Machining and Joining of Plastics

General Machining properties of Plastics Machining parameters and their effect Joining of plastics Mechanical fasteners Thermal bonding Press fitting

Machining and Joining of Plastics

Caution in Plastic machining

Thermoplastics - Temperature should not rise beyond 60 C Thermosets - Temperature should not rise beyond 150 C

Heating should be controlled By controlling cutting speed, feed and tool geometry - Using suitable coolants Use smooth running machines To create smooth cut

General machining properties of plastics Methods for machining Plastics Sawing Milling Turning Drilling Grinding Polishing

Machining of plastics Differ machining of metals Thermal conductivity low Heat resulting from friction during machining does not dissipate readily. Effective cooling is a must Thermal Expansion. - High Cutting - Blade may get stuck in Drilling Bore may turn out to be smaller than drill bit Notch and crack sensitivity High Machined cut should be smooth to obtain good load bearing capacity Strength Low Machining require less force

Parameters for different machining operations

Band saw and circular saws are used Band saw is preferred because of better heat dissipation Skip tooth blades give better results (teeth do not clog easily)

Design of saw blade teeth

Standard values for sawing plastics

Mill cutters for plastics have fewer flutes than in metal cutting High speed steel or carbide / carbide tipped tool can be used Generally highest cutting speed and lower feed are used Harder material Lower rake angle Softer material Low number of flutes and higher feed

Tool angles for mill cutters

Standard values for milling plastics

Twist drills used for metals can be used for plastics A steep helix angles allows easy chip removal
Caution: Frictional heat expand plastic significantly - Bore holes turn out to be smaller than the drill bit In practice A slightly larger dia drill bit must be used to produce the desired dimension Materials that smear easily (PE &PP) Machined at higher feed and lower cutting speed (to remove heat along with the chip)

Tool angles for Twist drills

Thermosets and plastics with glass fiber fillers

The lathe should operate at high speed and equipped with liquid cooling system Tools wit carbide edges are used

Tool angles for Turning tools

Standard values for Turning plastics

Carried out with conventional abrasive papers or belts. Grinding speed should be 10 m/s Felt & butterfly wheels with polishing compounds used To avoid melting of surface process is interrupted frequently

General guide to cutting speed, feed and depth of cut for machining of plastics

JOINING OF PLASTICS

Joining

Adhesive bonding, Welding & Mechanical joints Mechanical fasteners

Used when permanent joints (welding & adhesive) are undesirable Can be moulded-in inserts and post-moulding inserts Moulded-in inserts Placed in the injection mould cavity so that plastic is moulded around the threaded inserts Post moulding inserts

Self tapping inserts Expansion inserts Press fit inserts Ultrasonically placed inserts

Self tapping inserts External threaded screwed into a moulded or drilled hole Expansion inserts - Insert is pressed into a moulded or machined hole, when a screw is introduced, insert is forced to expand in the hole and grip the plastic Press-fit inserts - These inserts have a knurled surface which grips the plastic Ultrasonically - The insert, with a grip on its surface is directed placed inserts into the plastic using ultrasound waves

Press fit metal insert

Threads can be moulded into plastic components for subsequent assembly using standard screws or bolts If it is not convenient to include thread at the time of moulding, thread can be made in most thermoplastics Self tapping screws can be used in a moulded or drilled hole (Screwing and unscrewing limited to six times)

Use of two types of screws

A non-recoverable joint Used in joining many types plastics to themselves and other materials Strong but not leak proof Special self expanding rivets made from thermosets (nylon or acetal) are also used

Rivets

Self expanding rivets used in plastics

Can be recoverable or a non-recoverable joint This technique utilizes the resilience of the plastics Strong joints can be made, but not leak proof unless sealing rings are included

Snap fits

Snap fits to join plastic articles Spring steel fasteners which grip a metal screw or a stud from one of the parts top be joined, is used to join

Spring fasteners

Use of spring clip fasteners

Welding of plastics
Welding plastics Use of heat and pressure to join two parts made of same or very similar plastics Only thermoplastics can be welded Energy supply for fusion of plastic - five general methods

Various methods of welding are divided into five

Pressure causes the melt to flow and the two surfaces to become inseparably joined Heating time is important to melt enough plastic and mix Welding consists of five steps i. Cleaning of surface ii Heating the surface iii Applying the pressure iv Cooling under pressure v Finishing the welding seam They both should melt at the same time They must display similar viscosity in the molten state They must be miscible in the molten state

Conditions for obtaining a strong bond between two parts to be welded

Welding methods Hot tool welding Use heating elements to heat the mating surfaces

Direct method Heat flows directly from the heated tool into the mating surface ( eg. Hot-Tool Butt Welding) Indirect method External heat is conveyed to the mating surface through the rest of the part (eg. Thermal impulse sealing) Hot-Tool Butt welding Mating surfaces melted surface melting Pressure applied until a closed bead is visible Continue heating at reduced pressure The hot tool is withdrawn quickly Surfaces to be joined are moved together until they touch. Pressure is increased and maintained until it cure

Thermo-Impulse Sealing - indirect method Used for thin very thin films due to poor thermal conductivity Application: Packing industry (to close pouches bags & sacks) Welding is performed by heating thin metal bars with a high current pulse.Bars are coated with anti-adhesion material The films melt and weld Both single-sided & double sided impulse bar are used It is necessary to attain the melt temperature at the point of contact between the films without reaching the warmer edge to decomposition temperature

Hot gas welding

-Used for assemblies and repairs

The surfaces to be joined are heated by hot gas and welded under Pressure, usually with additional material. In manual welding the front of the material is heated by the back and forth movement of the torch.

Welding rod must be fed vertically under pressure from above

Friction welding

-This method take advantage of frictional heat

Spin welding (external friction) Symmetrical (rotational) parts are welded by external friction One part rotates and other part remains stationery The stationery part is pressed against the rotating parts with force Once a sufficiently large bead is developed, the clamping fixture is released. The seam cools under pressure

Ultrasonic welding (internal friction)

It utilize the mechanical damping property of plastics An apparatus is used to generate a high frequency mechanical vibration This vibration penetrates the plastic piece and is reflected by the anvil, thus creating a stationery wave If damping is too strong, the plastic will absorb the vibration, thus preventing it from reaching the mating surface. This method is used in large scale serial welding of toys & electrical appliances

Radiation welding methods In radiation welding the energy required to fuse the mating surface is introduced by rays of heat or light (laser) This cannot be used with transparent plastics, since they absorb too little light. Induction welding In induction welding a supplementary material is placed between the two parts to be joined. This material contain a powder that can be magnetically activated. Powder is stimulated by a high frequency magnetic field, and thus gets heated up The powder heats the rest of the supplementary material, which in turn heats the mating surface. The mating surfaces are joined under pressure.