Study of Thermal Stress Influence on Dimensional Stability of Silicone Molds

The paper is focused on the study of temperature influence on dimensional stability of silicone molds used for spin casting of the low melting points alloys. The silicone material denoted as TEKSIL Silicone-GP-S was used to produce samples during experiments. The samples were heated to temperatures in the range from 100 up to 250oC for 30 up to 120 min. Dimensional changes of the samples in the radial and axial directions aa well as their change of weight were evaluated. The results of experiments proved that thermal stress of silicone molds can influence the size and shape of mold cavities. These results can also explain the possible mechanism of degradation process of silicone molds under thermal stress.