CNC Machined Polyurethane Foam Sealing


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JLiang
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Hello, 

I'm part of a student design team looking to make kevlar enclosures from a negative mould. I've done work in the past with carbon fibre in an MDF mould, which I sealed with gelcoat. However, gelcoat was a huge pain to work with, didn't sand well, poor surface finish, etc.

This time I'm looking to use either aluminium or closed-cell polyurethane foam, which I will be machining on a CNC router. What sort of mould release agents should I use? Is just a wax and some PVA ok? Are there better mould materials to use? These are very low volume, room-temperature VARTM process moulds, 2-3 pulls max so I'm not concerned about long term durability, just ease of machinability and low price. The parts are also very small, largest is about 150x125x54mm. 

Thanks for your help!
Edited 5 Years Ago by JLiang
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JLiang
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KLComposites - 1/20/2020 2:03:39 AM
Agreed. Been buying a lot of aluminum from Xometry here in the US, and the price is amazing, even compared to PU board, let alone epoxy.

Sweet. I'll look into it more. 

What sort of surface prep do AL moulds need? Just wax and PVA?

Thanks for all the help guys.

Edited 5 Years Ago by JLiang
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