( Unit-IV)

Polymer Processing
We know that polymeric materials are used in many forms such as, tubes, rods, films,
sheets, foams, coatings, adhesives, moulded and fabricated articles etc. A majority of articles
are either moulded or fabricated. Some others are made by casting liquid pre-polymers into a
moulded and allow them to cure or crass linking. As per application of the polymeric
materials, they are converted into required shape and size by applying different processes.
Thus, the polymer processing is a technique to convert polymer into a broad spectrum of
useful shapes and structures. In other words, it is an engineering especially used to convert
polymeric materials into useful end products. Fibres are made by the process known as
spinning.
The different techniques used in the polymer process are described below:
Polymer processing

Calendaring Reinforcing Thermoforming

Moulding Foaming
Casting

Die Casting Film Casting Rotational

Casting

Injection Blow Extrusion

Calendaring
The calendaring process is employed to produce continuous films and sheets. The
main part of a calendaring machine contains:
- A set of highly polished metal rollers rotating in opposite directions with provision for
precise adjustment of the gap between them.
- Gide roller through which calendared sheet is passed to form the wind-up roll.

The calendaring machine is represented in the following figure:

 The gap between the rollers determines the thickness of the sheet that calendared out.
The compounded polymeric material is fed between the rollers which are maintained at an
elevated temperature. The sheet emerging from rollers is cooled by passing through the cold
rollers. The sheets are finally wound up in rolls.
If thin films are required instead of sheets, a series of rollers with a successive fine
gap between them is employed. The embossed sheets of a suitable design are produced by
using suitable engraved embossing roller in the calendaring machine. The decorative effects
can be achieved by feeding the calendar with mixture of compounded materials of different
colours. The marbleisation technique is usually employed in the production of vinyl floor
tiles made by PVC. The polymers which are mainly calendared into sheet are; PVC,
polyethylene, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) and rubber

Casting
Casting is the process in which liquid polymeric material is poured into mould. The
mould contains a hollow cavity of the desired shape and size. The moulded material is
allowed to cool to make the solid. This solidified part is known as casting which is ejected
out of the mould to complete the process. Mainly three types of casting techniques are
known:
1. Die casting
2. Rotational casting
3. Film casting

1. Die casting: Die casting is usually low cost process in which liquid pre-polymer is
converted into objects of desire shape and size. Sheets. Tubes, rods of limited length can
be produced by this method.

The pre-polymer compounded material with a creative and other ingredient are
poured into a petridish. The petridish is then kept into oven at an elevated temperature to
cure the polymeric material. On cooling at room temperature, the solid product from the
petridish is pulled out. The solid thus, has the shape identical to the interior of the
petridish. For the product in cylindrical shape, we use cylindrical die.
Polymerization is allowed to continue inside the die till the solid product is formed.
Acrylics, epoxies, polyester and polyurethanes are suitable polymeric material for die
 casting. Depending upon the convenience and availability, the die for casting are made of
plaster of peris, lead or glass.

2. Rotational casting: Rotational casting is used to produce hallow articles such as ball,
dolls and rain boots. The apparatus used in this process is shown below:

The compounded thermoplastic materials in the form of a fine powder is taken in

the hallow mould. There is a provision to rotate the mould simultaneously along the
primary and secondary axis. After casting the mould, it is heated and rotated. This process
distributes the molten plastic uniformly along the entire surface of the inside cavity of the
mould. After some times, the mould is chilled with cold water under rotation. Thus, the
plastic material inside the cavity cools down and solidifies in the shape of that surface.
The mould now opens and product is removed.
Instead of thermoplastic materials, a thermosetting type polymer and creative
mixture can also be used and curing done under rotation at an elevated temperature.
3. Film casting:

With help of film casting, a polymer sheet is produced. In the process, the polymer
solution in an appropriate concentration in a suitable solvent is allowed to fall at a certain
rate on an endless metallic belt at a constant speed. Thus, the polymeric solution is spread
over the metallic belt in the form of sheet. At the metallic belt, the solvent undergoes
evaporation and polymer is converted into hard sheet.

Compression Moulding: The compression-moulding process is very widely used to

produce articles from thermosetting materials. The mould is made of two halves-the upper

and the lower halves or the male and the female the half usually contains a cavity and the
upper half has a projection which fits into the cavity when the mould is closed. The gap
between the projected upper half and the cavity in the lower one gives the shape of the
moulded article.
 In compression moulding, the thermosetting material is subjected to heat and pressure
in a single stroke. Moulding temperature and pressure can be as high as 200C and 70
kg/cm2, respectively. The actual temperature and pressure depends on the rheological,
thermal and other properties of the plastic material to be moulded.

Injection Moulding: Injection moulding process is best suited for producing articles made
of thermoplastic materials.

In this moulding process, a definite quantity of molten thermoplastic material is injected

under pressure into a relatively cold mould where it solidifies into the shape of mould. The
process is feeding of compounded plastic materials in the form of granules, pellets or powder
through hopper at a definite time intervals into net horizontal cylinder where it gets softened.
Pressure is applied through a driven piston to push the molten material into the mould.
The hot zone of the cylinder called torpedo helps to spread the plastic material
uniformly around the inside wall of the hot cylinder. The molten plastic material from the
cylinder is injected through a nozzle into the mould cavity. The mould used has two parts;
one is movable and other is fixed. The fixed part is located at the end of the cylinder and
movable part is opened or locked on the fixed part. Now, the material is injected with help of
a piston at the pressure about 1500 Kg/cm2. After the mould is filled with the molten material
under pressure, it is cooled by cold water circulation and then opened to take out the moulded
articles.

Blow Moulding: Blow moulding is used to produce hallow plastic articles such as,
containers, soft drinks bottles, water tank etc. Thermoplastic materials like polyethylene,
polycarbonate, PVC, polystyrene, nylon, acrylics, acrylonitrile, and polypropylene can be
moulded by this process.
Blow moulding basically belongs to the glass industry. A hot, softened thermoplastic tube,
usually called parison is properly placed inside a two-piece hallow mould. The process is
given in the figure below.When the two halves of the mould are closed, it pinches and closes
one end of the parison and encloses a blowing pin at the other end. The parison is now blown
by blowing compressed air through the blowing pin. The hot parison is inflated like a balloon
and goes on expanding until it comes in intimate contact with the relatively cold interior
surface of the hollow mould. The mould is allowed to cool and the rigid thermoplastic article
formed is removed by opening the mould. The parison needed for blow moulding can be
made either by injection or extrusion process and the technique can accordingly be called
injection or extrusion blow moulding.

Extrusion Moulding:
It is one of the cheapest methods for producing many common plastic products of

continuous lengths, such as films, filaments, tubes, sheets, pipes, rods, hoses and straps. A
suitable die is used to obtain continuous extrusion. The molten plastic under suitable
conditions is forced through the die. A simple extrusion machine is illustrated in the figure
above.
In the machine, the compounded plastic material is fed through the hopper as either
powder or granules into a cylinder having provision for electrical heating for softening the
material. The hot plastic is further pass through the cylinder by a helically flighted revolving
screw. During its journey from the hopper to the die, the plastic material passes through
distinct zones named feed zone, compression zone and metering zone.
Each zone contributes in its own way to the overall extrusion process. For example,
the feed zone receives the charge from the popper and sends it over to the compression zone.
No heating takes place in the feed zone. However, in the compression zone, the powdered
charge melts due to heat conducted from the heating elements and is compressed by the
working of the screw. The molten plastic material is then sent to the metering section, where
it acquires a constant f low rate. The pressure built in this section enables the polymer melt to
enter the die. For highly viscous material, one more zone is required that is called working
zone. For cooling process, cold air blast and cold water spray are used. The product formed is
cut to the desired length or wound on to rolls.
The extrusion process is also used for coating wires and cables with PVC ro rubber
and for coating roll formed metal strips with suitable thermoplastics.

Thermoforming:
Thermoforming is a highly useful process for fabricating three dimensional articles
from plastic sheets. Even some large products, such as submarine hulls are made of ABS
sheets by thermoforming techniques.
In this technique, the thermoplastic sheet is heated to its softening temperature. The
warm flexible sheet is then pressed into the female half of a matched metal die duly assisted
by the male half. On cooling the shaped article becomes rigid and can be removed from the
mould. In modified method, the hot plastic sheet is sucked into the cavity of the female
mould under the influence of vacuum to give desired shape. This method is called vacuum
forming.
Foaming:
It is a creative process for producing expanded or spongy materials. Special
properties of these materials like cushioning ability, light weight and low thermal
conductivity make them eminently suitable for several applications. The foamable polymers
are polyurethanes, polyurethanes, polystyrene, polyethylene, polypropylene, silicones, epoxy
and PVC. The foam structure consists either of discrete unit cells or of interconnecting cells.

The discrete unit cells are closed cells and may enclose gases while the inter-connecting cells
are of the open type. The open and close type structures are represented below:
There are different methods for producing foamed or cellular plastics. One method is to melt
a compounded thermoplastic material and blow air or nitrogen in such a way that the whole
matrix foams up. Addition of the surface active agents helps the foaming up process. When
the required degree of foaming is achieved in the midst of blowing air or nitrogen, the matrix
is cooled to the ambient temperature. In this process, the material is allowed to solidify in the
foamed-up condition. Mainly, foaming is achieved by the addition of a foaming agent or
blowing agent. Such agents are solvents with a low boiling point or certain chemical
compounds. Solvents, such as n-pentane or n-hexane under normal cured temperature of
polymeric materials, boil off and liberate large volumes of vapours.
The large volumes of vapours or gases liberated by blowing and foaming agents make
the polymer matrix foam up. The polymer matrix in a foamed-up condition is cooled below
the softening temperature or made to undergo the cure reaction so that the matrix as a whole
in the foamed condition attains structural rigidity to maintain the foam structure. This is
called the stabilisation of foam. If the polymer matrix is not cooled down to below its
softening point or is not sufficiently cross-linked, the gases and vapours may escape out of
the system and the foam may collapse. The foamed plastics can be made in flexible, rigid or
semi –rigid forms.
High Performance Polymers
High-Performance Plastics are valued overall for their excellent properties. High-performance
plastics are typically defined as being plastics that not only withstand but perform in extreme
environments including, very high to very low temperatures, high pressure or high velocity and
more. When looking at the plastics pyramid, the top two tiers are considered high-performance
materials. These plastics are chosen for applications in aerospace, aircraft, deep downhole
drilling, medical device, food processing, glass manufacturing, and many more.

Although high-performance materials can appear costly, end users often find these plastics
provide a good balance between cost and performance. These materials are often selected to be
machined into replacements for metal parts.
.

Features and Benefits of High-Performance Plastics

 Extended part life

 Extreme chemical resistance
 Extreme temperature resistance
 Lightweight compared to metals
 Lot and batch traceable
 Filled versions enhance specific characteristics
 Reduced maintenance and downtime

High-Temperature Stability and Other Key Benefits

The most notable feature that separates high-performance plastics from all other plastic
varieties is its thermal properties. In general, high-performance plastics provide a continuous
service temperature in the range of 302° F (150° C) or above. Thermal stability aside, high-
performance plastics maintain a variety of other beneficial qualities and are often chosen
because they exhibit:

 High strength
 Good chemical resistance
  Low coefficient of friction
 High-temperature performance
 High-quality electrical resistance

High-Performance Plastic Applications

High-performance plastics are constructively used in a variety of industrial applications, these
include:

 Applications that require high abrasion resistance

 High heat exposure and shock absorption applications in the glass and Aerospace
industries
 Heat resistant, emission proof, highly insulating or defined conducting materials for
the semiconductor and electrical engineering industry
 Sterilization and hydrolysis resistant materials for medical devices
 Emission proof and radiation resistant components for vacuum technology and
applications in the areas of X-ray technology and nuclear energy
 Components for the chemical industry
 Downhole drilling applications in the Oil and Gas industry
 Components for Aircraft and Aerospace applications where extreme high and low
temperatures are a challenge

PEEK Plastic

PEEK Sheet
Polyetheretherketone, or PEEK, is a high-performance engineered plastic that is uniquely
suited to extreme environments. This innovative performance plastic provides advanced
resistance to harsh chemicals, while exhibiting outstanding dimensional stability and
mechanical strength. Due to its hydrolysis resistance, PEEK is often utilized in wet
environments and is commonly used to make machined parts like bearings and other high-wear
components such as bushings, seals, and backup rings.

PPS Plastic
Polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) is an organic polymer consisting of aromatic rings linked
by sulfides. Synthetic fiber and textiles derived from this polymer resist chemical and thermal
attack. PPS is used in filter fabric for coal boilers, papermaking felts, electrical insulation, film
capacitors, specialty membranes, gaskets, and packings. PPS is the precursor to a conductive
polymer of the semi-flexible rod polymer family. The PPS, which is otherwise insulating, can
be converted to the semiconducting form by oxidation or use of dopants.
olyphenylene sulfide is an engineering plastic, commonly used today as a high-performance
thermoplastic. PPS can be molded, extruded, or machined to tight tolerances. In its pure solid
form, it may be opaque white to light tan in color. Maximum service temperature is 218 °C
(424 °F). PPS has not been found to dissolve in any solvent at temperatures below
approximately 200 °C (392 °F).
Synthesis
The Federal Trade Commission definition for sulfur fiber is "A manufactured fiber in which
the fiber-forming substance is a long chain synthetic polysulfide in which at least 85% of
the sulfide (–S–) linkages are attached directly to two (2) aromatic rings."
The PPS (polyphenylene sulfide) polymer is formed by reaction of sodium sulfide with 1,4-
dichlorobenzene:
n ClC6H4Cl + n Na2S → [C6H4S]n + 2n NaCl
 CLASSIFICATION OF COMPOSITES

Composite material is a material composed of two or more distinct phases (matrix phase and
dispersed phase) and having bulk properties significantly different form those of any of the
constituents.
 Matrix phase
The primary phase, having a continuous character, is called matrix. Matrix is usually
more ductile and less hard phase. It holds the dispersed phase and shares a load with it.
 Dispersed (reinforcing) phase
The second phase (or phases) is embedded in the matrix in a discontinuous form. This
secondary phase is called dispersed phase. Dispersed phase is usually stronger than the
matrix, therefore it is sometimes called reinforcing phase.

Many of common materials (metal alloys, doped Ceramics and Polymers mixed with additives)
also have a small amount of dispersed phases in their structures, however they are not
considered as composite materials since their properties are similar to those of their base
constituents (physical properties of steel are similar to those of pure iron).

There are two classification systems of composite materials. One of them is based
on the matrix material (metal, ceramic, polymer) and the second is based on the material
structure:

Classification of composites I
(based on matrix material)

Metal Matrix Composites (MMC)

Metal Matrix Composites are composed of a metallic matrix (aluminum, magnesium, iron,
cobalt, copper) and a dispersed ceramic (oxides, carbides) or metallic (lead, tungsten,
molybdenum) phase.

Ceramic Matrix Composites (CMC)

 Ceramic Matrix Composites are composed of a ceramic matrix and embedded fibers of other
ceramic material (dispersed phase).

Polymer Matrix Composites (PMC)

Polymer Matrix Composites are composed of a matrix from thermoset (Unsaturated Polyester
(UP), Epoxiy (EP)) or thermoplastic (Polycarbonate (PC),Polyvinylchloride, Nylon, Polysterene)
and embedded glass, carbon, steel or Kevlar fibers (dispersed phase).

Classification of composite materials II

(based on reinforcing material structure)

Particulate Composites
Particulate Composites consist of a matrix reinforced by a dispersed phase in form of particles.

1. Composites with random orientation of particles.

2. Composites with preferred orientation of particles. Dispersed phase of these materials
consists of two-dimensional flat platelets (flakes), laid parallel to each other.

Fibrous Composites
1. Short-fiber reinforced composites. Short-fiber reinforced composites consist of a matrix
reinforced by a dispersed phase in form of discontinuous fibers (length < 100*diameter).
I. Composites with random orientation of fibers.
II. Composites with preferred orientation of fibers.
2. Long-fiber reinforced composites. Long-fiber reinforced composites consist of a matrix
reinforced by a dispersed phase in form of continuous fibers.
I. Unidirectional orientation of fibers.
II. Bidirectional orientation of fibers (woven).

Laminate Composites
When a fiber reinforced composite consists of several layers with different fiber orientations, it is
called multilayer (angle-ply) composite.

Source : http://www.substech.com/dokuwiki/doku.php?
id=classification_of_composites