An Insight into Materials Used for Making Custom Textures Creation for Thermoplastic Sheets

Introduction

Thermoplastic sheets are widely used in various industries because of their diverse properties and adaptability. The main trick lies in the formation process; thermoplastics can be easily molded into various custom textures or surfaces based on their design. But before we divulge deep into the technology behind how custom textures are created via thermoplastics, we need to understand the basics of thermoplastic.

Thermoforming of Plastics

Thermoplastics are created via a method known as thermoforming. As the presence of ‘thermo’ in the word indicates heat, it means plastic sheets are molded into thermoplastics using heat as the main process. Different variants can be produced using different methods of heat generation methods, but the general concept is always the same. A flat sheet of material, in this case, plastic, is passed through a specific forming method to produce thermoplastic sheets. Different methods of forming used are:

Ø  Pressure Forming: The main way of applying force is by using pressure equipment on the plastic sheets. This is especially beneficial for creating fine details and designs that are otherwise difficult via other methods.

Ø  Vacuum Forming: It is the easiest and the most preferred method for creating thermoforming plastic. Generally used to create bigger molds with fewer details, vacuum forming uses pressure suction method to create shapes and details. Because the vacuum is not usually controlled, it cannot be used to create finer details

Creation of Custom Textures

Coming back to our topic in hand, custom textures are extremely fine details on plastic sheet surfaces that are used for insulation or padding purposes in buildings and furniture. Manufacturers that deal with custom sheets use their own specialized methods and tweaks to make it, but most of it is done by pressure forming methods. This is because very fine detailing can be obtained via this method, and it is applicable on a wide range of thermoforming plastic materials such as:

Ø  Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene: It is one of the most commonly used materials for creation of thermoplastics. It is very workable and can be used to create a variety of designs. Different strength grades are also available such as different strength variants, temperature resistance, etc.

Ø  Flame Retardant Plastic: Its main characteristic is flame resistance that drastically reduces the risk of material catching and propagating fire in case of fire hazards. These are primarily used as aircraft interior materials, building materials and insulating purposes. Aircraft and cleanroom variants use specialized flame-retardant versions that emit very low smoke for enhanced protection.

Ø  High Impact Polystyrene: As the name suggests, it is highly formable and costs less that most other thermoforming materials. The main applications are in making glossy surface finishes and for opaque objects such as containers and shelves.

Ø  High Density Polyethylene: This is extremely tough and durable, and used for making rigid forms such as plastic bins, containers, trays, dividers for rooms and many more. They are non-reusable after being formed, so cannot be re-melted and formed into some other product.