Thermoplastic

Description

A polymer that can be melted with heat then molded multiple times. Thermoplastic polymers are typically soluble in various organic solvents. Examples of thermoplastic polymers are Vinyl resins, Acrylics, Polyethylene, Polystyrene, Cellulose acetate, Polyamides along with some Polyesters and Polyurethanes. Polymers that cannot be melted are called thermosets.

Physical Properties for Selected Thermoplastic Resins

polymer	abbreviation/common name	Tg ©	Ref.index (film)	Density	Tensile strength (1000 psi)	Flexural strength (1000 psi)	Compressive strength (1000 psi)	Elongation at break (%)	Shrinkage (%)
acetal resin	AC	140	1.51	1.41-1.42	8.8-10	13-14	18	12-75	180
acrylonitrile butadiene styrene	ABS	102	1.52	1.05	3.5-10.5	5-15	5-11	10-100	185
cellulose acetate	CA	180	1.47-1.48	1.27-1.34	2.3-8.1	2.2-11.5	2.2-10.9	10-70	0.1-0.7
cellulose acetate butyrate	CAB	121	1.47	1.15-1.25	2.6-6.9	1.8-9.3	2.1-9.4	40-88	0.3-0.6
cellulose nitrate	CN	56	1.49-1.51	1.34-1.40
cyanoacrylate resin	CA	165	1.45-1.48
ethyl cellulose	EC	130	1.47-1.49		2.3-6.5	3.0-6.7		10-40
fluorocarbon	FKM; FEP; TFE; PTFE	-22 to - 115	1.33-1.35	1.85-2.28	2.0-5.0	no break	4-1.2	75-400	1-6
hydroxyethyl cellulose	HEC	135-140	1.51
hydroxypropyl cellulose	HPC	130	1.56
methyl cellulose	MC	140	1.479
nylon (polyamide)	Nylon 6/6	50-90	1.53-1.56	1.09-1.14	11.2-13.1	14.6	5-13	60-300	0.7-1.5
polybutyl acrylate	PBA	-54	1.474
polybutylmethacrylate	PBMA	20	1.483
polycarbonate	PC	150	1.59	1.2	8-9	11-13.5	12.5	75	0.5-0.7
polycyclohexanone	ketone resin	100	1.48-1.53
polyester	PET	70	1.55	1.12-1.46	6-12	8.5-18.5	13-36.5	20	2-8
polyethylene glycol	PEG	-55	1.479
polyethylene vinylacetate	EVA	-24	1.47-1.48	0.94	20-40			500-1500
polyethylene, high density	HDPE	-110	1.49-1.52	0.94-0.96	2.8-5.0	1-4	0.8-3.6	10-500
polyethylene, low density	LDPE	-20	1.49-1.52	0.91-0.93	1.0-2.4			20-800	1-3
polyethylmethacrylate	PEMA	65	1.484
polymethylacrylate	PMA	8	1.48-1.52	1.18-1.19	8.7-10.5	14-16	14-17	3-6
polymethylmethacrylate	PMMA	100-105	1.489	1.20
polypropylene	PP	5	1.49	0.85-0.90	2.3-5.0	4.5-6.0	6-8	10-700	0.8-2.5
polystyrene	PS	80	1.50-1.75	1.05-1.08	5-9	7-15	11.5-16	1-2.5	0.2-0.6
polyurethane		-50		1.05	4.5-8.0	0.7-1.0	20	100-600	0.8-1.2
polyvinyl acetate	PVAC	30-45	1.46-1.47	1.19					1-2
polyvinyl alcohol	PVOH	75	1.15
polyvinyl butyral	PVB	45-66	1.49	1.07-1.08
polyvinylchloride (rigid)	PVC	83	1.54	1.15-1.80	6-9	8-15	10-11	5-40	0.2-0.4
polyvinylidene chloride	PVDC	-17	1.62
polyvinylpyrrolidone	PVP	86	1.53
urea-formaldehyde	UF	1.55	1.47-1.52

Synonyms and Related Terms

termoplástico (Esp.); thermoplastique (Fr.); resina termoplastica (It.); termoplástico (Port.); thermoplastic resin;

For easy printing or to download

Physical Properties for Selected Thermoplastic Resins

General Characteristics of Polymers

Resources and Citations

• G.S.Brady, Materials Handbook, McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, 1971 Comment: p. 789
• Ralph Mayer, A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques, Harper and Row Publishers, New York, 1969 (also 1945 printing)
• Theodore J. Reinhart, 'Glossary of Terms', Engineered Plastics, ASM International, 1988
• Hoechst Celanese Corporation, Dictionary of Fiber & Textile Technology (older version called Man-made Fiber and Textile Dictionary, 1965), Hoechst Celanese Corporation, Charlotte NC, 1990
• Matt Roberts, Don Etherington, Bookbinding and the Conservation of Books: a Dictionary of Descriptive Terminology, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington DC, 1982
• Pam Hatchfield, Pollutants in the Museum Environment, Archetype Press, London, 2002
• Art and Architecture Thesaurus Online, http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabulary/aat/, J. Paul Getty Trust, Los Angeles, 2000