Ideally, there are three major types of polystyrene used in polystyrene mouldings that include polystyrene foam, polystyrene film and regular polystyrene plastic. Moreover, amongst the types of foam, you will find Expanded Polystyrene is commonly known as EPS and Extruded Polystyrene or XPS more in use.
Expanded Polystyrene includes packing peanuts and Styro foam. Extruded Polystyrene is used for architectural building models due to its high density. Other types of plastic are copolymers and homo-polymer-PS that is pretty brittle. However, this can be combined with other materials such as High Impact Polystyrene or HIPS to make it more impact resistant.
The polystyrene film can be vacuum formed and is extensively used in different packaging applications. These films are usually stretched to form Oriented Polystyrene or OPS. It is cheaper to produce than any other alternatives like PP, but these are more brittle.
Polystyrene for Injection Molding
In manufacturing of injection Polystyrene Mouldings, the most commonly and even the most effective PS resins were to be used are these two: General Purpose Polystyrene and High Impact Polystyrene. GPPS is brittle but is clear on the other hand HIPS are less brittle and opaque.
Though these are plastic variants there is no scope for any health risks. This is because, polystyrene is usually non-toxic in nature, odourless and is therefore predominantly used in the food packaging industry. However, polystyrene by itself is highly flammable and have many similar properties as other organic compounds. Therefore, when it is burned it emits carbon dioxide as well as water.
Few Beneficial Features
Ideally, Polystyrene Mouldings have specific properties that make it unique and effective.
These are prefinished moulding and very light weight
It is very simple to cut even by using conventional saws
Usually installing these mouldings are easy and a one-person job
These mouldings can be installed with any construction adhesive and you can also use finishing nails
Being slightly flexible these mouldings are perfect for false walls
Most importantly these are moisture resistant and therefore ideal for kitchens and bathrooms.
Measuring Your Room
It is important to measure your room precisely for perfect Polystyrene Mouldings. The usual process to follow includes:
Measuring the length of each wall accounting for the openings of doors and windows
To this arrived measure you must add ten percent of the total value for metering
Ideally, you will get these molding in a wide variety of lengths. Therefore, if you buy longer lengths for molding larger rooms you will have to make fewer cuts and joints.
The Useful Properties
It is the properties of Polystyrene Mouldings that makes it such a popular choice. The properties of moldings are:
Durable – It can withstand damp conditions and there is no loss of strength.
The moisture resistant property makes it a hygienic option.
These are made up of 98% air making it exceptionally light weight.
It has high thermal insulation properties.
Number of Applications
Polystyrene or PS is used for a number of applications apart from Polystyrene Mouldings. The most significant use of it is seen in food and electronics industries for protective packaging of the products. These were lightweight are also easy to transport food containers, white goods and other consumer electronic products. Apart from that the exceptional thermal insulation property blended with high mechanical protection properties makes PS an ideal choice for packaging of fish. It is also used in horticulture as a seed tray. The outstanding shock absorbency, compression resistance and other protective qualities are hard to overlook when selecting polystyrene for moulding in factories or at home.
Comments