Investigation of the influencing factors on the process-dependent elasticity modulus in extrusion blow molded plastic containers for material modelling in the finite element simulation

The mechanical properties of plastic components, especially if they are made of semi-crystalline polymers, are considerably influenced by the process conditions. The degree of crystallization influences thermal and mechanical properties. Even more important is the orientation of molecules due to stretching of the polymer melt. Anisotropic material properties are the result of such orientations. Up to now all these effects are not considered within the simulation models of blow molded parts.The intention of the presented report is to determine the process-dependent modulus of elasticity in extrusion blow molded plastic containers made of high-density polyethylene. For own investigations a special blow mold is designed and built. In order to determine the process-dependent elasticity modulus, test specimens are taken from those blow molded parts. Applied testing methods are the tensile test, the three point bending test and the dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). The test results are statistically analyzed b...