Polymer Science

Mechanical properties

Edgar Franco, Phd

Chapter 6

Chemical Eng.
Course number: QUI4301 1
edgar.franco@cidesi.edu.mx
 Polymer processing

ISSUES TO ADDRESS...

 What are the tensile properties of polymers and how they are
affected by basic microstructural features?

 Hardening and annealing in polymers

 How does the elevated temperature mechanical response of

polymers?

2
 Mechanical properties of polymers

Elastic Behavior
Elastic behavior: When loads are small, how much deformation occurs?

Stress and strain: What are they and why are they used instead of load
and deformation?

3
 Mechanical properties of polymers

Elastic Behavior
Elastic behavior: When loads are small, how much deformation occurs?

Stress and strain: What are they and why are they used instead of load
and deformation?

4
Mechanical properties of polymers

Poisson's ratio, n
eL
n=-
e

5
 Mechanical properties of polymers

Ductility
Plastic tensile strain at failure

6
 Mechanical properties of polymers

Toughness
• Energy to break a unit volume of material
• Approximate by the area under the stress-strain curve.

Engineering small toughness (ceramics)

tensile large toughness (metals)
stress, s
Adapted from Fig. 7.13, very small toughness
Callister & Rethwisch 3e. (unreinforced polymers)

Engineering tensile strain, e

Brittle fracture: elastic energy

Ductile fracture: elastic + plastic energy

7
 Mechanical properties of polymers

Resilience
• Ability of a material to store energy
• Energy stored best in elastic region

8
 Mechanical properties of polymers

Stress-Strain Behavior
What are they and why are they used instead of load and deformation?
Plastic behavior: At what point does permanent deformation occur?
ASTM D638
ISO 527

9
 Mechanical properties of polymers

Mechanisms of Deformation — Semicrystalline

(Plastic) Polymers
fibrillar
structure
Stress-strain curves adapted
from Fig. 15.1. Callister & near
Rethwisch 8e. Inset figures failure
along plastic response curve
adapted from Figs. 15.12 &
15.13, Callister & Rethwisch
8e. (15.12 & 15.13 are from
J.M. Schultz, Polymer
Materials Science, Prentice-
Hall, Inc., 1974, pp. 500-501.)

crystalline
block segments
separate
undeformed
structure amorphous
crystalline
regions
regions align
elongate
10
 Thermoplastic polymers

What the mechanical parameters mean and how to obtain them?

s 𝜎𝑦 1
(Pa)

1 E= Young modulus
Material stiffness
= Resistencia de cedencia
<
E Strength to be deformed
= Resiliencia
Storage energy

𝑈𝑟

e (%)
 Thermoplastic polymers

What the mechanical parameters mean and how to obtain them?

Necking, localized deformation

Heterogeneous
2 2 deformation

s 𝜎𝑦
(Pa
)

𝑈𝑟
Low volume
e (%)
 Thermoplastic polymers

What the mechanical parameters mean and how to obtain them?

3 3’

s 𝜎𝑦 3 3’ 𝜎𝑏
(Pa)

= Stress at break
= strain at break
Ductility
E

𝑈𝑟
𝜀𝑏
Unfolded
e (%)
chains
 Thermoplastic polymers

What the mechanical parameters mean and how to obtain them?

𝜎𝑏
4
s 𝜎𝑦
(Pa)

E Stress at break = maximum stress?

Strain hardening

𝜀𝑏
e (%) 14
 Thermoplastic polymers

Strain rate and temperature

s 250
(Pa) mm/min
E e
s 100 mm/min

50 mm/min

LDPE

e (%)
 Mechanical properties of polymers

Influence of T and Strain Rate on Thermoplastics

Decreasing T:
• increases E
• increases TS
• decreases %EL

Increasing strain rate:

• same effects as decreasing T.

16
Failure mechanisms
 Thermoplastic polymers

How is a semi-crystalline polymer deformed?

Shear bands necking whitening

Strain whitening

Kinloch A.J., Young R.J. (1995) Shear Yielding. In: Fracture Behaviour of Polymers. Springer,
Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1594-2_4
Thermoplastic polymers

And … amorphous polymers??

𝜎
s
(Pa)

High Young modulus

Stiffer materials
E High strength
No plastic deformation
Polished type surface

e (%)
Thermoplastic polymers

And … amorphous polymers??

𝜎
s
(Pa)

High Young modulus

Stiffer materials
E High strength
No plastic deformation
Polished type surface

e (%)
 Thermoplastic polymers

Craizing
formation of microvoids and fibrillar bridges

aligned chains

fibrillar bridges microvoids crack

 Mechanical properties of polymers

Exercises!!!
Indicate the Young Modulus, Stress strength, strain strength, tensile
break and deformation rupture (ductility) of the next exercises:

22
 Mechanical properties of polymers

Exercises!!!
Los siguientes datos fueron reunidos a partir de un ensayo de
tracción en una probeta de 12 mm de diámetro:
Después de la rotura, la longitud calibrada es de 32.61mm y diámetro
de 11.74mm. Calcular:
• Resistencia
• Modulo elástico
• Deformación
• Reducción del área
• Esfuerzo ingenieril a la rotura
• Esfuerzo real a la rotura
• Modulo de resiliencia
• Módulo de Poisson

23
 Diámetro calibrado (mm)

Carga (N) Longitud calibrada (mm)

11.9844
0 30
11.9688
5000 30.0296
11.9532
10000 30.0592
11.9376
15000 30.0888
11.922
20000 30.15
11.9064
25000 30.51
11.8648
26500 30.90
11.8232
27000 31.5 (carga máxima)
11.7816
26500 32.10
11.7387
25000 32.79 (rotura)