mold point. The intersection of two mold lines of a part. Mold line dimensions are made between mold points.
mold release agent. A lubricant used to coat a mold in which plastic resin is formed. Resin does not stick to the release agent, and the part can be taken from the mold when the resin has cured. A mold-release agent is also called a parting agent.
molecule. The smallest particle of a substance that retains all the properties of the substance. A molecule is made up of one or more atoms.
molybdenum. A hard, gray, metallic chemical element. Molybdenum’s symbol is Mo, its atomic number is 42, and its atomic weight is 95.95. One of the main uses of molybdenum is as an alloying agent for steel. Molybdenum increases the toughness of steel and makes it easy to weld and machine.
moment. A force that causes or tries to cause an object to rotate. The moment of a lever is the distance, in inches, between the point at which a force is applied and the fulcrum, or the point about which a lever rotates, multiplied by the force, in pounds. Moment is expressed in inch-pounds.
Moment = distance . force
In weight and balance, a moment that causes a nose-down condition is a negative moment, and one that causes a nose-up condition is a positive moment.
moment index (weight and balance). A moment divided by a constant, such as 10, 100, 1,000, or an even larger number. The use of a moment index allows weight and balance computations to be made using smaller numbers, and this decreases the chance for errors.