What Is Plastic Injection Moulding

Injection moulding is often ranked as the one of the commonly used processes in the production of plastic items. The popularity of plastic injection moulding is often due to the fact that it is a fast process which can be used to produce vast quantities of identical plastic items ranging from disposable consumer goods to high precision engineering components.

Typically Produced Products

The majority of thermoplastics, such as nylon, polystyrene and polycarbonate are produced through the injection trash can mould suppliers process, as are the majority of all plastic products ranging from micro parts to large components such as wheelie bins. Also, the fact that this process can produce items that range greatly in shape and size has resulted in the extension of the boundaries of plastic design and enabled significant replacement of traditionally used materials in part due to light weighting and freedom of design.

The Basic Process

The basic process involves the introduction of a material, via a hopper, into the injection moulding machine. This moulding machine consists of a heated barrel, equipped with a reciprocating screw (which is driven by a hydraulic or electric motor), which itself feeds the molten polymer into a temperature controlled split mould through a channel system of runners and gates.

The reciprocating screw plasticises (melts) the polymer as well as acting as a ram during the injection phase. The shearing action of the screw on the polymer also provides additional heating during this part of the process and the polymer is then injected into a mould which is created according to the required dimensions of the finished product.