Polymer tensile test

Slides Slab and sheet metal rolling extrusion, etc., of polymers tensile-testing machines hardness-testing machines hardness indentations. 

Samples used for mechanical testing were prepared via molding at a temperature of 190°C and a pressure of 150 atm. The pressurized samples were cooled to room temperature atarate of20 K/min. Irganox 1010 (-0.8 wt.%) was added to stabilize the nascent polymer. Tensile tests of the polymers were performed at a rate of 50 mm/min on an Instron 1122 tensile machine using trowel-shaped samples with a cross-sectional area of 0.75 mm, 0.5 X 5.0 mm, and a base length of 35 mm. 

Whether or not a polymer is rubbery or glass-like depends on the relative values of t and v. If t is much less than v, the orientation time, then in the time available little deformation occurs and the rubber behaves like a solid. This is the case in tests normally carried out with a material such as polystyrene at room temperature where the orientation time has a large value, much greater than the usual time scale of an experiment. On the other hand if t is much greater than there will be time for deformation and the material will be rubbery, as is normally the case with tests carried out on natural rubber at room temperature. It is, however, vital to note the dependence on the time scale of the experiment. Thus a material which shows rubbery behaviour in normal tensile tests could appear to be quite stiff if it were subjected to very high frequency vibrational stresses. 

Polymer Experimental data from tensile tests Estimation from chemical structure in Fig. 2.1 ... 

Dynamic shear moduli are conveniently determined with automated equipment, for instance, with the torsion pendulum. However, moduli derived from dynamic tests are often higher than the results from static tests for lack of relaxation. Examples are shown in Table 3.3. Young s moduli of the polymers A, B, C, D, derived from tensile tests (frequency 0.01 Hz) are compared with shear moduli S determined with the torsion pendulum (frequency > 1 Hz). For rubberlike materials is 3S/E = 1, according to Eq. 

Young s moduli of the polymers were determined in tensile tests [53] using samples of 4 mm by 10 mm cross-section and a gauge length of 50 mm. The results of the... 

Yield strength as determined in tensile tests [53] at ambient temperature was plotted in Fig. 6.1 against M 1, the inverse molecular mass between crosslinks. All the samples of polymer A (the most crosslinked polymer) failed before the polymer started to yield. Therefore, load-extension-curves were extrapolated up to a hypothetical yield strain in this case. The extrapolated tensile is marked by brackets (Table 6.1). 

Fig. 6.2. Yield strengths from tensile tests at 23 °C are plotted against the glass transition temperatures (T,max) of the five polymers [] result of extrapolated stress-strain-curve...

Polymer A with GIC = 160 J m-2 is typical for thermoset materials which are expected to be brittle [78]. At the other end of the series, polymer E and Phenoxy with G,c > 1 kJ m 2 are tougher than several wellknown thermoplastics (PMM A, PS, PES). In contrast to the more crosslinked polymers, polymer E and Phenoxy PKHJ show necking after yielding in tensile tests with draw ratios A = 1.7 and A = 2.1, respectively (Table 2.1). 

The deformation zones were calculated for the polymers of Table 5.1 and Table 6.1 according to the Dugdale-Barenblatt-model. Yield stress ay from tensile tests was used instead of the cohesive stress ctc since a reasonable agreement of ay and ctc... 

The labor-intensive nature of polymer tensile and flexure tests makes them logical candidates for automation. We have developed a fully automated instrument for performing these tests on rigid materials. The instrument is comprised of an Instron universal tester, a Zymark laboratory robot, a Digital Equipment Corporation minicomputer, and custom-made accessories to manipulate the specimens and measure their dimensions automatically. Our system allows us to determine the tensile or flexural properties of over one hundred specimens without human intervention, and it has significantly improved the productivity of our laboratory. This paper describes the structure and performance of our system, and it compares the relative costs of manual versus automated testing. 

An interesting feature of polarized IR spectroscopy is that rapid measurements can be performed while preserving molecular information (in contrast with birefringence) and without the need for a synchrotron source (X-ray diffraction). Time-resolved IRLD studies are almost exclusively realized in transmission because of its compatibility with various types of tensile testing devices. In the simplest implementation, p- and s-polarized spectra are sequentially acquired while the sample is deformed and/or relaxing. The time resolution is generally limited to several seconds per spectrum by the acquisition time of two spectra and by the speed at which the polarizer can be rotated. Siesler et al. have used such a rheo-optical technique to study the dynamics of multiple polymers and copolymers [40]. 

D. Comprcssioii and shear versus tensile tests Rigid polymers... 

Physical characterization of polymers is a common activity that research and development technologists at the Dow Chemical Company perform. A material property evaluation that is critical for most polymer systems is a tensile test. Many instruments such as an Instron test frame can perform a tensile test and, by using specialized software, can acquire and process data. Use of an extensometer eliminates calibration errors and allows the console to display strain and deformation in engineering units. Some common results from a tensile test are modulus, percent elongation, stress at break, and strain at yield. These data are then used to better understand the capabilities of the polymer system and in what end-use applications it may be used. 

Experiment 58 Tensile Testing of Polymers Using a Homemade Tester ... 

Figure 20.15 SEM fractographs of the LCP/PEN blend fibers after Instron tensile tests (a) 10/90 (wt%) (b) 25/75 (wt%) [13]. From Kim, S. H., Hong, S. M., Hwang, S. S. and Yoo, H. O., J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 74, 2448-2456 (1999), Copyright (1999, John Wiley Sons, Inc.). This material is used by permission of John Wiley Sons, Inc...

Tensile Tests. Polymers were padded on filter paper at lOX add-on, cured at 150°C for 3 or 10 min, and tested as In Tappi Useful Method UH656. Tensile measurements on padded samples were done with 1" strips on an Instron Tester after conditioning In a constant temperature and humidity room. Wet, methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) and perchloroethylene (PCE) tenslles were run after brushing the sample with IX aqueous Aerosol OT or solvent. 

Figure 15.2 Tensile testing instrumentation. Polymer samples are stretched under controlled conditions and the tensile properties are evaluated. (Courtesy of Du Pont)...

It can be concluded that it is very difficult to predict the result from a polymer macrostructure, but it is relatively easy to measure the secondary species generated on irradiation by using known analytical techniques, such as measuring swelling, tensile tests, analysis using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), etc. The yield is then expressed by the G value, which represents the number of cross-links, scissions, double bonds, etc., produced for every 100 eV (1.6 X 10 J) dissipated in the material. For example, G (cross-links), abbreviated G(X), = 3.5 means that 3.5 cross-links are formed in the polymer per 100 eV under certain irradiation conditions. Similarly, the number of scissions formed is denoted by G(S). In order to determine the number of crosslinks or G(X), the number of scissions or G(S), etc., it is necessary to know the dose or dose rate and the time of exposure for these irradiation conditions. From the product yields it is possible to estimate what ratio of monomer units in a polymer is affected by irradiation. ... 

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