Rotational molding of thermosetting three‐phase syntactic foams

Abstract

Abstract Thermosetting three‐phase syntactic foams consisting of glass micro balloons, resin, and air voids dispersed in the resin were studied and are reported in the present work. Specimens for measurements of density and compressive properties were cut from the syntactic foam walls of hollow products prepared in rotational molding. These walls are characterized by loose‐packed structures, densities from 0.12 to 0.24 g/cm 3 , and compressive strength from 3 to 20 kg/cm 2 . The free void fraction of these loose‐packed structures is compared with close‐packed structures as a function of resin weight fraction, and semi‐quantitative relationships are derived. Potential applications of such hollow articles are as core materials for large products of complex geometries where light weight combined with a good balance of mechanical properties, low dielectric loss, and good thermal resistance are desired.