Polymer Strain Stress Curve
Polymer Strain Stress Curve
Polymer Strain Stress Curve
Vasileios Koutsos
S tress
C A B
S train
Typical stress-strain curve of a polymeric material. A is the proportional point, B the yield point and C the rupture (break) point
d = 0 Yield Point d
Stress
Yield Point
Strain
Some plastics fracture before yielding (e.g. PS) or immediately after while others (ductile plastics such as PE) can reach strains as high as 25 before final failure By contrast with metals, it is difficult to make a distinction between recoverable (elastic) and nonrecoverable (plastic) strain, because the extent to which a polymer recovers its original dimensions depends upon temperature and upon time allowed for recovery (the driving force for recovery is entropic).
HDPE LDPE
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EXAMPLE 2: PS vs toughened PS
Polystyrene is a glassy, brittle polymer with low toughness and a softening temperature of only 100 C. Its advantage over other polymers is the ease with which it can be processed by extrusion, injection and vacuum forming.Polystyrene is therefore used for a wide range of cheap products like trays, boxes and toys. The brittle characteristics of polystyrene can be relieved by the incorporation of around 5% butadiene rubber into the microstructure. The rubber exists as second-phase particles of approximately 1 mm diameter and these increase the toughness of polystyrene by an order of magnitude.
PS
Toughened PS
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Nylon 66
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EXAMPLE 4: PC
Polycarbonate is a very tough, glassy polymer. It has good mechanical properties down to 90 C and up to 130 C, excellent dimensional stability, good weather and chemical resistance, transparency to light and resitance to burning. This combination of properties enables the polymer to be used for crash-helmet visors and transparent roof panels. Domestic applications include sterilizable babies feeding bottles, hair curlers and hair dryers.
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EXAMPLE 5: PP
Polypropylene has higher strength and stiffness than polyethylene and better heat resistance (melting temperature approx. 160 C) so it can be used in applications where contact with hot water and steam may be involved, e.g. hospital and laboratory equipment, car radiator reservoirs and washing machine/dishwasher components. Polypropylene sheet is fabricated into chemically-resistant tanks, and filaments are used for rope and netting. The disadvantages of polypropylene are its loss of flexibility at temperatures below 0 C and it is more permeable to gases than is high-density polyethylene due to its lower degree of crystallinity.
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EXAMPLE 6: PMMA
An example of an acrylic polymer is polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), which is a glass material a little tougher than polystyrene. In its pure form it is completely transparent and resistant to outdoor weathering. The polymer is therefore widely used as a replacement for glass in applications like lights, signs, lenses, aircraft windows and traffic control lights. The breaking resistance of acrylic sheet is approximately ten times that of window glass.
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HDPE
Toughened PS
LDPE
PS
PA 6,6
PC
PP
PMMA
15
20
40
60
125
35
20
70
25 >100
30 10
10 40
40 0
70 20
125 0
65
30
70 0
>50 >100
1N
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mm 2
= 1N
(103 m) 2
= 106 Pa = 1MPa
Stress ()
x Rubber
Strain ()
PMMA
T. S. Carswell and H. K. Nason, Symposium on Plastics, American Society for Testing Materials, Philadelphia, 1944.
PS vs PE
Engineering stress MPa
40
PS
C B
20
A
PE
Strain
L Li = 1, where Li is the initial length, L is the length at which point the force is F and is the extension ratio. Li F the nominal stress = , where A i is the initial area of the cross-section; Ai the strain =
For PE: From 0 to point A, the PE behaves as a linear elastic solid, which the point A is the proportional point. At this region
Point B is called the yield point and indicates the onset of plastic deformation. The corresponding stress and strain are called yield strength and elongation at yield.
40
PS
C B
20
A
PE
Strain
For PE: From B to C it is the plastic region. Beyond B the material stretches out considerably and a neck is formed. The neck stabilizes and begins to extend by drawing fresh materials from the tapering regions on either side until the whole of the parallel section of the specimen has yield. Then during the alignment and orientation of the polymer chains, which is called strain hardening, the neck will continue to thin down until it breaks. The point C is the break point, at which point the corresponding stress and strain are called the ultimate strength and the elongation at break. The necking of polymers is affected by two opposing factors: 1) Dissipation of mechanical energy as heat can raise the temperature in the neck, causing significant softening; 2) the deformation resistance of the neck, which has a higher strain rate than the surrounding polymer, can rise as a result of the strain-rate dependence of the yield stress. Slip occurs: both in the crystalline lamellae and the individual lamellae.
PS: Crazing
Engineering stress MPa
40
PS
C B
20
A
PE
Strain
Stress-strain curves for polystyrene (PS) and polyethylene(PE) For PS: Behaves very differently, forming crazes at very low strain and fracturing without showing any significant deviation from a linear stress-strain curve. The graph shows the intricate network of fibrils connecting the two bulk surfaces of the polymer. The fibrils are drawn out of the solid polymer to an extent that is controlled by the concentration of molecular entanglements. There are interesting parallels between macroscopic drawing in PE and the microscopic internal drawing of craze fibrils in PS.
A craze in polystyrene; the arrow indicates direction of tensile stress (after R.P.Kambour)