Material Selection for Thermoplastic Parts

1. Thermoplastic Material Selection: Some Ways of Thinking for a Systematic Approach

• 1.1. Specific Plastics Design Issues: Some Ins and Outs among Others
• 1.2. Checklist Proposal

2. Thermoplastic Specific Properties

• 2.1. Do not Confuse Raw Polymer and Plastic Grade (or Compound)
• 2.2. Raw TPs Are Organic Macromolecules
• 2.3. Supramolecular Structure
• 2.4. Viscoelasticity, Time, and Temperature Dependency
• 2.5. From Raw Polymers to Actual Grades: Upgrading and Customization
• 2.6. Isotropy and Anisotropy
• 2.7. Dimensional Stability
• 2.8. Market Appeal: Sensory Properties Are of the Prime Importance

3. Thermoplastics: Economic Overview

• 3.1. Overview of the Global Plastics Industry Today and Tomorrow
• 3.2. Market Shares of the Various Thermoplastic Families
• 3.3. Market Shares of Composites
• 3.4. Market Shares for the Main Application Sectors
• 3.5. Importance of the Various Processing Modes
• 3.6. Consumption Trends
• 3.7. The North American Market
• 3.8. The Western European Market
• 3.9. The Asian Market
• 3.10. Structure of the Plastics Processing Industry
• 3.11. Plastic Costs
• 3.12. The Future: Two Important Issues Linked to Crude Oil: Costs and Drying Up
• 3.13. Price Index Hypotheses for 279 Plastics
• 3.14. Useful Source Examples for Initiation of In-depth Studies

4. Elements for Analogical Selections: Survey of the 10 Top Markets

• 4.1. Packaging
• 4.2. Building and Civil Engineering
• 4.3. Automotive and Transportation
• 4.4. Electrical and Electronics Market
• 4.5. Household, Entertainment, and Office Appliances
• 4.6. Mechanical Engineering
• 4.7. Sports and Leisure
• 4.8. Medical Market
• 4.9. Furniture and Bedding
• 4.10. Agriculture

5. Avoid Some Pitfalls

• 5.1. Balance Well-Estimated Part Requirements and Properties of the Used Compound: Objectively Fill Out Your Checklist
• 5.2. Mechanical Properties: At Break, at Elastic Limit, at Yield, after Creep
• 5.3. Do not Confuse Local and Bulk Properties: Take into Account the Statistical Distribution of Properties
• 5.4. Chemical Behavior: Nature of Chemicals, Time, Temperature, Environmental Stress Cracking
• 5.5. Ambient Humidity Can Plasticize Polymers and Change Their Properties Including Electrical Properties
• 5.6. Often Properties Evolve Abruptly: Glass Transition, Yield, Knees, Frequency- Dependent Properties
• 5.7. Modeling and Predictions of Lifetimes: Very Useful if Carefully Used; Very Hazardous in Other Cases
• 5.8. Helpful, Hazardous, and False Comparisons

6. Density, Actual Weight Savings, Cost, and Property per Volume Advantages

• 6.1. Density of 280 Thermoplastics, Statistical Analysis, and Modeling
• 6.2. Specific Yield Strength and Specific Modulus
• 6.3. Cost per Volume Examples
• 6.4. Actual Weight Savings
• 6.5. Density Reduction Using Structural Foam Techniques and Hollow Parts

7. Mechanical Properties

• 7.1. Plastics are not Ideal Materials Obeying to Simple Physical Laws
• 7.2. First of All, Fully Understand Information and Make Your Requirements Understandable
• 7.3. Tensile Properties
• 7.4. Flexural Properties
• 7.5. Compressive Properties
• 7.6. Shear Properties
• 7.7. Comparison of Tensile, Flexural, Compressive, and Shear Properties
• 7.8. Impact Strength
• 7.9. Hardness

8. Thermal Properties

• 8.1. Overview
• 8.2. Glass Transition Temperature (See Also Section 2.3.3)
• 8.3. Thermal Behavior above Room Temperature (See Also Section 1.1.3)
• 8.4. Low-Temperature Behavior (See Also Section 1.1.4)

9. Dimensional Stability

• 9.1. Coefficients of Thermal Expansion—CTE or CTLE
• 9.2. Shrinkage after Molding
• 9.3. Warpage
• 9.4. Water Uptake
• 9.5. Releasing of Organic Additives: Choose High-Molecular Weight or Reactive Additives
• 9.6. Some Other Causes of Dimensional Variations

10. Advanced Mechanical Properties

• 10.1. Thermal Dependency of Mechanical Properties
• 10.2. Time-Dependent Mechanical Properties
• 10.3. Poisson’s Ratios
• 10.4. Friction and Wear; Tribological Thermoplastics

11. Fire Behavior

• 11.1. Preliminary Remarks: Define the Problem Correctly
• 11.2. Predisposition to Burn: More or Less Easily, All Thermoplastics Burn
• 11.3. Inherently FR polymers
• 11.4. FR Solutions
• 11.5. The Top Solutions: HFFR and FST grades
• 11.6. Examples of Effect of FR Modifications on Properties

12. Electrical Properties

• 12.1. Volume Resistivity
• 12.2. Relative Permittivity or Dielectric Constant
• 12.3. Alternating Current Loss Tangent or Loss Factor
• 12.4. Dielectric Strength
• 12.5. Surface Resistivity
• 12.6. Arc Resistance
• 12.7. Frequency, Temperature, Moisture, Physical, and Dynamic Aging Effects
• 12.8. Electrically Conductive Thermoplastics

13. Sensory Issues: Optical Properties, Aesthetics, Odor, Taste, Touch

• 13.1. Refractive Index
• 13.2. Transparent Thermoplastics
• 13.3. Aesthetics
• 13.4. Odor and Taste Transfer
• 13.5. Touch
• 13.6. Acoustics, NVH
• 13.7. Sensory Testing Needs the Complementarity of Instrumental Measurements and Sensory Panel Evaluations

14. Resistance to Chemicals, Light, and UV

• 14.1. Chemical Resistance of Unstressed Materials
• 14.2. Environmental Stress Cracking
• 14.3. Photooxidation: Weathering, Light, and UV Behavior

15. EcoDesign

• 15.1. Well-Established Routes
• 15.2. Replacement of Fossil Materials by Renewable Materials
• 15.3. Take Advantage of Thermoplastics Versatility for a More Sustainable Use Phase
• 15.4. Overview of Some Environmental Indicators and Benchmarks Relating to LCAIndex