LIQUID SILICONE RUBBER | INNOVATION
Finding the right solutions in LSR moulding
Specialist materials and technology suppliers in liquid silicone rubber are helping injection moulders get the best results when using this unique material. David Eldridge reports
Injection moulding with liquid silicone rubber is becoming a widespread activity and LSR mould- ings are proliferating in the automotive, medical and babycare sectors, and in food-contact applica- tions. But the issues an injection moulder needs to deal with when processing the liquid raw materials and moulding LSR parts means that the support of partners with knowledge of materials, technology and moulds is vital. LSR is valued for its combina- tion of rubber-like properties with high transpar- ency (or colourability) and its ability to be used in human-contact applications that other elastomers are not suited for. LSR’s varying attributes require moulders to consider such things as compression set, hardness and flex modulus and they must also develop knowledge about dosing systems in addition to injection moulding technology. It is important to select the right LSR material for the customer’s application, said Oliver Franssen, Momentive Performance Materials‘ Global
www.injectionworld.com
Marketing Director, speaking at AMI’s LSR Innova- tions conference in Cologne in March. There are misunderstandings that arise between customer and material supplier, which he said comes from the difference between what the customer asks for and what he really needs. One example is when a customer wants to discuss hardness, but what the customer needs is the mechanical reaction of the material and that is better quantified with the modulus, Franssen said. In his presentation, he indicated other areas where misunderstandings can arise, including comparison of tensile test results for different LSR materials, compression set, adhesion, colour and oil lubrication. Self-lubricating LSR materials were the subject of
a presentation by Franssen’s colleague Oliver Safarowsky, Lead Scientist at Momentive. A new material, Silopren LSR 3366/50, is the most heat- resistant self-lubricating LSR that the company has developed. Expectations in the automotive sector
April 2018 | INJECTION WORLD 29
Main image: LSR injection moulding is used for a wide variety of technical applications
PHOTO: ELMET
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