Young's modulus variation within polystyrene injection moldings

Young's modulus distributions in the depth direction within injection moldings made from polystyrene have been investigated by empolying two independent techniques. Both methods show that the material close to the surface exhibits relatively high stiffness, whereas at all other depths a lower uniform stiffness exists. The depth dependency of other material characteristics, such as tan δ peaks in the dynamic mechanical thermal analysis spectra and molecular orientation, have been investigated in an attempt to correlate them with the stiffness distributions. It appears that the thermomechanical history of the different regions within the moldings, particularly the stresses acting during flow and the temperature gradients set up during cooling, are primarily responsible for the Young's modulus distributions presented here. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.