Know-How
Hot Runners: A View from the Bottom Up
Addressing hot-runner benefits, improvements, and everyday issues from the perspective of decades of experience with probably every brand on the market. Part 1 of 2.
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How Do You Like Your Acetal: Homopolymer or Copolymer?
Acetal materials have been a commercial option for more than 50 years.
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PBT and PET Polyester: The Difference Crystallinity Makes
To properly understand the differences in performance between PET and PBT we need to compare apples to apples—the semi-crystalline forms of each polymer.
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Tracing the History of Polymeric Materials: Polyphenylene Oxide Blends
PPO was a promising new high-performance thermoplastic, but it could be made useful only by mixing it with a humble commodity resin.
Read MoreWhy Compression Ratio is Important
Compression ratios have been pretty much standardized over the years, based on what has typically worked before. But there are quite a few variables that must be considered in order to get the optimum performance from your screw.
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Melt Preparation Part 1: Melt Temperature Optimization
A homogenous melt is required for consistent part quality, but achieving it requires balancing a number of factors, including barrel usage and temperature as well as screw speed, backpressure and residence time. Learn how to prepare your melt for molding success in this two-part series.
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How to Set Barrel Zone Temps in Injection Molding
Start by picking a target melt temperature, and double-check data sheets for the resin supplier’s recommendations. Now for the rest...
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The Strain Rate Effect
The rate of loading for a plastic material is a key component of how we perceive its performance.
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How Much L/D Do You Really Need?
Just like selecting the extruder size and drive combination, the L/D should be carefully evaluated.
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Take Proper Care in Feeding Your Extruder
Everything that happens in an extruder starts at the feed throat, so proper attention to that zone’s temperature pays off in quality and productivity.
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