thermosets are commonly used within the Utilities and Power Grid industries. OEMs rely on thermosets for electrical protection to keep lines up without being jeopardized when exposed to aggressive outdoor elements such as snow, heat, and rain. These applications include electrical housings and enclosures that house electronics and wiring, along with traditional circuit breakers and power blocks to not only protect internal components and electronics from damage, but keep the assembly safe to handle and install for line-workers and maintenance. (more…)
Engineers and product designers convert existing products from metals or metallic materials to thermosets in applications for a variety of advantages and benefits to the application. Thermosets offer the moldability of plastics in that they can be molded in a variety of complex geometrical shapes. Whereas metal product applications may require costly secondary machining, lapping, or honing operations to finish a part; thermosets may be molded to tolerances of +/-.005”. In addition to saving on secondary operations, utilizing thermosets in a product design can consolidate multiple parts of an assembly, as well as lower part weight over metal components and assemblies. For high-volume applications, thermosets offer a scalable solution to meet increasing product demand and volume requirements. (more…)
Thermosets are used in molding applications requiring an end-part or product assembly to remain stable within challenging environments. These environments may include exposure to high temperatures, corrosion, or chemicals. Molded thermoset parts exhibit very good dimensional stability, even in high heat and operating temperatures. Thermosets have heat resistance up to 400-500F depending on the material formulation, whereas thermoplastic molding materials such as a nylon or ABS can disfigure, melt, or carbonize and jeopardize the integrity of a product. Parts molded from a thermoset remain dimensionally stable, allowing the molded component or assembly to remain durable over the lifespan of a product. If your part or product assembly must withstand high operating temperatures and aggressive end-use elements, choosing a thermoset as your molding material may help keep your product assembly remain safe and functioning as intended. (more…)
Thermoset Plastics are a niche grade of molding material compared to common engineered thermoplastics such as PA66 (nylons), ABS, Polypropylene. While thermosets are much less known, they have actually been around much longer. The first plastic material created, bakelite, created by Leo Baekeland in 1907 was a type of thermoset composite. Despite use dating back a century ago, thermosets are much less widely used in molding applications. For applications that do not require stringent material properties, many designers and OEMs look to thermoplastics, which are commodity grades that can be remelted and remolded. Using thermosets on the other hand require an application needing a material with much stronger properties such as temperature and corrosion resistance, high electrical strength, and low deflection properties. (more…)
In an injection molding process, material flows from the molding machine into the mold cavity with a sprue or runner channel system. The area where the runner meets the molded part is called the gate. In thermoset injection molding, mold designers and processors have various gate options at their disposal to mold acceptable parts with as little waste. One variable in a mold design is the gating including gate types, locations, and gate sizes. Different gate types include edge gates, sub-gates, and center sprue gates. Even among different gate types, the geometry and size of the gates can be modified based on the molded part, its drawing specifications, and requirements to properly fill the part in the mold. (more…)
Molded thermoset composites provide end products and assemblies with excellent material performance in dimensional stability, heat resistance, and electrical properties. With it’s dimensional stability and stiffness to molded parts, manufacturers generally utilize inserts as fastening mechanisms to mate multiple parts in an assembly. Whereas thermoplastics can be designed with locking mechanisms and snap fits, thermosets stiffness do not allow for these details to be designed into a part and require a secondary fastening option. Threaded inserts are one of the most common fastening mechanisms used in thermoset assemblies due to their ability to be molded into the part or tapped in a secondary operation. Depending on the part and assembly requirements, each option has its own benefits and advantages. (more…)
As a performance-based material, thermoset molded parts are resistant to heat up to 400-500F, corrosion, and chemicals. These properties lend thermosets to be used in a variety of end markets. One market using thermosets is outdoor applications. Components and products that live, or are used, in the outdoors must stand up to aggressive weather elements throughout various climates. Whether a part is used in the deserts of Arizona, or in cold weather in Canada, molded parts must not degrade when exposed to weatherability. Whether a part has an aesthetic look, protects internal components, or a combination of aesthetics and performance; using thermosets as a molding material helps products remain durable over its lifecycle. Applications including outdoor grill components, light housings, enclosures, and infrastructure, utility, and energy components all live outside and are exposed to varying weather elements. (more…)
One of the main differences between molding thermosets and thermoplastics is that thermoset molded parts must be deflashed after they are formed, whereas thermoplastics are molded without flash. Flash is excess material from the material needed to form a full part. In order to mold a full part, thermosets must be molded with flash, otherwise the part integrity may be jeopardized by shorts, burns or other molding defects. Regardless of whether a molded thermoset part is molded into basic or complex geometries, it will always require a secondary deflash operation. Removing the excess flash can be done in a variety of ways, depending on what is most suitable to the part and volume requirements. (more…)
As a performance-based material, thermosets offer molded components with corrosion resistance, chemical resistance, and durability within high heat and operating temperatures. This durability allows thermosets to be used in applications exposed to tough environments where thermoplastic components could degrade or compromise the safety and performance of a product assembly. Industries such as the automotive, electrical, appliance, and energy markets all take advantage of these material benefits to utilize thermoset plastics within their product offerings. (more…)
A big difference between molded thermoplastic (nylon, ABS, polypropylene, etc.) parts and thermoset (BMC, phenolic) parts is the performance properties the molding material provides a part with. Whereas thermoplastics can be remelted and remolded, a molded thermoset part cannot be remelted and re-molded a second time. This is due to the chemistry composition thermosets exude. This unique chemistry composition not only creates permanent molecular bonds in a thermoset molded part, but protects parts from corrosion in moist, damp, condensation, steam, or water-based environments. (more…)
