Which of your sheets are commonly used for vacuum forming?

ABS - Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (black and white)

• Hard, rigid material that has good impact strength
• Forms to a high definition

Acrylic – PMMA (clear, frosted, and colored)

• Extruded acrylic vacuum forms better then the cast
• Tends to be brittle and temperature sensitive

Vivak® PETG - Co-Polyester (clear)

• Easy forming at low temps
• Forms to a high definition

HIPS - High Impact Polystyrene (white)

• Easy forming
• Forms to a high definition
• Most widely used material

PC – Polycarbonate (clear)

• Hard and rigid with good impact resistance

PP – Polypropylene (natural, black, and white)

HDPE – High Density Polyethylene (natural)

LDPE – Low Density Polyethylene (natural)

• Difficult to form
• Good temperature control required

Amorphous thermoplastics are much easier to vacuum form then semi- crystalline thermoplastic.

Amorphous thermoplastic would include ABS, Acrylic, PETG, HIPS, and PC.

Semi-crystalline thermoplastics that are sometimes vacuum formed are PP, HDPE, and LDPE. Semi-crystalline thermoplastics have a far more critical forming temperature then that of amorphous materials. They go very rapidly from a glass transition state to a melt transition state.

With amorphous materials there is a range in the temperature at which you can form it.