Materials Processing II

FME 352

Polymer Processing
 Introduction
What is a Polymer?
 A polymer is a compound consisting of long chain molecules,
each molecule made up of repeating units connected together.

 Most polymers are based on carbon and are therefore

considered organic chemicals.

 Polymers can be divided into three categories:

 Thermoplastics polymers (TP)- Examples: include polyethylene,
polyvinylchloride, polypropylene, poly styrene, and nylon.

 Thermosetting polymers/thermosets (TS) – Examples: phenolics, epoxies, and

certain polyesters.

 Elastomers (E): common example given for elastomers is natural

(vulcanized) rubber; however, synthetic rubbers exceed the tonnage

of natural rubber.
 Reasons for the technological importance of polymers
 Plastics can be formed by molding into intricate part geometries, usually
with no further processing required.

 Plastics possess an attractive list of properties for many engineering

applications where strength is not a factor:
 Low density relative to metals and ceramics.

 Good strength-to-weight ratios for certain (but not all) polymers.

 High corrosion resistance.

 Low electrical and thermal conductivity.

 Polymers generally require less energy to produce than metals. This is

generally true because the temperatures for working these materials are
much lower than for metals.

 Certain plastics are translucent and/or transparent, which makes them

competitive with glass in some applications.

 Polymers are widely used in composite materials

 Limitations of Polymers

 Strength is low relative to metals and ceramics.

 Modulus of elasticity or stiffness is also low. However, in the case of

elastomers, this may be a desirable characteristic.

 Service temperatures are limited to only a few hundred degrees

because of the softening of thermoplastic polymers or degradation
of thermosetting polymers and elastomers.

 Some polymers degrade when subjected to sunlight and other forms

of radiation.

 Plastics exhibit viscoelastic properties, which can be a distinct

limitation in load bearing applications.
 Properties of Thermoplastics
 Are solid materials at room temperature, but they become viscous liquids
when heated to temperatures of only a few hundred degrees.

 They can be subjected to heating and cooling cycle repeatedly without

significant alteration of the molecular strutcure/degradation of the polymer.

 The reason for this property is that TP polymers consist of linear (and/or
branched) macromolecules that do not cross-link when heated.

 Thermoplastic polymers also degrade gradually when subjected to

continuous elevated temperatures below melting point. This long-term
effect is called thermal aging and involves slow chemical deterioration.

 Thermoplastics are commercially the most important of the three types,

constituting around 70% of the tonnage of all synthetic polymers produced.
 Properties of Thermoplastics
Physical properties of Thermoplastics
 Lower densities than metals or ceramics—typical specific
gravities for polymers are around 1.2.

 Much higher coefficient of thermal expansion— roughly 5 times

the value for metals and 10 times the value for ceramics.

 Much lower melting temperatures.

 Specific heats that are 2 to 4 times those of metals and

ceramics

 Thermal conductivities that are about three orders of

magnitude lower than those of metals.

 Insulating electrical properties.

 Properties of Thermoplastics
Mechanical properties of Thermoplastics
 The typical thermoplastic at room temperature is characterized by the
following:
 Much lower stiffness, the modulus of elasticity being two (in some cases, three)
orders of magnitude lower than metals and ceramics.

 Lower tensile strength, about 10% of the metals.

 Much lower hardness

 Greater ductility on average, but there is a tremendous range of values, from 1%

elongation for polystyrene to 500% or more for polypropylene.
 Factors affecting strength of polymers include:
 Molecular Weight: The tensile strength of the polymer rises with increase in
molecular weight.

 Cross-linking: The cross-linking restricts the motion of the chains and increases the
strength of the polymer.

 Crystallinity: The crystallinity of the polymer increases strength, because in the

crystalline phase, the intermolecular bonding is more significant.
 Properties of Thermoplastics
Mechanical properties of Thermoplastics
 Mechanical properties of thermoplastics depend on temperature.

Figure: Relationship of mechanical properties, portrayed as deformation resistance,

as a function of temperature for an amorphous thermoplastic, a 100% crystalline
(theoretical) thermoplastic, and a partially crystallized thermoplastic.
 Properties of Thermosets
 Thermosetting (TS) polymers are distinguished by their highly cross-linked
structure.

 These polymers cannot tolerate heating cycles as thermoplastics.

 Thermosets are always amorphous and exhibit no glass transition

temperature.

 In general, thermosets are:

 more rigid—modulus of elasticity is 2 to 3 times greater than those of
thermoplastics.

 brittle—they possess virtually no ductility

 less soluble in common solvents

 capable of higher service temperatures

 not capable of being remelted; instead they degrade or burn/char.

 The differences in properties of the thermosets are attributable to cross-

linking, which forms a thermally stable, three-dimensional, covalently
bonded structure within the molecule.
Shaping processes for
plastics
 Plastic products
 Plastics can be shaped into a wide variety of products:
 Molded parts

 Extruded sections

 Films

 Sheets

 Insulation coatings on electrical wires

 Fibers for textiles.

 In addition, plastics are often the principal ingredient in other materials,

such as:
 Paints and varnishes

 Adhesives

 Various polymer matrix composites

 Many plastic shaping processes can be adapted to produce items made

of rubbers and polymer matrix composites.
Why plastic shaping processes are important

 Almost unlimited variety of part geometries.

 Plastic molding is a net shape process; further shaping is not

needed.

 Less energy is required than for metals because processing

temperatures are much lower.

 Painting or plating is usually not required.

 Properties of Polymer Melts
 To shape a thermoplastic polymer it must be heated so that it
softens to the consistency of a liquid

 In this form, it is called a polymer melt.

 Important properties:
 Viscosity

 Viscoelasticity
 Viscosity of Polymer Melts
 Viscosity is a fluid property that relates shear stress to shear rate during
flow.
  
 Due to its high molecular weight, a polymer melt is a thick fluid with high
viscosity.

 Important because most polymer shaping processes involve flow

through small channels or die openings.

 Flow rates are often large, leading to high shear rates and shear stresses,
so significant pressures are required to accomplish the processes.
 Viscosity of a polymer melt decreases with shear rate, thus the fluid becomes
thinner at higher shear rates.

 Viscosity of a polymer melt decreases with temperature, thus the fluid becomes
thinner at higher temperatures.
 Viscosity of Polymer Melts

Figure: Viscosity relationships for Newtonian fluid and typical polymer melt
 Viscosity of Polymer Melts

Figure: Viscosity as a function of temperatures for selected polymers at a

shear rate of 103s-1
 Viscoelasticity of Polymer Melts

 Usually, polymers show a combined behavior of elastic and plastic

deformation depending on the temperature and strain rate.

 At low temperature and high strain rate, elastic behavior is observed,

and at high temperature but low strain rate, the viscous behavior is
observed.

 The combined behavior of viscosity and elasticity (viscoelasticity) is

observed at intermediate temperature and strain rate values.

 Example: die swell in extrusion, in which the hot plastic expands

when exiting the die opening
 Die Swell
 Extruded material "remembers" its former shape when in the larger
cross-section of the extruder and attempts to return to it after leaving
the die orifice.

Figure: Die swell, a manifestation of viscoelasticity in polymer melts, as

depicted here on exiting an extrusion die
Extrusion
 Extrusion
 Compression process in which material is forced to flow through a

die orifice to provide long continuous product whose cross-sectional

shape is determined by the shape of the orifice.

 Widely used for thermoplastics to mass produce items such as tubing,

pipes, hose, structural shapes, sheet and film, continuous filaments,

and coated electrical wire

 Carried out as a continuous process; extrudate is then cut into

desired lengths.
 Extruder
 The two main components:
 Barrel
 Screw
 Die - not an extruder component. It is a special tool that must be
fabricated for particular profile to be produced.

Feedstock is Polymer is Melt is

moved from transformed homogenized
hopper and into fluid, air and sufficient
preheated. mixed is pressure
extracted, and developed to
material is pump it through
compressed. die opening.

Figure: Components and features of a (single-screw) extruder for plastics and

elastomers
 Extruder

Extrudate Die Barrel Screw

 Extruder Barrel
 Internal diameter typically ranges from 25 to 150 mm.

 L/D ratios usually between 10 and 30: higher ratios for thermoplastic,
lower ratios for elastomers.

 Feedstock fed by gravity onto screw whose rotation moves material

through barrel.

 Electric heaters melt feedstock; subsequent mixing and mechanical

working adds heat which maintains the melt.
 Extruder Screw
 Divided into sections to serve several functions:
 Feed section - feedstock is moved from hopper and preheated

 Compression section - polymer is transformed into fluid, air mixed with pellets is
extracted from melt, and material is compressed

 Metering section - melt is homogenized and sufficient pressure developed to

pump it through die opening

Figure: Details of an extruder

screw inside the barrel.
 Die end extruder
 Progress of polymer melt through barrel leads ultimately to the die
zone

 Before reaching die, the melt passes through a screen pack - series
of wire meshes supported by a stiff plate containing small axial holes.

 Functions of screen pack:

 Filter contaminants and hard lumps from melt.

 Build pressure in metering section.

 Straighten flow of polymer melt and remove its "memory" of

circular motion imposed by screw
 Melt Flow in Extruder
 As screw rotates inside barrel, polymer melt is forced to move

forward toward die; as in an Archimedian screw.

 Principal transport mechanism is drag flow, Qd, resulting from

friction between the viscous liquid and the rotating screw.

 Compressing the polymer melt through the die creates a back

pressure that reduces drag flow transport (called back pressure

flow, Qb ).

 Resulting flow in extruder is Qx = Qd –Qb

Die Configurations and Extruded Products

 Regular shapes such as

 Rounds
 Squares
 Irregular cross sections such as
 Structural shapes
 Door and window moldings
 Automobile trim
 House siding
 Extrusion Die for Solid Cross Section

Figure: (a) Side view cross-section of an extrusion die for solid regular shapes,
such as round stock; (b) front view of die, with profile of extrudate. Die swell is
evident in both views.
 Hollow Profiles

 Examples: tubes, pipes, hoses, and other cross-sections containing

holes

 Hollow profiles require mandrel to form the shape.

 Mandrel held in place using a spider.

 Polymer melt flows around legs supporting the mandrel to reunite

into a monolithic tube wall

 Mandrel often includes an air channel through which air is blown

to maintain hollow form of extrudate during hardening
 Hollow Profiles

Figure: Side view cross section of extrusion die for shaping hollow cross sections such
as tubes and pipes;
Section A-A is a front view cross section showing how the mandrel is held in place;
Section B-B shows the tubular cross section just prior to exiting the die; die swell
causes an enlargement of the diameter. (Some die construction details are simplified.)
 Hollow Profiles

Extrusion bridge die making a hollow section product. Note that in the picture
the die has been split to show the material passing through it. In reality, the die
and the ring fit together, with a gap for the extruded material to flow through.
 Blow Extrusion
 Blow extrusion, in which molten extrudate is forced past a tubing
mandrel, expanded into a balloon shape by a stream of air,
drawn upward by rollers, and pinched into a collapsed sheet to
be cut into a number of products.
 Wire and Cable Coating

 Polymer melt is applied to bare wire as it is pulled at high speed

through a die

 A slight vacuum is drawn between wire and polymer to

promote adhesion of coating

 Wire provides rigidity during cooling - usually aided by passing

coated wire through a water trough

 Product is wound onto large spools at speeds up to 50 m/s

 Wire and Cable Coating

Figure: Side view cross-section of die for coating of electrical wire by extrusion
 Wire and Cable Coating

Figure: Side view cross-section of die for coating of electrical wire by extrusion