There are a broad range of plastic resins being utilized in the process of injection molding in order to produce identical and accurate plastic components. Each resin material differs with respect to other in form, structure, properties, strengths and weaknesses. Hence, the resin selection process for plastic injection molding activities must be carefully done, which often becomes a confusing task. This post is thus intended to familiarize you with the 6 most commonly used types of plastic resins for the injection molding process.
6 Common Plastic Resins for Injection Molding
The following are the 6 popular plastic resins for the fastest and most optimized methods of plastic production i.e. injection molding.
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- Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS): Possessing outstanding impact and mechanical strength, this material is widely established as a “general purpose” injection molding material. It can be easily machined, sanded, or colored. It is popular due to its capability to maintain dimensional stability under load.
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- Celcon (Acetal): Mostly chosen for toy parts as well as gears and bearings, this material is selected by injection molders to make a broad range of consumer products to industrial components. Acetal possesses excellent surface lubricity, creep resistance, chemical solvent resistance, good heat distortion, and low moisture absorption.
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- Polypropylene: Being flexible and compatible to be “deformed”, the material is used to fabricate plastic kitchenware, dishwasher safe plates, and storage containers. Good elasticity and toughness, fatigue resistance, insulation properties are a few amongst the features that add to the popularity of the material.
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- High Impact Polystyrene (HIPS): The ability to be printed, glued, bonded, and decorated easily make this material popular amongst injection molders across the globe. Specially used in graphic arts applications, it helps create parts with highly customizable surfaces, good impact resistance, and excellent machinability, among others.
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- Polycarbonates: These high-grade plastic resins offer excellent strength retention at high temperatures. The material is chosen to make LED lights, clear windows, and sporting equipment.
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- Low-density Polyethylene (LDPE): This is one of the most common types of polyethylene that offers excellent resistance against moisture, impact, and chemical. Being weatherproof, LDPE is widely used for making everyday applications, and products such as electronic wiring, agricultural tools, medical products, and so on.
Rather than the aforementioned types, there are Nylon (PA), Polyetherimide (PEI), Polyoxymethylene (POM), Polystyrene (PS) and several more plastic resins available for applications in plastic injection molding industry.
Important Points to Consider Before Choosing Plastic Resins
Amongst the plenty of plastic resins available, what best suits your process? The choice of the right resin material is extremely important to ensure the quality of the end product. The following pointers must be considered before making a choice.
- Exposure of parts to chemicals, temperature and pressure variations
- Hardness, flexibility, and weight
- Impact strength, tensile strength, and creep resistance
- Surface finish, appearance and performance
- Stiffness and flexibility
- Flexural modulus of elasticity
- Heat deflection
- Water absorption
- Impact strength and fatigue resistance
- Melting point, cooling point and cooling time
Would you like to source good quality plastic resins for your ongoing or next injection molding process? Getting the right material from the leading suppliers is important to assure optimal product performance and manufacturability. Mid Continent Plastics is one of the leading plastic resin suppliers for injection molding industries. The firm works closely with the clients to provide the best material that fit rightly for their job.
