Residual Stress

Residual stress is a process-induced stress, frozen in a molded part. It can be either flow-induced or thermal-induced. Residual stresses affect a part similarly to externally applied stresses. If they are strong enough to overcome the structural integrity of the part, the part will warp upon ejection, or later crack, when external service load is applied. Residual stresses are the main cause of part shrinkage and warpage. The process conditions and design elements that reduce shear stress during cavity filling will help to reduce flow-induced residual stress. Likewise, those that promote sufficient packing and uniform mold cooling will reduce thermal-induced residual stress. For fiber-filled materials, those process conditions that promote uniform mechanical properties will reduce thermal-induced residual stress.

Flow-induced residual stress
Unstressed, long-chain polymer molecules tend to conform to a random-coil state of equilibrium at temperatures higher than the melt temperature (i.e., in a molten state). During processing the molecules orient in the direction of flow, as the polymer is sheared and elongated. If solidification occurs before the polymer molecules are fully relaxed to their state of equilibrium, molecular orientation is locked within the molded part. This type of frozen-in stressed state is often referred to as flow-induced residual stress. Because of the stretched molecular orientation in the direction of flow, it introduces anisotropic, non-uniform shrinkage and mechanical properties in the directions parallel and perpendicular to the direction of flow.

Reducing flow-induced residual stress
Process conditions that reduce the shear stress in the melt will reduce the level of flow-induced residual stresses. In general, flow-induced residual stress is one order of magnitude smaller than the thermal-induced residual stress.

• higher melt temperature


• higher mold-wall temperature


• longer fill time (lower melt velocity)


• decreased packing pressure


• shorter flow path.