http://www.acculam.com | Thermoset plastic makers manufacture this durable and highly useful product by adding catalysts, heat and pressure to resins. The end result is a plastic that is hard and strong and also highly resistant to heat. These plastics have a variety of applications, including insulating other components from heat and electricity, protecting metal components from wear and providing strong, lightweight structures.

1. Thermosets
Provide
Versatility, Utility

2. The Thermoset Manufacturing Process
A-stage
B-stage
C-stage
uncured raw stage
semi-cured stage
cured stage
The diagram to the left describes the
basic thermoset manufacturing process.
• The base material is combined with a
resin binder.
• Once coated or saturated, the
product is semi-cured in an oven.
• Next, the product, now in its B-Stage,
is cut into sheets and piled into
stacks. The stacks are put in a
hydraulic press where heat and
pressure are applied.
• The product may also be wound into
tubes or rods and subsequently
heated and cured.

3. A Long History Of Use
Thermoset plastic has had a long record of usefulness in
industry. The plastic was discovered in 1906 by Belgian
chemist Dr. Leo Baekeland.
• The original product found uses in molded cookware
handles, radio and electric switches and other consumer
products.
• GE later improved upon Baekeland’s original formula by
adding reinforcment such as cotton, paper & fiberglass.
• Thermoset laminates were born when researchers stacked
sheets of semi-cured “B-stage” and applied heat and
pressure to them.

4. Why Thermosets Are Useful
Thermoset plastic has a variety of properties that
make them useful for various purposes. Some of the
useful properties of thermosets are:
• Resistance to heat. Because they do not melt,
they’re useful in applications where the product
will be exposed to high temperature and will need
to retain its shape and properties.
• High strength to weight ratio.
• Do not conduct electricity.
• Resistance to chemical corrosion.
• Easily machinable to unique parts

5. Grades
Thermoset plastics also come in a variety of grades, with
differing grades being better suited to specific purposes
than others. Common grades of thermoset plastic include:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Canvas Base Phenolic
Linen Base Phenolic
Paper Base Phenolic
Glass Base Epoxy
Glass Base Silicone
Glass Base Melamine
Glass Base Polyester

6. Multiple Forms
Thermosets can be manufactured in a variety of forms.
This diversity allows buyers of thermoset to obtain the
plastic in the form they need for tooling, cutting or use
as-is. Thermoset forms include:
•
•
•
•
•
Sheets
Tubes
Rods
Panels
Molded shapes

7. A Versatile Product
Because of its many useful properties, thermosets
are useful in a number of industries including:
• Aerospace
• Automobile manufacturing
• Medical
• Chemical
• Electronics
• Transportation
• Machinery
• Energy and more…

8. New Uses
Although thermoset plastic has been around for more
than a century, industries keep developing uses for it.
Some of the newer uses for thermosets include:
• Laser applications.
• Cryogenic applications.
• Rocket motor casings for aircraft ejector seats.
• Uses in medical imaging devices.

9. About Accurate Plastics
Accurate Plastics manufactures and sells thermoset plastic laminates to a variety of businesses
and industries around the globe. The company has been in business for more than 30 years and
is ISO-9000 certified. To find out more about how our products can suit your needs, visit
http://www.acculam.com/