A Guide to Embedment - Crystal Images, Inc.

LUCITE EMBEDMENT GUIDE

There are a lot of factors that determine the cost of your embedment project, as well as the success rate of embedment. Note that a combination of factors is what determines an item’s overall risk of embedment. We cannot predict exact outcomes, but we offer this guidance to help you determine what items are more likely to successfully embed.

Low Risk: We have high confidence that the item will embed well. Small defects may occur, but are historically rare.

Medium Risk: We have had mixed results embedding these items. They may persistently have small defects, or vary in quality from one embedment to the next. If you have extra items as backup, or are willing to take the risk, we will proceed with production.

High Risk: We believe this item will almost always fail, or will produce unsatisfactory results. Depending on the item we may refuse to embed it out of safety precautions or cost of production.

FACTORS

Low Risk:

High Heat Tolerance
High Pressure Tolerance
Items smaller than 3 inches
Weighs < 1lb
Little to no color or ink
Smooth surfaces
Rounded or beveled edges

Medium Risk:

Low Heat Tolerance
Low Pressure Tolerance
Items between 3 and 6 inches
Weighs < 3lbs
Paint or enamel color
Textured surfaces
Square edges

High Risk:

Flammable Items
Flimsy or Crumbly Items
Items larger than 6 inches
Weighs 3lbs or more
Printed inks or dyes
Rough or porous surfaces
Sharp Edges

Examples

Low Risk:

Badges (minimal color)
Business Cards
Cardstock Paper
Challenge Coins (minimal color)
Coins
Cork
Golf Ball
Medical Parts (Metal)
Metal Shavings
Nuts/Bolts
Paper Currency
Sand (in glass vial)
Smooth Stones/Rocks

Medium Risk:

Aluminum Cans (Full)
Crystal
Dried Flowers
Dried Insects
Glass
Hard Plastics
Liquids (in glass vial)
Medical Parts (Plastic)
Metal Pipes/Tubes
Metal Sheets
Printed Circuit Board
Rough Stones/Rocks
Wood

High Risk:

Aluminum Cans (Empty)
Acrylic
Clay
Fabric
Food
Knives
Leather
Organic Material
Paper (printer, tissue, etc)
Patches and Fabric Badges
Ping-Pong Ball
Plaster
Plastic Pipes/Tubes
PVC
Sharp Objects
Soft Plastics
Wax

FACTORS THAT AFFECT EMBEDMENT SUCCESS:

Heat and Pressure Tolerance

During embedment, your item is submerged in a liquid form of acrylic and baked at high temperatures and pressures. The lucite will partly protect your item from the direct heat, but it will still experience some of its effects. Consider whether your item would drastically change shape or be compromised when heated.

The high pressure environment helps remove bubbles and air pockets, working the lucite into the crevices of your item. This pressure can also damage, warp or even crush delicate or fragile items. Consider whether your item could withstand being squeezed, pressed or put under pressure for an extended period.

Size

The size of your item has the biggest influence on the cost of your embedment. Larger items will require more raw materials and will increase the weight of the finished product. Larger items may also change shape more than smaller ones when under heat and pressure, which could cause pull-away or even cracks. Weight is a significant limiting factor to an embedment’ s max size: lighter items can be larger than heavier ones.

Weight

The weight of your item affects your shipping weight, as well as the quality of the embedment. Heavy items may “sink” before the lucite has time to set, changing the position within the embedment and possibly adding defects such as flow lines or pull-away. We may require extra clearance between the item and the edge of the lucite to support the item, which further increases the overall embedment weight. Very heavy items may be impossible to embed.

Color

Dyes and paints can discolor when in contact with the liquid lucite, or inks may bleed in the high pressure oven. Paints used on badges and enamel pins vary widely; some may not bleed at all, others bleed a little, and still others lift away entirely from the badge surface. Consider whether your item’s color is from a natural quality, a hardened layer of paint, or part of a printed sticker or label.

Surface and Texture

When your item is first submerged, the lucite around it is in liquid form. During the curing process, it hardens into a solid, clear layer. The portion of the plastic that is touching your item is as close to the surface as it can get. A smooth surface facilitates this bond, preventing any air pockets or bubbles from forming. An item with a textured, uneven, or porous surface will have a more uneven connection with the surrounding lucite, increasing the likelihood of pull-away. The rougher surface may appear reflective, or have multiple bubbles.

Corners and Sharpness

Near the end of the process, as your embedment cools, the lucite surrounding your item starts to contract, becoming hardened and inflexible. If your item has sharp corners, or a bladed edge, the material contracting around it may pull away or start to crack along the sharp edge. This is most common with metal items, such as raw metal sheets and knife blades.

Combination of Factors

All of the above factors work together in making your item a higher or lower risk to embed. In some cases, a medium or even high risk factor may be mitigated by multiple low risk factors. Metal shavings, for example, are very sharp, but their miniscule size and weight make them excellent candidates for embedment. Crude oil is highly flammable, but when contained in a glass vial, it embeds quite easily. A single flattened flower may embed better than a rose with a stem.