Elastic properties temperature dependence

Amorphous polymers well above Jg behave either as liquids or, if they are cross-linked, as rubbers the properties of rubbers are discussed in the next section. In the region close to Jg the viscoelastic properties dominate even at small strains and relatively short times and these are considered in the next chapter. This means that the static small-strain properties of amorphous polymers can be discussed meaningfully only when the polymers are well below Tg. Semicrystalline polymers are really composite materials. At temperatures well below the Tg of the amorphous regions the material has small-strain elastic properties that depend on the proper-... 

The viscoelastic behavior of biomaterials is typically measured using DMA. In rheological terms, viscoelastic is the concomitance of viscous (fluid-like) and elastic (solid-like) elements. The proportion of viscous and elastic properties is depending on the used material as well as on the measuring conditions such as the temperature. In DMA measurements, a sinusoidal shear load is applied to the sample while measuring the shear stress (cr ) with a stress transducer. The strain induced... 

The design of shape-memory devices is quite different from that of conventional alloys. These materials are nonlinear, have properties that are very temperature-dependent, including an elastic modulus that not only increases with increasing temperature, but can change by a large factor over a small temperature span. This difficulty in design has been addressed as a result of the demands made in the design of compHcated smart and adaptive stmctures. Informative references on all aspects of SMAs are available (7—9). 

Thermal Properties at Low Temperatures For sohds, the Debye model developed with the aid of statistical mechanics and quantum theoiy gives a satisfactoiy representation of the specific heat with temperature. Procedures for calculating values of d, ihe Debye characteristic temperature, using either elastic constants, the compressibility, the melting point, or the temperature dependence of the expansion coefficient are outlined by Barron (Cryogenic Systems, 2d ed., Oxford University Press, 1985, pp 24-29). 

In a semicrystalline polymer, the crystals are embedded in a matrix of amorphous polymer whose properties depend on the ambient temperature relative to its glass transition temperature. Thus, the overall elastic properties of the semicrystalline polymer can be predicted by treating the polymer as a composite material... 

When an engineering plastic is used with the structural foam process, the material produced exhibits behavior that is easily predictable over a large range of temperatures. Its stress-strain curve shows a significantly linearly elastic region like other Hookean materials, up to its proportional limit. However, since thermoplastics are viscoelastic in nature, their properties are dependent on time, temperature, and the strain rate. The ratio of stress and strain is linear at low strain levels of 1 to 2%, and standard elastic design... 

Viscoelasticity A combination of viscous and elastic properties in a plastic with the relative contribution of each being dependent on time, temperature, stress, and strain rate. It relates to the mechanical behavior of plastics in which there is a time and temperature dependent relationship between stress and strain. A material having this property is considered to combine the features of a perfectly elastic solid and a perfect fluid. 

Finally, it behaves like a liquid provided the chain length is not too long. Just around T some physical properties change distinctively such as the specific volume, the expansion coefficient, the specific heat, the elastic modulus, and the dielectric constant. Determination of the temperature dependence of these quantities can thus be used to determine Tg. 

Softening as a result of micro-Brownian motion occurs in amorphous and crystalline polymers, even if they are crosslinked. However, there are characteristic differences in the temperature-dependence of mechanical properties like hardness, elastic modulus, or mechanic strength when different classes of polymers change into the molten state. In amorphous, non-crosslinked polymers, raise of temperature to values above results in a decrease of viscosity until the material starts to flow. Parallel to this softening the elastic modulus and the strength decrease (see Fig. 1.9). 

Equation (15.10) shows that thermal shock induces a biaxial stress field, whose maximum value depends on the elastic properties of the material and the imposed temperature differential. 

The mathematical relationship between the stress and the strain depends on material properties, temperature, and the rate of deformation. Many materials such as metals, ceramics, crystalline polymers, and wood behave elastically at small stresses. For tensile elastic deformation, the linear relation between the stress, a, and strain, e, is described by Hooke s law as... 

The viscoelastic properties are highly temperature-dependent so that the maximum temperature should be always specified and taken into account. Polymers at room temperature behave by different ways i.e. hard solids, elastic liquids, rubbers, etc [1,7]. 

Figure 3. Ratio of the mean square root displacements derivatives along directions of weak and strong coupling, calculated in the model of a highly anisotropic layered crystal. Its anisotropy of interatomic interaction and elastic properties correspond to those of NbSe2. The pronounced maximum on this curve corresponds to a minimum on the temperature dependence of the thermal expansion along the layers.

Since the stiffness of the bonds transfers to the stiffness of the whole filler network, the small strain elastic modulus of highly filled composites is expected to reflect the specific properties of the filler-filler bonds. In particular, the small strain modulus increases with decreasing gap size during heat treatment as observed in Fig. 32a. Furthermore, it exhibits the same temperature dependence as that of the bonds, i.e., the characteristic Arrhenius behavior typical for glassy polymers. Note however that the stiffness of the filler network is also strongly affected by its global structure on mesoscopic length scales. This will be considered in more detail in the next section. 

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