Polymer sintering and heat transfer are fundamental phenomena in rotational molding. Sintering experiments have been performed with rotational molding grade resins. It was shown that the sintering process of two particles was not significantly affected by the sintering surface. Based on this result, the initial coalescence of powder in rotational molding is predicted using a two-particle sintering model. The sintering model is used together with a lumped parameter heat transfer model to predict the level of powder coalescence during the heating cycle. Results showed that as the oven temperature increases, the time required for all the powder to melt decreases but the level of sintering before the formation of bubbles decreases.
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