Techniques for Silicone and Silicone Rubber Moulding
December 16th, 2011
Silicone is a very important material which has several applications in various industries ranging from engineering, medical, manufacturing etc. Industries dealing in reproducing machine parts and toys are also great users of silicone. There are mainly three techniques used for silicone and silicone rubber moulding depending on the industry and what is being moulded. The tree most common moulding techniques used for silicone and silicone rubber are Master Part, Block Moulding, and Two-Part Moulding. The use of any of these techniques for moulding depends on the size and what is being moulded.Master Part is the most popular moulding technique used for silicone and silicone rubber. This method is very easy to complete and is considered very safe. To use this method, you are required to first make a master version of the part to be moulded. Making a master version is done by encapsulating the part to be moulded using a moulding material. The part is then supported on spacers then enclosed in a retaining frame. The resulting mould will have a negative impression of the part. This impression can be filled with special liquid material such as epoxy resin. This technique of silicone and silicone rubber moulding is mostly used to reproduce flawless duplicates.The second technique used for silicone and silicone rubber moulding is Block Moulding. This consists of making one or two parts and is primarily used for making very simple designs or moulds. It is very fast and is preferred for producing rapids moulds especially on an assembly line of a factory. In this method, the silicone is first processed known as degassing before being made into a mould. The degassing process aims to remove the amount of air bubble which is trapped in the material.The third technique widely used for silicone and silicone rubber is Two-Part Moulding. This method is preferred when the mould to be made consist of two parts, the bottom and the top. This is the most effective technique used to make a replica of such a mould. Silicone is poured on the bottom to make the first mould. It is then help in position for some time then turned once the silicone has cured to make the mould for the second part. The silicone is again poured in the op part when turned.