Thermoforming and its Applications, A Review

One of the most important and widely used methods in the processing of polymers is thermoforming. This method with its unique specifications has found a special place in various industries, especially in the packaging industry.In many applications, new methods of thermoforming have been developed to achieve the final product with the desired geometry.The basic principles of the thermoforming process and its various methods, the advantages and limitations of this process, recent advances in machinery and the application of thermoformingin the manufacture of automotive parts are some of the items reviewed in this article.The advantages of this widely used process are the low price of equipment, especially molds, short timeof production, economic process for low-capacity production and production of parts with different dimensions and thickness.Compression processing, vacuumthermoforming, snap-back and drape thermoforming, matched die molding, plug-assisted, freeshaping, two layer molding are different types of thermoforming processes.Manufacture of composite parts by using fiber or particles or nano reinforced thermoplastics sheets are the area which still needs more research and developments.