A method of forming a shaped article wherein said article comprises at least two parts which are chemically bonded, the method comprising: assembling at least two non chemically bonded parts in a weld cavity of a tool to form an
assembly of the at least two parts, wherein said weld cavity is adapted to receive the
assembly of at least two parts in the form of the shaped article; sealing the weld cavity of the tool; melting the
assembly of at least two parts to chemically bond the at least two parts together to form the shaped article, wherein the shape of the weld cavity is matched to the outer circumference of the assembly of parts such that
thermal expansion forces the
polymer parts against the weld cavity surface and the pressure leads to full surface bonds between all parts, and wherein the tool forming the weld cavity comprises two halves forming a
piston which fits into the bore of a
bolster component and the plane of the split line between the two
piston halves is parallel to the axis of the bore such that the pressure from the
thermal expansion of the assembly of parts within the weld cavity is opposed by the surface of the bore preventing the weld cavity split line from opening and therefore preventing leakage of
polymer from within the pressurised weld cavity volume, and wherein the two
piston components are made from a
dissimilar metal with higher coefficient of
thermal expansion than the
bolster component ensuring that at the
welding temperature the piston is larger in
diameter than the bore
diameter of the
bolster component leading to an
interference fit which makes forces the weld cavity split line to close at the weld temperature but which still allows for a clearance gap between piston and bore at
room temperature for the tool to be assembled and disassembled.