ISO 171:2022

Plastics - Determination of bulk factor of moulding materials

This document specifies a method of determining the bulk factor of a moulding material based on the ratio of the apparent volumetric density of a given quantity of particles and the corresponding material density.

Plastiques — Détermination du facteur de contraction des matières à mouler

Polimerni materiali - Določanje "bulk" faktorja (razmerja med gostoto oblikovanega materiala in navidezno gostoto materiala za oblikovanje) materialov za oblikovanje

Ta dokument določa metodo za določanje faktorja gostote materiala za izdelavo kalupov na podlagi razmerja med navidezno prostorninsko gostoto določene količine delcev in ustrezno gostoto materiala.

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 08-Dec-2022
• ICS: 83.080.01 - Plastics in general
• Technical Committee: ISO/TC 61/SC 5 - Physical-chemical properties
• Drafting Committee: ISO/TC 61/SC 5 - Physical-chemical properties
• Current Stage: 6060 - International Standard published
• Start Date: 09-Dec-2022
• Due Date: 22-Sep-2024
• Completion Date: 09-Dec-2022
• Ref Project: SIST ISO 171:2023 - Plastics - Determination of bulk factor of moulding materials

Relations

• Revises: ISO 171:1980 - Plastics - Determination of bulk factor of moulding materials
• Effective Date: 06-Jun-2022

Overview

ISO 171:2022 - Plastics - Determination of bulk factor of moulding materials specifies a standard method to determine the bulk factor of moulding materials. The bulk factor is defined as the ratio of the apparent volumetric density of a given quantity of particles to the material density. This value is used in mould design and material handling to relate particle packing to the true density of the polymer.

Key topics and requirements

• Definition: Bulk factor = apparent volumetric density / material density.
• Principle: The bulk factor enables calculation of minimum cavity volume in mould design by linking loose-particle packing to solid material density.
• Test conditions: Determinations must be performed at one of the test temperatures specified in ISO 291 (standard atmospheres for conditioning and testing).
• Apparent volumetric density: Measured for the particulate form of the moulding material using either ISO 60 (pourable materials, funnel method) or ISO 61 (non-pourable materials).
• Material density: Determined in accordance with the ISO 1183 series (methods for density of non-cellular plastics).
• Calculation and reporting: The bulk factor is calculated from the two independently measured densities. The standard also specifies required items in the test report, including:
  • reference to ISO 171:2022
  • material identification and test temperature
  • measured apparent volumetric density and material density
  • calculated bulk factor
  • deviations, unusual observations, and test date

Applications and who uses it

ISO 171:2022 is directly relevant for:

• Mould designers and toolmakers - use the bulk factor to estimate minimum cavity volume and optimize mould size.
• Materials laboratories and QA/QC teams - perform standardized measurements for material specifications and batch acceptance.
• Polymer compounders and suppliers - provide consistent bulk factor data to customers for processing and tooling calculations.
• Production engineers - plan feed-hopper capacity, shot weight, and handling logistics based on particle packing characteristics.

Practical benefits include improved accuracy in mould cavity design, consistent material specification across suppliers, and reduced trial-and-error during tool commissioning.

Related standards

• ISO 60 - Apparent density of pourable materials (funnel method)
• ISO 61 - Apparent density of non-pourable moulding materials
• ISO 1183 (all parts) - Density determination of non-cellular plastics
• ISO 291 - Standard atmospheres for conditioning and testing

Using ISO 171:2022 alongside these referenced methods ensures consistent, reproducible bulk factor measurements for plastics processing and mould design.

Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-april-2023
Polimerni materiali - Določanje "bulk" faktorja (razmerja med gostoto
oblikovanega materiala in navidezno gostoto materiala za oblikovanje) materialov
za oblikovanje
Plastics - Determination of bulk factor of moulding materials
Plastiques - Détermination du facteur de contraction des matières à mouler
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: ISO 171:2022
ICS:
83.080.01 Polimerni materiali na Plastics in general
splošno
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 171
Second edition
2022-12
Plastics — Determination of bulk
factor of moulding materials
Plastiques — Détermination du facteur de contraction des matières à
mouler
Reference number
© ISO 2022
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on
the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below
or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Principle . 1
5 Procedure .2
6 Expression of results . 2
7 Test report . 2
iii
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the
...

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 171
Second edition
2022-12
Plastics — Determination of bulk
factor of moulding materials
Plastiques — Détermination du facteur de contraction des matières à
mouler
Reference number
© ISO 2022
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on
the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below
or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Principle . 1
5 Procedure .2
6 Expression of results . 2
7 Test report . 2
iii
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement
...