9
Compression and Transfer
Molding
COMPRESSION MOLDING
Historians cannot establish definitely the date
of origin of the art of molding. It might be said
that the art of molding originated with prehis-
toric humans, when they learned how to make
pottery from clay, using the pressure of their
hands to form the shape and the heat of the sun
to harden the clay.
The earliest application of compression
molding as a manufacturing process occurred
early in the nineteenth century, when Thomas
Hancock perfected a process for molding rub-
ber. The first patent on a process of molding in
the United States was issued in 1870 to John
Wesley Hyatt, Jr. and Isaiah S. Hyatt.
Dr. Leo H. Baekeland's development of
phenol-formaldehyde resins in 1908 gave the
industry its first synthetic molding material,
which even today is one of the principal ma-
terials used in the compression molding pro-
cess.
Technique and Materials
The process of compression molding may be
simply described by reference to Fig. 9-1. A
two-piece mold provides a cavity in the shape
of the desired molded article. The mold is
heated, and an appropriate amount of molding
material is loaded into the lower half of the
Reviewed and revised by John L. Hull. Vice Chainnan,
Hull Corporation, Hatboro, PA.
251
M. L. Berins (ed.), SPI Plastics Engineering Handbook of the Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc.
© Van Nostrand Reinhold 1991
mold. The two parts of the mold are brought
together under pressure. The compound, soft-
ened by heat, is thereby welded into a contin-
uous mass having the shape of the cavity. The
mass then must be hardened, so that it can be
removed without distortion when the mold is
opened.
If the plastic is a thermosetting one, the
hardening is effected by further heating, under
pressure, in the mold. If it is a thermoplastic,
the hardening is effected by chilling, under
pressure, in the mold. (The procedure is de-
scribed in greater detail later in this chapter.)
Compression molding is used principally for
thermosetting plastics, and much less com-
monly for thermoplastics (for which injection
is the preferred method of molding).
Thermosetting Materials. Thermosetting
materials are chemical compounds made by
processing a mixture of heat-reactive resin with
fillers, pigments, dyestuffs, lubricants, and so
on, in preparation for the final molding opera-
tion. These materials or molding compounds
are, in most cases, in powder, granulated, or
nodular form, having bulk factors ranging from
1.2 to 10. Some are used in the form of rope,
putty, or slabs.
The materials of lower bulk factor are usu-
ally those having wood flour or mineral com-
pounds as fillers, whereas those of higher bulk
factor have as fillers cotton or nylon flock, rag
fibers, pieces of macerated rag, tire cord, sisal,
and, for very high impact strengths, glass rov-
252 SPI PLASTICS ENGINEERING HANDBOOK
"MO'D~
~_______ ~~~~E ~~~~~~~~~~~~
MOLDING
COMPOUND
MOLD
CAVITY
MOLD OPIN
Fig. 9-1. Basics of a two-piece fully positive compression mold. (From Plastics Mold Engineering)
ings, carbon fibers, boron fibers and Kevlar
fabric.
Phenol-fonnaldehyde is the single most
common resin and catalyst combination, gen-
erally called phenolic molding compound. If
the filler is mineral, such as mica, the molded
part will have good electrical properties. If the
filler is glass fibers, say one-quarter inch long,
the molded part will have good impact strength.
Small hollow glass micro-balloons have been
used as fillers to make low-density parts. Such
micro-balloon-filled compounds, when molded,
often are tenned "syntactic foam," achieving
densities as low as 0.78 g/cc.
Other resin systems include melamine-for-
maldehyde (often used in plastic dinnerware),
urea-fonnaldehyde (common in white or pastel
heat-resistant handles for kitchenware, or out-
let sockets for household use), alkyds and
polyesters (often used in high voltage insula-
tors in TV sets, or for arc resistance and insu-
lation in circuit breakers and switch gear), di-
allyl phthalate (electrical connectors in com-
puters), epoxy (housings for electronic com-
ponents), and silicone (high-temperature re-
quirements to 600 0 P or more). Common fillers
include silica, glass, wood flour, natural or
synthetic fibers, and combinations of these.
Although most thennosetting fonnulations
are dry and granular at room temperature, some
are puttylike, some in the fonn of dry or moist
matted fibers, and some a fine powder.
When subjected to heat, thennosetting for-
mulations first become liquid and then undergo
an irreversible chemical reaction called cure or
polymerization. If polymerization occurs under
MOLD ClOSED
mechanical pressure, as in a closed mold, the
resulting material is a dense solid. Polymer-
ization generally is a time-temperature rela-
tionship, with shorter cure times when higher
temperatures are used. Typical pressure, tem-
perature, and time values for a phenolic wall
socket in semiautomatic compression molding
might be 3000 psi, 300 o P, and l~ minutes.
Thermoplastics. Practically all compression
molding uses thennosetting plastics. But in cer-
tain &pecialized applicat!ops, thennoplastic
materials may be processed by compression
molding.
These materials, when compression-molded,
become plastic under pressure and heat in a
heated mold and flow out to the contour of the
cavity. Molds must be arranged for rapid heat-
ing and cooling because the molded articles
cannot be removed from the mold until the ma-
terial has been sufficiently cooled to harden.
This process of softening the plastic by heating
and hardening it by chilling can be repeated in-
definitely.
Large plastic optical lenses, for example,
may be compression-molded from methyl
methacrylate (acrylic). In this particular in-
stance, using compression molding rather than
the nonnal injection molding helps eliminate
flow marks, warpage, and shrink marks.
Por molding articles of heavy cross section
from thennoplastics (e.g., toilet seats), a com-
bination of injection and compression is some-
times advantageous. The mold is filled with hot
softened material by injection, and then is sub-
jected to pressure by means of a compression