Effect of injection molding conditions on the properties of polyamide 6/calcium carbonate nanocomposite

Abstract

© 2023 Wiley Periodicals LLC.The application range of polyamide 6 in lightweight part applications can be significantly increased by using appropriate processing parameters and by incorporating additives. Therefore, specimens were manufactured at varying mold temperatures and injection velocities to study the effect of injection molding parameters on the properties of polyamide 6 and its nanocomposite with nano-calcium carbonate. Mechanical properties, degree of crystallinity, density, heat deflection temperature, and melt flow index were measured to assess the effect of injection molding conditions on material properties. Mold temperature was the process factor that most affected polyamide 6 and polyamide 6/nano-calcium carbonate properties. Increasing this parameter increased density, impact strength, flexural strength, flexural modulus, and heat deflection temperature. The nanocomposite's degree of crystallinity, tensile modulus, and melt flow index also increased. High injection velocity reduced only the impact strength of the nanocomposite. The findings indicate that by modifying injection parameters, it is possible to improve mechanical properties and processing efficiency of polyamide 6 and its nanocomposites, bringing them closer to their maximum potential. Incorporating the nanofiller increased almost all properties except for impact strength and elongation at break. Nano-calcium carbonate provided considerable advantages to polyamide 6 mechanical performance and processability while increasing sample weight by only 1.5%.