What is the development trend of rotational molding technology?

The development trend of rotomolding technology is mainly reflected in the following aspects:

Process technology

Automation and intelligence: Rotomolding equipment will develop in the direction of automation and intelligence, realize automatic feeding, heating, cooling, demoulding and other processes, shorten the production cycle, reduce production costs, improve production efficiency and product quality stability. For example, the fully automatic electric heating rotomolding technology launched by Persico s.p.a. in Italy can complete operations such as feeding, opening molds and removing products by itself.
Heating and cooling technology optimization: Computer simulation of the heat conduction of the heating and cooling process of rotomolding, establishment of corresponding mathematical models, and precise control of various process parameters using automation technology. Infrared microwave heating and other technologies are used to improve molding efficiency and quality. At the same time, by introducing flowing air into the mold, the temperature gradient between the inner and outer walls of the mold and the plastic product is reduced, and the warping deformation caused by the difference in the crystal structure of the product caused by the temperature difference is reduced.
Development of new molding technology: Rotomolding foaming molding, rotomolding cross-linking molding, rotomolding multi-layer composite molding technology, etc. will be further developed and applied. For example, the roto-molding foaming technology invented by Shinny Case Company of Japan uses polyethylene foam for the inner layer of the product and polyethylene or polypropylene for the outer layer. It is realized through a one-step method and can be applied in refrigerated boxes, floating facilities, hot water tanks and other fields.
Material
Research and development of new resins: In addition to polyethylene resins, research and development of special roto-molding materials such as polypropylene, polystyrene, polycarbonate, nylon, ABS, SAN and elastomers to meet the needs of product processing and molding. For example, the high-performance roto-molding grade HDPE resins gx5002 and gx5003 launched by Lyondell Base11 have excellent low-temperature impact resistance and environmental stress cracking resistance, as well as good creep resistance.
Application of recycled materials: With the increase of environmental awareness, the use of recycled materials for roto-molding will be increasingly valued. For example, Europe used 5.5 million tons of post-consumer recycled materials (PCR) in 2021, and plans to use PCR for 25%, 30%, and 50%-65% of packaging materials in 2025, 2030, and 2040, respectively.
Equipment and molds
Equipment performance improvement: Roto-molding equipment will develop in the direction of high performance, improve processing efficiency, reduce production costs, shorten roto-molding time, increase output and further improve product design freedom. For example, the shuttle roto-molding newly launched by the Italian Roto-molding Machinery Group has the characteristics of high flexibility and improved efficiency.
Mold design optimization: The mold design will be more reasonable and concise to ensure good fluidity of the raw materials. At the same time, with the increasing complexity of the structure of roto-molded products, the design and manufacture of molds will pay more attention to details and precision to meet the needs of products of different shapes and sizes.
Application field
Industrial field expansion: The application of roto-molded products in the industrial field will continue to expand. For example, in agricultural machinery, automobile manufacturing, aerospace, electronics and electrical industries, there will be more roto-molded products, such as roto-molded tractors, roto-molded fuel tanks, roto-molded aircraft fuel tanks, etc.
Personalized customization: As consumers' demand for personalized products increases, roto-molding technology will pay more attention to the personalized customization of products, and meet the needs of different customers by changing mold design, adding different colors and patterns, etc.