HP ManufacturingHP ManufacturingHP ManufacturingHP Manufacturing
  • About Us
  • Services
    • OEM Custom Parts
    • Point-of-Purchase
    • Distribution
    • House of Plastics / Retail Store
    • NCP (Norton Ceiling Plastics)
  • Capabilities
    • Plastic Fabrication
    • Acrylic Fabrication
    • Polycarbonate Fabrication
  • Gallery
  • Blog
  • Contact Us
  • Resource Center
    • Buyers Guide
    • Design Guide
  • Request a Quote
    • Request a Quote – Manufacturers
    • Request a Quote – Consumers

Which Thermoset Plastic is Right for You?

    Home BlogWhich Thermoset Plastic is Right for You?
    Topics: Types of Plastics

    All plastic materials fall into one of two categories: thermosetting polymers, which remain solid and retain their shapes under heat once they’ve been cured and thermoplastic polymers, which deform and even melt under heat after curing.  At times, customers come to us to ask which polymer technology is best suited for their design and application. Here is a checklist of engineering trade-offs we discuss with them when making those decisions. 

    In addition to being heat-, corrosion-, and water-resistant, thermosets have high dielectric strength and a high strength-to-weight ratio. The first thermoset, polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride, which is better known as Bakelite, was developed by the Belgian chemist Leo Baekeland in Yonkers, New York, in 1907. Bakelite’s ability to maintain its shape under high heat, coupled with the fact that it was available in a range of colors, made it popular for a variety of applications, including handles on cookware, radio, and telephone casings, and electrical insulators. 

    Determining when the first thermoplastic came into practical usage is a little trickier. Some sources say polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which was accidentally discovered in 1838 and again in 1872, didn’t find real-world applications until the mid-1920s. Others point to celluloid’s development, which initially was invented in 1848. And there are those who would opt for polystyrene, which was accidentally discovered in 1839, but which wasn’t manufactured commercially until the early 1930s. 

    These days, thermoplastics are considered to be the “pretty” members of the polymer family, appearing in products such as the shiny plexiglass displays found in shopping malls. By comparison, thermosets are typical to be found in “out of sight and out of mind” electrical and construction applications, such as the insulators at the top of cell towers, for example. 

    There is a wide variety of thermoset materials available, including GPO I, II, III, IV, paper-based phenolics, canvas-grade phenolics, FR-4, G7, G10..the list goes on. In most thermoset products, these materials are used in conjunction with a substrate or base material, such as paper, woven cotton cloth, canvas, and glass fibers to achieve the desired properties for the target application. You can picture it this way:  

    Of course, the above diagram offers only a simplistic view of things. Each of the substrate materials are available in many different forms, such as the number and size of their fibers, for example. Also, the combination of different thermoset materials with different substrate materials offers a multi-dimensional solution space regarding characteristics such as mechanical properties, dimensional stability, resistance to chemicals, resistance to heat, resistance to moisture, flame retardance, insulating properties, and dielectric properties.

    A checklist of properties and questions to ask might include: 

    • Is this an electrical application?  
    • Is there moisture in your environment? Is there salt or humidity, perhaps if you’re in Florida? 
    • What’s the working operating temperature? 
    • How important is structural integrity to the part you’re designing? Does it have to hold something? 
    • Do we have to paint it after production? 
    • What’s the flame rating or flammability you’ll encounter? 

    As with nearly any engineering decision, the material required will call for a blend of performance trade-offs. Stronger materials may provide the durability you want, but they come with cost or weight disadvantages to your application.

    Here at HP Manufacturing, we’ve been working with both thermosets and thermoplastics since our company was founded in 1939. In the case of thermoplastics, we have tremendous expertise with respect to machining, polishing, and painting parts and creating sub-assemblies – in effect everything that’s required to satisfy our customers’ exacting requirements. Working with thermoplastics is not a trivial matter, because different materials exhibit widely different characteristics that require specialist tooling and specific “speeds and feeds.” This explains why our decades of expertise in this area allows us to create the most complex parts while maintaining the tightest tolerances. 

    If you are interested in learning more about this topic, including help with deciding which combination of thermoset and substrate materials will best satisfy the requirements of your unique application, then contact us for a consultation at 216-361-6500 or info@hpmanufacturing.com. 

     

    Get the Design Guide

    More Posts

    • OEM components machined by HP Manufacturing

      Why Choose HP for CNC Plastic Machining?

      At HP, we understand the importance of delivering components that are machined to the highest tolerance with the utmost precision.Read more

    • Plastic Machining Tips and Tricks

      When it comes to working with plastics, shaping and forming processes such as cutting and milling can certainly seem routine. Yet the expertise of your precision machining partnerRead more

    • An Introduction to Acrylics and Acrylic Fabrication

      Fabricating products out of acrylics using processes like solvent welding (cementing), break forming, flame polishing, and drape forming requires a lot of expertise. Fabricating products out of acrylics using processes like solvent welding (cementing), breakRead more

    • Polycarbonates—Tough Guy in the Plastics World for Strength and Durability

      Many clients come to HP Manufacturing with questions about polycarbonates and whether that’s the right material to use for their plastic fabrication project. To make that decision, there are a few engineering factors and trade-offsRead more

    • cnc custom machined plastic parts for oem medical aviation and retail

      Factors to Consider While Selecting a CNC Plastic Machining Supplier

      When you need a precision-machined, custom plastic component or assembly, you need to ensure your product is machined to the highest tolerance from initialRead more

    • Advantages of Reshoring Plastic Fabrication From Asia

      The rise of China, Vietnam, and their neighbors in Southeast Asia as a manufacturing powerhouse has been well documented. The ability to keep costs low, provide adequateRead more

    • plastics for aerospace

      Applications for Custom Plastic Machining

      Any OEM looking for custom, quality plastic components manufactured to tight tolerances inevitably looks to CNC machining. It not only offers the quality neededRead more

     

    See All Posts

    SUBSCRIBE TO KEEP UP


    Loading

    POSTS BY TOPIC

    • CNC Plastic Machining (4)
    • Global Issues (1)
    • Polycarbonate (1)
    • Supply Chain (1)
    • Types of Plastics (3)

    RECENT POSTS

    • Polycarbonates—Tough Guy in the Plastics World for Strength and Durability
    • An Introduction to Acrylics and Acrylic Fabrication
    • Plastic Machining Tips and Tricks
    • Why Choose HP for CNC Plastic Machining?
    • Factors to Consider While Selecting a CNC Plastic Machining Supplier
    HP Manufacturing Logo

    Fabrication and distribution of custom precision machined plastic components, assemblies, and displays.

    HP Manufacturing
    3705 Carnegie Avenue
    Cleveland, Ohio 44115

    Phone Number(216) 361-6500
    Fax Number(216) 361-6508
    House of Plastics Phone(216) 675-1420

    Let's Get Started

    No matter your plastic fabrication requirements, we’re ready to serve you

    • About Us
    • Services
      • OEM Custom Parts
      • Point-of-Purchase
      • Distribution
      • House of Plastics / Retail Store
      • NCP (Norton Ceiling Plastics)
    • Capabilities
      • Plastic Fabrication
      • Acrylic Fabrication
      • Polycarbonate Fabrication
    • Gallery
    • Blog
    • Contact Us
    • Resource Center
      • Buyers Guide
      • Design Guide
    • Request a Quote
      • Request a Quote – Manufacturers
      • Request a Quote – Consumers
    MAGNET Logo ERC Logo IAPD Logo ISO Certified Logo AIA Certified Logo NorthCoast 99 Logo Linkedin Logo
    Magnet logoerc logoaia logoISO logoNorth Coast 99 logo PMPA logo
    iapd logo
    Attending IAPD Conference, Tampa, 9/12-9/15

    Copyright 2022 HP Manufacturing | All Rights Reserved.

     

    • About Us
    • Services
      • OEM Custom Parts
      • Point-of-Purchase
      • Distribution
      • House of Plastics / Retail Store
      • NCP (Norton Ceiling Plastics)
    • Capabilities
      • Plastic Fabrication
      • Acrylic Fabrication
      • Polycarbonate Fabrication
    • Gallery
    • Blog
    • Contact Us
    • Resource Center
      • Buyers Guide
      • Design Guide
    • Request a Quote
      • Request a Quote – Manufacturers
      • Request a Quote – Consumers
    HP Manufacturing