UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY SARAWAK

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

EEM3951
ENGINEERING LABORATORY

LABORATORY REPORT

LAB CODE SM 4

EXPERIMENT TITLE Demonstration of Laminate

Processing – Hot Pressing
Method / Compressing Method
GROUP NO 1

AARON MARVIN ANAK VINCENT

(BME22090001)

NAME GARY PETERSON ANAK TEGONG

(BME22090002)
AMELDA DIANA ANAK TONY (BME22090003)
JOSHUA JIMBAT ANAK NANT (BME22090007)
KWAN KAH ZHENG (BME22090008)
DATE OF EXPERIMENT 7/10/2022

DATE OF SUBMISSION 20/11/2022

LECTURER Dr. Irina Wong

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Objective 3

2. Theory & Introduction 3

3. Apparatus / Experimental Setup 4-5

4. Procedure 6

5. Results
6

6. Discussion 7

7. Conclusion 7

10. References 8

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TITLE: LAMINATING PROCESSING–HOT PRESSING/COMPRESSION METHOD

OBJECTIVE
To practice hot laminating press process to produce satisfactory laminated metal.

THEORY
Compression moulding is the most common method of moulding thermosetting materials.
It involves compressing materials containing a temperature activated catalyst in a heated
matched metal die using a vertical press. The uncured resin is mixed with the fiber are placed
on the mould. As the mould closes, the resin is flow to fill the mould cavity and metal
viscosity was reduced under the heat and pressure. The resin is cured and permanently
hardens into mould cavity shape. The composites finally can be removed from the mould
and ready for the next process such as grinding, polishing, etc.

Thermosetting materials undergo chemical reactions when heated, changing from a plastic
mass to a stiff and hard substance. Consequently, the hot laminating press procedure is one
of the ways to shape thermosetting materials. When using a hot laminating press, the material
inside the mould is subjected to uniaxial pressure at high temperatures under an inert
environment. Even though the pressure is delivered along the vertical axis, the die wall is
also under radial pressure. Particle bonding is facilitated by the shear produced by the
difference in tension between the axial and radial axes. As a result, the resin is then dried and
permanently solidifies into the shape of the mould cavity. The composites can be withdrawn
from the closed mould at the conclusion of the procedure. (Wikipedia contributors, 2022)

Epoxy resins are categorised as thermoset polymers, due to they have special properties
that make them useful in manufacturing. For example, they require little pressure to produce
items, have very little cure shrinkage, and have little residual stress. With the proper curing
agent selection, the degree of cross-links may be altered at a variety of temperatures.
(Sukanto etal, 2021)

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APPARATUS

1. Bain Mount
2. Resine Epoxy Powder
3. Resine Acrylique Powder
4. Spoon and Funnel
5. Mould Release Agent

EXPERIMENT SETUP

Figure 1.0: Bain Mount that has been used for the experiment to control the
temperature and to set up the Epoxy and Acrylic to become the solid experimental that has
the metal inside it.

Figure 2.0: The Epoxy Resin Powder that used for the experiment.

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 Figure 3.0: The Acrylic Resin powder that used for the experiment.

Figure 4.0: Spoon and Funnel that were used to scope and measure the amount of powder that
will be used for the experiment.

Figure 5.0: Mould Release Agent that used to release the cured casting

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PROCEDURE
1. The sample and resin epoxy powder were prepared first.
2. The mould closure was unscrewed.
3. Up/down switch was used to move Ram Up/Down to keep the sample up/down. Then
the mould lock was closed closer.
4. The mould release spray was used.
5. The sample was placed on the ram surface.
6. The metal sample is put in the centre of a funnel, which was mounted on the ram.
7. Three scoops of resin epoxy powder were added to the funnel, covering the metal
with a powder sample.
8. The mould seal was closed, and the ram began to rise slightly.
9. The metal sample and resin epoxy powder were heated for 10 minutes and then
cooled for 10 minutes after clicking the start button on the bain mould.
10. The bain mould's latch was loosened.
11. The metal laminate is carefully removed from the mould.

RESULTS

Figure 6.0: Laminated Epoxy Resin Figure 7.0: Laminated Acrylic Resin

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DISCUSSIONS
The above results show that by using an automatic Bain Mount makes laminating epoxy
and acrylic powder easier, which then makes grinding and polishing easier. After the metal and
powder was laminated, the interior of the machine was sprayed with silicone spray to prevent
metal from sticking there. The silicone spray serves as a lubricant, to put it another way. Then
the acrylic powder or epoxy were added inside, along with the metal. The Bain Mount was
sealed and the metal was compressed. This is to avoid having bubbles when laminated. Beside
that, the Bain Mount’s ability to set preset settings automatically is an advantage. Within 10
minutes of heating and cooling time, the temperature and pressure are set to high levels. Once
the heating process was finished, a hot water vaporization was released since the temperature
and pressure are so high. Therefore, nobody should approach while water vapor is released to
prevent anyone from getting burned. Finally, after the cooling process is done, a laminated
epoxy resin and acrylic resin is produced.

Paper can be made using the hot pressing process. Wood pulps are first formed into wet
paper and placed into a moulding cylinder. The moist paper was heated in the hot press and
dried under pressure. A paper with a smooth surface was created at the end. A class of superhot
presses was created when the press roll in the compression zone was heated to temperatures
over 100°C. Because of the high pressure in the nip, water was still in a liquid condition even
if the temperature has above 100°C. The fast evaporation of superheated water was caused by
further temperature increases in the press nip exceeding 100°C, which can result in paper
delamination as it leaves the pressing zone. As a result, hot pressing, which combines pressing
and drying, may be used to make paper.

CONCLUSIONS
From this experiment, a good laminated metal can be used the hot pressing method. Following
the laminating procedure, the utilized powder (Epoxy) is transformed into a hard and stiff
substance. This occurred as a result of the powder being subjected to high vacuum pressure and
vertical axis pressure during the hot pressing process. As a result, we may draw the conclusion
that the hot pressing procedure could result in an acceptable laminated metal.

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REFERENCES
Sukanto, H., Raharjo, W. W., Ariawan, D., Triyono, J., & Kaavesina, M. (2021, January 1).
Epoxy resins thermosetting for mechanical engineering. De Gruyter.
https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/eng-2021-0078/html?lang=en
Wikipedia contributors. (2022, October 27). Thermosetting polymer. Wikipedia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermosetting_polymer