Welding of Plastics

Polymeric materials that possess similar solubility parameters can be joined using a variety of polymer joining techniques. This article describes commonly available fusion-welding techniques such as joining methods, key joining parameters, and the application areas of each joining method. The techniques are hot-tool, hot-gas, extrusion, focused infrared, laser, friction, vibration, spin, ultrasonic, and electromagnetic welding techniques (resistance, induction, dielectric, and microwave welding). The article concludes with a discussion on welding evaluation methods.