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

On-Line Processability Characterization Of Thermoplastic Formulations During Injection Molding

Christopher Thurber, March 2019

Processability is a critical performance parameter when developing thermoplastic formulations for injection molding applications. This paper describes various on-line methods for quantifying processability and compares the results with off-line rheological methods.

Developing Scratch-Resistant Clear Coating For Automotive By Using Molecular Necklace Cross-Linker

Moon sung wook, March 2019

Surfaces of the automobile are damaged in various forms due to external forces. The most common damage is scratch. It is not only a physical damage but also a fatal failure in an aesthetic point of view. Scratch damages are often observed on the clearcoat, which is the top layer of the automotive paint. In this study, scratch tests were conducted to evaluate the scratch resistances of various types of clearcoat layers. ASTM D7027 standard was modified to observe scratch damage more clearly.

Chromatic Effects For Sensitive Plastics Applications

Aaron Hollman, March 2019

This paper highlights the use of organic pigments, pearlescent effects and metallic pigments in the design of decorative materials for sensitive plastics applications. Examples of sensitive applications include food packaging and toys, as well as, cosmetic packaging, pharmaceutical applications and medical devices.

Plastic Design Pitfalls

Pavan Valavala | Paul Tres, March 2019

This paper will review a number of plastic part design pitfalls which came to a head when a little boy was badly burned after his digital watch caught fire and partially burned. The product was designed in the US and mass produced in China. The design of the product was improper, however the tool design and execution made it worse.

Melt Index And Extensional Rheology Combined

tim haake, March 2019

Using two established measurements, the combination thereof rolled into one instrument and one measurement, is herewith covered. A Melt Indexer and an Elongation Tester put together, greatly enhance the usefulness of each test result by itself, while saving much time compared to running tests individually. GOETTFERT has many years of experience with both individual tests and developed the D-MELT in close cooperation with a customer, who has many years of experience with a similar design mix. Introduction

Two-Tiered Approach To Extending Food Life

Wylie Royce, March 2019

There are several approaches to extending food life including but not limited to; Oxygen Scavengers, Anti-Microbials, UV Blockers and Absorbers, as well as Multi-Layer Films. No single additive has been found that will effectively address the various food products and by-product from rotting food and extending the life and taste of food. We Utilize two products which in combination slow the degradation of food and the spoilage cycle.

Modelling Laser Light Transmission In Thermoplastic Composites Using Monte-Carlo Simulation

Philip Bates, March 2019

The distribution and quantity of laser energy reaching the weld interface are both important for predicting the quality of a laser-transmission weld. A Monte-Carlo model for simulating the path of laser light through light-scattering plastic parts has been developed and validated. The model accounts for absorption, scattering, and reflection in the transparent polymer. The model outputs include the transmittance of the inputted laser light as well as the energy density distribution at the weld interface.

Case Study: Synergy Of Industrial Design And Plastics Engineering Applied To The Design Of A Hyperspectral Imaging Camera

Michael Paloian, March 2019

Innovative products are recognized by designs which have creatively applied a new technology or when a common utilitarian product is been reinvented to reenergize its market appeal. This case study will describe the development of a unique medical device based on the interdependency of industrial design and plastics engineering to yield an award-winning design that could only be attained by a comprehensive integration of these two disciplines.

The Effect Of Boundary Conditions, Material Parameters, And Rotational Flow On Center Layer Thickness And Stability In Tri-Layer Annular Flow

Tyler Schneider, March 2019

A tri-layer simulation study utilizing ANSYS Polyflow was conducted in an attempt to understand the effect of the material parameters, namely viscosity and elasticity ratios, on center layer thickness and stability under annular flow. During the study, it was determined that inflow boundary conditions also had a considerable impact on the thickness trends observed. Results of two different inflow boundaries and four material parameter conditions are presented and discussed within.

Advancements In Decorative Pvd Chromium Coatings For Polymer Substrates

Michael Brazil, March 2019

Environmentally friendly PVD on plastics for automotive decoration are rapidly gaining acceptance. They replace galvanic processes, eliminating their toxic process and waste stream for plating on plastic (POP). VTI’s SuperChrome has already received approvals from Daimler and PSA. Part design for PVD, polymer selection, and available range of color and appearance will be discussed. OEM specifications based on testing, unique to PVD and distinct from both electroplate and painted surfaces are required.

Biopolyesters For Agriculture: Permeation And Degradation For Controlling Chemical Release

Margaret J Sobkowicz, March 2019

Biobased and biodegradable polymers are well suited to agricultural applications where hey can be left in the field to degrade into innocuous byproducts. These polymers are lso widely used for biomedical controlled release. However, the properties and egradation rates are not necessarily suitable for the environmental conditions and utrient demand of plants. In this work, two different biodegradable polyesters are repared and contrasted in terms of their diffusion and degradation rates.

Characterization Of Recycled Polymer Compound By Thermal Analysis

Yanxi Zhang, March 2019

Thermal analysis techniques, such as DSC, TGA, DMA and TMA are commonly used in polymer characterization. In this paper these techniques with the help of Identify, a database search software, are used to characterize recycled polymer compounds for preselection.

Heat Treated Bamboo Fiber For Sustainable Polymer Blends

Curtis Covelli, March 2019

This study evaluated polymer composites produced from recycled PA6 and PP blend with bamboo fiber. Blends of bamboo fiber were used as received, as well as heat treated. It was observed that heat treatment at 160ºC/180ºC improved the tensile and impact properties of the composite compared to untreated fiber composite. The goal of the study was to produce a thermally stable, lightweight composite suitable for under-hood applications.

Injection Molding Processing Of Bio-Based & Bio-Filled Resins

Chad Ulven, March 2019

Injection molding with bio-based and/or bio-filled resins is becoming more commonplace as the plastics industry responds to the environmental and sustainable desires of the economy. This paper presents some intricacies of part design and processing developments when injection molding with bio-based and bio-filled resins.

Sustainable Polyamide Compounds

Ying Shi, March 2019

Value added cost effective and sustainable polyamide 6 and 66 compounds were prepared by incorporating 10 to 30% recycle content without significantly sacrificing physical properties. This was achieved by reactive extrusion with chain extending additives to couple low molecular weight chains in recycled feed streams. Three types of chain extending additives with different functionalities were evaluated in this study. Based on the performance and cost, one of the chain extending additive was identified as the best option.

Strain-Hardening Behavior In Transient Elongational Viscosity For PP Containing LDPE

Masayuki Yamaguchi, March 2019

Transient uniaxial elongational viscosity for binary blends composed of conventional isotactic polypropylene with linear structure (PP) and low-density polyethylene produced in an autoclave reactor (LDPE) was evaluated. The blends were prepared by melt-mixing to make PP as the continuous phase. Although LDPE exists as dispersed droplets, it was found that the LDPE addition provides the strain-hardening in transient elongational viscosity for PP. During elongational flow, LDPE droplets dispersed in the PP matrix were deformed in the flow direction because the viscosity of LDPE used is lower than that of PP. As increasing the strain, however, the deformed LDPE droplets act as rigid fibers due to its strain-hardening behavior. Consequently, the PP matrix located between the fibrous LDPE droplets is deformed greatly during elongational flow. This excess localized deformation is responsible for the strain-hardening in the transient elongational viscosity for the blends.

Requirements For Medical Plastics - Launch Of New Guideline

Stefan Roth, March 2019

Safety for patient and user is an essential requirement for medical products. Subsequently, plastics grades used in medical have to fulfil particular requirements, i.e. constant properties, formulation lock or biocompatibility. Surprisingly, no standard has existed to define the requirements for medical grades so far. This gap has been filled recently by the new guideline VDI 2017 developed and launched by a work group of the German Engineer’s Society (VDI). This article addresses the development of the new guideline and presents the essential requirements to be covered by a medical grade.

A Studey Of The Thermo-Oxidative Degradation Of Glass-Fiber Sizings At Composite Processing Temperatures

Jim Thomason, March 2019

Although not fully understood it is well recognized that optimal working of glass fiber sizings is necessary to maximize the performance of glass fiber reinforced polymer composites. However, test results indicate that the performance of polypropylene compatible glass fiber sizing can be significantly compromised by thermooxidative degradation at normal composite processing temperatures. Results obtained using TGA, DSC, microbond adhesion measurement and composite mechanical testing indicate that a significant reduction in composite performance is directly related to a loss of fiber-matrix adhesion caused by thermal degradation of some of the principal sizing components.

Pellet Heat Transfer Model With Crystallization Kinetics Using Finite Element Method

Vinod Kumar Konaganti, March 2019

An advanced Finite Element Method (FEM) based transient pellet heat transfer model with crystallization kinetics is developed to better understand the cooling requirements for a clean pellet cut during polyethylene manufacturing. This model considers conduction/convective heat transfer in and around a polymer pellet with enthalpy changes, considering a pellet of spheroid shape surrounded by a cooling water off constant temperature. The model further accounts for the changes in stiffness or elastic modulus obtained from rheological measurements using multi-wave oscillatory test during cooling/crystallization stages of the polymer. A series of simulations were performed to understand the effects of several parameters such as resin architecture/formulation, crystallization kinetics, initial molten pellet temperature, water inlet temperature, water to pellet ratio (i.e., water flow rate) and pellet dimensions. It was found that for resins of similar Melt Index (MI) and density, the differences in structural characteristics can significantly affect the pelletization process and pellet cut. This model may serve as a strong tool for efficient design, operation and troubleshooting of downstream equipment (e.g. pelletizer, cutter, Pellet Conveying Water (PCW) system, stripper etc.) through understanding of the effects of molecular architecture of the resins and/or optimization of various processing and operating conditions.

Modeling Of A Foamable Mixture Flow Through A Heat Exchanger And Relation To Foam Inhomogeneities

Valentina Woodcraft, March 2019

To understand transient cell size patterns in extruded foams, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling was used to map temperature, velocity, and pressure in a foamable mixture traveling through a simplified heat exchanger geometry. A comparison was made between cases of clean and partially plugged heat exchanger device. The analysis revealed that the predicted inhomogeneities of temperature, pressure, and velocity do not correlate with the observed cell size pattern. However, residence time maps showed clear similitude with the observed pattern, in particular for geometries simulating partial plugging of the individual heat exchanger channels.