Gas Bubbles and Voids

The appearance of air bubbles in the polymer melt may occur under certain circumstances during processing. This phenomenon is rarely related to obvious faults in the polymer, but sometimes gas bubbles can be observed in cases of decreased thermal stability. Gas bubbles appear due to a certain amount of dispersed gas in the polymer matrix. Insufficient removal of gas from the extruder, particularly from the compression zone, can also cause the problem of air bubbles in the melt. An influence of the extruder screw could be established, because gas bubbles can be removed to some extent by using special screws or changing the extrusion conditions, along with the application of a vacuum. 

Voids often look similar to air bubbles. The appearance of voids in filaments or films, however, results for different reasons. Voids can be produced during stretching in the area of necking by a kind of folding mechanism. The formation of voids may also depend on the generation of a radial gradient structure during solidification of the threads. 

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