ABS PC Blend Injection Molding
ABS PC exists because neither parent material is good enough alone. Polycarbonate brings heat resistance and impact, ABS brings processability and cost, and the blend is usually the practical answer for a part that has to survive being dropped and being warm. Getting that balance out of the mould depends mostly on drying and shear, not on the machine.
Free Consultation24h
Rapid Quote
100 pcs
Molding MOQ
to 115 degree C
Heat Deflection (1.8 MPa)
400 J per m plus
Notched Izod Impact
Materials
| Grade | Properties | Typical Applications |
|---|---|---|
| General Purpose ABS PC | Balanced blend giving heat deflection around 95 to 105 degree C at 1.8 megapascal with notched Izod impact typically above 400 joule per metre, easier to fill than unfilled PC and cheaper | Equipment housings, covers, bezels, general structural enclosures with a modest heat requirement |
| High Heat ABS PC | Higher polycarbonate content pushing heat deflection toward 115 degree C at 1.8 megapascal while retaining most of the impact advantage, at a higher material cost and a higher melt temperature requirement | Under-hood components, lighting bodies, parts near a heat generating assembly, housings for higher temperature environments |
| Flame Retardant ABS PC | Listed to UL 94 V-0 at a defined wall thickness, available halogen free or brominated, providing ignition resistance for enclosures around live conductors | Electrical enclosures, connector surrounds, control housings, anything adjacent to live conductors |
| Glass Filled ABS PC (10 to 20 percent) | Meaningfully stiffer and more dimensionally stable at temperature, with anisotropic shrinkage meaning warp must be modelled rather than expected away | Load bearing brackets, structural frames, parts replacing diecast metal where impact still matters |
| Paintable and Printable Grades | Surface chemistry that accepts coating and printing directly, which is why this family dominates cosmetic consumer housings | Branded housings, two tone panels, product exteriors carrying decoration or labelling |
| UV Stabilised Grades | Additives slowing the yellowing and property loss that polycarbonate suffers under prolonged ultraviolet exposure, used outdoors or near a window | Outdoor enclosures, lighting covers and trim near glazing |
Process Parameters
| Parameter | Standard Range |
|---|---|
| Drying Requirement | 90 to 110 degree C for 2 to 4 hours, target moisture below 0.02 percent |
| Melt Temperature Window | 240 to 280 degree C, above which degradation begins to show |
| Mould Temperature | 60 to 90 degree C, higher for gloss and larger cosmetic parts |
| Injection Pressure | 700 to 1,400 bar depending on flow length and wall |
| Recommended Wall Thickness | 1.8 to 3.2 mm uniform for most structural parts |
| Minimum Corner Radius | 0.5 mm or greater to reduce stress concentration |
| Mould Shrinkage | 0.4 to 0.7 percent depending on grade and flow direction |
| Part Tolerance | plus or minus 0.05 mm standard, tighter by agreement |
| Maximum Moulded Part Size | up to 800 x 600 x 400 mm |
| Machine Range Available | 50 to 800 T |
Surface Finishes
Moulded Colour and Texture
Colour in the resin with a textured or matte cavity finish, avoiding any post operation. For dark colours this is usually the cheapest and most durable answer, since there is no coating to scratch, and it is the default for internal parts and equipment chassis.
Wet Painting
Two pack coating in gloss, matte or soft touch applied in a controlled booth. ABS PC accepts paint well and generally needs no adhesion promoter, which is one reason the blend is preferred over unfilled polypropylene where appearance matters. Colour consistency across lots is considerably better than resin colour alone.
Pad Printing and Laser Marking
Pad printing for logos and multi colour detail, laser ablation for permanent serial numbering and date coding. Laser on ABS PC gives a clean high contrast mark, and because it removes material rather than adding it, the marking cannot be scraped off in service.
Ultrasonic and Vibration Welding
ABS PC welds readily by both methods, giving a strong hermetic joint without adhesive or fasteners. Joint design matters more than the equipment, and we review the shear joint geometry at DFM stage rather than discovering a weak joint after tooling exists.
Stress Relief Annealing
A controlled thermal cycle that relaxes moulded in stress before the part is exposed to a chemical environment. This directly reduces environmental stress cracking risk, which is the characteristic failure mode of polycarbonate containing materials held under load in contact with the wrong chemical.
Chrome Effect and Metallisation
Vacuum metallisation over a lacquer base gives a metallic appearance without the cost or environmental load of electroplating. For genuine plating, specific ABS rich plating grades exist and are selected where the specification calls for a real metal layer.
Design for Manufacturing (DFM)
- Dry the ABS PC blend properly and confirm moisture content before running, because hydrolysis breaks the polymer chains and shows as silver streaking and brittle parts
- Use generous gate and runner sizes, since ABS PC is shear sensitive and a restricted gate generates the heat that degrades it
- Keep corners radiused rather than sharp, because polycarbonate does not tolerate stress concentration and this is where cracked parts begin
- Design snap fits with lower strain than you would use for ABS, since the higher modulus transmits more stress into the retaining feature
- Check every chemical the part will meet in service, including cleaning agents and adhesives, because this is the dominant cause of field cracking
- Specify the wall at the low end where possible, since thick sections in ABS PC hold heat and increase cycle time disproportionately
- Avoid mould release sprays with petroleum solvents, since they act as a stress cracking agent on the ABS PC blend
- Consider annealing if the part is loaded and exposed to chemicals, because it is cheap relative to a field failure
- Specify UV stabilised ABS PC for anything near a window, since standard grades yellow over a few years of exposure
- Upload STEP, IGES or DXF files and receive a free material and DFM review within 24 hours
Tooling & Capacity
| Type | Lead Time | Suitable For |
|---|---|---|
| Aluminium Soft Tooling | 2 to 3 weeks | 25 to 500 pieces, pilot runs and design validation. Glass filled grades are the exception, since the fibre abrades a soft cavity quickly and we recommend steel for those |
| Production Steel Tooling | 4 to 6 weeks | Annual volumes above roughly 20,000 pieces, cosmetic cavities requiring gloss or texture, and any glass filled grade |
| Polished Steel Tooling | 4 to 6 weeks | High-gloss appearance housings where the cavity finish sets the part finish |
| Multi-Cavity Tooling | 5 to 7 weeks | Higher volume programmes where cycle time dominates, subject to balanced fill given the shear sensitivity of the material |
Quality Assurance
- Moisture check on incoming material before processing, recorded rather than assumed, since this single control prevents most defects
- Melt temperature is verified at the nozzle, because a dial setting is not the temperature the ABS PC actually reaches
- First article inspection with a dimensional report is done before the rest of the ABS PC run is committed
- Every setup change is visually checked for silver streaking, splay and burning on ABS PC parts
- Where a drop requirement exists, impact behaviour is verified on samples from the actual ABS PC lot
- Colour is measured and recorded against the reference, and delta E is reported per lot
- Weld line strength is assessed at design stage and reported at trial instead of surfacing in service
- ABS PC lot traceability is kept for each production run, with the supplier certificate filed against it
- Every ABS PC lot ships with a dimensional report, material certificate and Certificate of Origin
- Independent SGS, Bureau Veritas or TUV inspection is available on request for ABS PC moulded parts
Applications
- Automotive interior trim, surrounds and structural supports
- Power tool housings and guards
- Electronic equipment enclosures and bezels
- Industrial control boxes and covers
- Outdoor and ruggedised enclosures
- Lighting bodies and reflectors
- Charging equipment and energy storage housings
- Structural frames replacing diecast in low load applications
- Housings for diagnostic and laboratory equipment
Why Choose FHY Precision
Material chosen from the service temperature and the impact requirement rather than from whatever is cheapest per kilogram
Drying, shear limits and residence time are treated as process controls, which removes the defects most shops blame on bad material
Stress cracking is reviewed at design stage, covering the chemicals the ABS PC part will meet in service
Free ABS PC material and DFM review within 24 hours, with two candidate grades proposed where the choice is unclear
Pilot runs start from 25 pieces in aluminium tooling before moving to production steel
Welding, painting and marking are quoted with the moulding so the finished ABS PC part is one purchase order
We keep resin lot traceability, with SGS, Bureau Veritas or TUV third-party inspection available on request
Blends moulded in China and sold factory-direct, no trading layer added
FAQ
1. What is the difference between ABS PC and plain ABS?
Polycarbonate content. Plain ABS is cheaper and easier, but its heat deflection sits around 85 to 100 degree C and it is not especially tough in the cold. ABS PC typically reaches 95 to 115 degree C and keeps impact strength well below freezing. You are paying for the difference between a part that survives being dropped in a cold van and one that cracks.
2. Why does ABS PC have to be dried before moulding?
Because polycarbonate reacts chemically with water at processing temperature. The reaction splits the polymer chains, and the visible results are silver streaking on the surface, bubbles and a part that is brittle even though the geometry is right. Drying at 90 to 110 degree C for 2 to 4 hours down to below 0.02 percent moisture prevents this completely, which is why it is a process control rather than an option.
3. What causes cracking in ABS PC parts after they are in service?
Usually environmental stress cracking in the ABS PC blend, which needs three things together: moulded in stress, load, and a chemical environment that attacks polycarbonate. Common culprits are certain cleaning agents, some adhesives and petroleum based sprays. Reducing any one of the three prevents it, and we look at all of them at review rather than waiting for failures.
4. Do you supply UL 94 V-0 rated material?
Yes, we mould flame retardant grades listed to UL 94 V-0 at defined wall thickness, and we supply the resin maker documentation for the grade used. To be precise about what that covers, the listing belongs to the resin grade rather than to our factory, so what we provide is the correct grade and its supporting paperwork.
5. Is a gloss cosmetic part possible in ABS PC?
Yes, it is one of the better materials for it, provided the tool is steel. A polished cavity plus a mould temperature toward the upper end of the range gives a clean gloss surface straight from the tool. Where your requirement is genuinely high gloss across a large area, we usually still recommend painting for lot to lot consistency.
6. Should I use glass filled ABS PC?
Use glass filled ABS PC only when stiffness governs the design. Glass roughly doubles stiffness at 20 percent content and improves dimensional stability at temperature, but it costs more, it abrades tooling, it produces more weld lines and it warps anisotropically. If the part fails on deflection it is the right answer, and if it fails on anything else it usually is not.
7. Can ABS PC replace a diecast aluminium part?
Often yes on low to moderate load cases, and the weight and finishing savings can be considerable. The honest part of the analysis is stiffness rather than strength, because even glass filled material is far less rigid than metal, so the section has to grow and get ribbed. Give us the load path and the deflection limit and we will put numbers on it.
8. How should I design snap fits for ABS PC?
With lower strain than you would allow for ABS, because the higher modulus puts more stress into the retaining feature for the same deflection. In practice that means thinner cantilevers with longer arms. We review snap fit geometry at DFM stage, since this is a place where a drawing that looks fine repeatedly fails in assembly.
9. Can the parts be painted or printed?
Yes, and the blend accepts both readily without an adhesion promoter in most cases. Pad printing handles logos and detail, laser gives permanent marking that cannot be scraped off. If your product is branded, moulding and decoration on one purchase order avoids the situation where two suppliers each blame the other for a cosmetic failure.
10. What are the realistic processing risks with this material?
Three, in order of how often they happen. Incomplete drying causing silver streaking and brittleness. Excessive shear from small gates or high injection speed causing local degradation. And long residence time in the barrel at high temperature, which does the same damage more slowly. All three are prevented by discipline rather than by equipment.
11. What thickness should I design?
1.8 to 3.2 mm for most structural applications, held uniform. Thicker is not stronger in any useful sense here, it mostly adds cycle time and increases the chance of sink and voids. Where extra stiffness is needed, ribs and gussets do the job at lower cost than wall thickness does.
12. Do you offer annealing?
Yes, and annealing is worth specifying for ABS PC parts that carry load while exposed to chemicals. A controlled thermal cycle relaxes the moulded in stress that would otherwise combine with service load to cause cracking. It is a small addition to the process cost and it removes a failure mode rather than reducing it.
13. How does ABS PC compare with plain polycarbonate?
Plain PC has better heat resistance and impact at the extreme, but it is harder to process, more expensive and more sensitive to residual stress and chemical attack. ABS PC gives up a little at the top end and buys much easier processing and better economics. For most applications that is the better trade, which is why the blend is more widely used.
14. What quantities can you run?
From 25 pieces with aluminium soft tooling, standard MOQ of 100 pieces, and production quantities above that. Worth noting that glass filled grades are not recommended in aluminium tooling because the fibre abrades the cavity, so abrasive grades start with steel.
15. What file types do you need to quote?
A 3D model in STEP or IGES, a 2D drawing with tolerances and cosmetic requirements, expected annual volume, service temperature, and any standard you have to meet such as a flame rating. If you are unsure whether ABS PC is right, describe the operating environment and we will compare it against alternatives.
16. Do you arrange third-party inspection?
Yes. We arrange SGS, Bureau Veritas or TUV at any point you specify, including incoming verification of the resin grade, dimensional checks and coating verification. Where your part carries a flame rating requirement, inspecting against the resin maker documentation is often what your end customer actually needs.