A novel method for improving the surface quality of microcellular injection molded parts

Microcellular injection molding is the manufacturing method used for producing foamed plastic parts. Microcellular injection molding has many advantages including material, energy, and cost savings as well as enhanced dimensional stability. In spite of these advantages, this technique has been limited by its propensity to create parts with surface defects such as a rough surface or gas flow marks. Methods for improving the surface quality of microcellular plastic parts have been investigated by several researchers. This paper describes a novel method for achieving swirl-free foamed plastic parts using the microcellular injection molding process. By controlling the cell nucleation rate of the polymer/gas solution through material formulation and gas concentration, microcellular injection molded parts free of surface defects were achieved. This paper presents the theoretical background of this approach as well as the experimental results in terms of surface roughness and profile, microstructures, mechanical properties, and dimensional stability. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.