Free quenching experiments were performed on thin plates of polystyrene (PS) and polycarbonate (PC). The thermal birefringence distribution along the thickness direction of the plates was measured. The birefringence data were compared with the results of a numerical simulation based on the linear viscoelastic and photoviscoelastic constitutive equations for the mechanical and optical properties, respectively, and the first-order rate equation for volume relaxation. The effects of the initial temperature, quenching temperature, and quenching media on the development of residual thermal stresses and birefringence were evaluated. At higher initial temperatures (Ͼ105°C), the thermal birefringence in quenched PS plates was negative at the center and positive at the surface, whereas at lower temperatures (close to the glasstransition temperature), the birefringence became positive at the core and negative at the surface or positive through the entire cross section of the plate. The birefringence in freely quenching PC plates was positive at the center and negative at the surface at any initial temperature. These observations were in fair agreement with predicted data.

Tensile stress‐relaxation experiments with simultaneous measurements of Young's relaxation modulus, E, and the strain‐optical coefficient, Cϵ, were performed on two amorphous polymers—polystyrene (PS) and polycarbonate (PC)—over a wide range of temperatures and times. Master curves of these material functions were obtained via the time‐temperature superposition principle. The value of Cϵ of PS is positive in the glassy state at low temperature and time; then it relaxes and becomes negative and passes through a minimum in the transition zone from the glassy to rubbery state at an intermediate temperature and time and then monotonically increases with time, approaching zero at a large time. The stress‐optical coefficient of PS is calculated from the value of Cϵ. It is positive at low temperature and time, decreases, passes through zero, becomes negative with increasing temperature and time in the transition zone from the glassy to rubbery state, and finally reaches a constant large negative value in the rubbery state. In contrast, the value of Cϵ of PC is always positive being a constant in the glassy state and continuously relaxes to zero at high temperature and time. The value of Cσ of PC is also positive being a constant in the glassy state and increases to a constant value in the rubbery state. The obtained information on the photoelastic behavior of PS and PC is useful for calculating the residual birefringence and stresses in plastic products. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 39: 2252–2262, 2001

A physical modeling and a two-dimensional numerical simulation of the injection-molding of a disk cavity by using a hybrid finite element method (FEM) and finite difference method (FDM) are presented. Three stages of the injection-molding cycle--filling, packing, and cooling--are included. The total residual stresses are taken to be a sum of the flow stresses calculated using a compressible nonlinear viscoelastic constitutive equation and the thermal stresses calculated using a linear viscoelastic constitutive equation. The total residual birefringence is taken to be the sum of the flow birefringence related to the flow stresses through the stress-optical rule, and the thermal birefringence related to the thermal stresses through the photoviscoelastic constitutive equation. The Tait equation is used to describe the P-V-T relationship. The simulation shows that without packing the birefringence in the surface layer of moldings, with its maximum near the surface, is caused by the frozen-in flow birefringence (flow stresses) and in the core region by the frozen-in thermal birefringence (thermal stresses). With packing, a second birefringence maximum appears between the center and the position of the first maximum due to flow in the packing stage. The predicted birefringence profiles and extinction angle profiles are found to be in fair agreement with corresponding measurements in literature for disk moldings. V V C 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 622-639, 2006

Two-dimensional simulation and experimental studies of flow-rate-controlled coinjection molding were carried out. Skin polymer was injected first, and then both skin and core polymers were injected simultaneously into a center-gated disk cavity through a two-channel nozzle to obtain an encapsulated sandwich structure. The physical modeling and simulation developed, reported in Part I of this series, were based on the Hele-Shaw approximation and the kinematics of the interface to describe the multilayer flow, and the interface development was used to predict the skin/core distribution in the moldings. The effects of rheological properties and processing conditions on the material distribution, penetration behavior, and breakthrough phenomena were investigated. The predicted and measured results were found to be in a good agreement.

A theoretical study has been carried out on the transient gas‐liquid interface development and gas penetration behavior during the cavity filling and gas packing stage in the gas‐assisted injection molding (GAIM) of a tube cavity. A mathematical formulation describing the evolution of the gas/melt interface and the distribution of the residual wall thickness of skin melt along with the advancement of gas/melt front is presented. The physical model is put forward on the basis of Hele‐Shaw approximation and interface kinematics and dynamics. Numerical simulation is implemented on a fixed mesh covering the entire cavity. The model and simulation can deal with both primary and secondary gas penetrations. The predicted and measuredresults are compared in Part II of this study to validate the theoretical model. Polym. Eng. Sci. 44:983–991, 2004. © 2004 Society of Plastics Engineers.