Polymer properties and application

1. Define tensile strength? Discuss the phenomena with example.[20 2.67

2. Clarify young’s modulus and discuss a typical stress-strain curve of polymer.[20
7
3. What do you understand by strength of polymer? Discuss on the different strength
of polymers. [19 4
4. What is toughness? Draw the stress-strain curve and show the toughness of a
polymer sample. [19 4
5. Write the medical and biomedical applications of polymer. [20, 19 3.66

1. Discuss physical properties of polymer.

Physical properties of polymers include

 molecular weight,
 molar volume,
 density,
 degree of polymerization,
 Crystallinity of material, and so on.

2. Discuss polymer crystallinity.

The polymeric chains being very large are found in the polymer in two forms as follows:

i. Lamellar crystalline form

ii. Amorphous form

Lamellar crystalline form: Lamellar crystalline form in which the chains fold and make
lamellar structure arranged in the regular manner.

Amorphous form: Amorphous form in which the chains are in the irregular manner.

The lamellae are embedded in the amorphous part and can communicate with other
lamellae via tie molecules. Polymer may be amorphous or semi-crystalline in nature.
The % crystallinity is given by:

A typical range of crystallinity can be defined as amorphous (0%) to highly crystalline

(>90%). The polymers having simple structural chains as linear chains and slow cooling
rate will result in good crystallinity as expected. In slow cooling, sufficient time is
available for crystallization to take place.

Amorphous polymers: polystyrene and poly(methyl methacrylate).

Crystalline polymers: polyethylene, and PET polyester.

3. Discuss the thermal properties of polymer.

Thermal properties of polymer include:

i. Melting point
ii. Glass transition temperature

Glass transition temperature: In the amorphous region the polymer is brittle, hard and
rigid analogous/like to glass, where the molecules can vibrate slightly but are not able to
move significantly. This state is referred as the glassy state.

Now, when the polymer is heated, the polymer chains are able to wiggle/vibrate around
each other, and the polymer becomes soft and flexible similar to rubber. This state is
called the rubbery state.
The temperature at which the glassy state makes a transition to rubbery state is called the
glass transition temperature (Tg).

Melting point: The semi-crystalline polymers have true melting temperatures (Tm) at
which the ordered phase turns to disordered phase, this temperature is called melting
point of polymer.

Glass transition temperature is the second order transition, whereas the melting point is
the first order Transition.
4. Discuss the factors affecting Glass transition temperature.

Glass transition temperature is affecting by:

 Intermolecular Forces
 Chain Stiffness/hardness
 Cross-Linking
 Pendant groups
 Plasticizers
 Molecular Weight

Intermolecular Forces: Strong intermolecular forces cause higher Tg. For example,
PVC (Tg = 80∘C) has stronger intermolecular forces than polypropylene (Tg = −18∘C)
because of the dipole–dipole forces from the C—Cl bond.

Chain Stiffness/Hardness: The presence of the stiffening groups (such as amide,

sulfone, carbonyl, p-phenylene etc.) in the polymer chain reduces the flexibility of the
chain, leading to higher glass transition temperature. For example, polyethylene-
terephthalete is stiffer than polyethylene adipate due to the presence of benzene ring.
Therefore, Tg value is higher for polyethylene-terephthalate.

Cross-Linking: The cross-links between chains restrict rotational motion and raise the
glass transition temperature. Hence, higher cross linked molecule will show higher Tg
than that with lower cross-linked molecule.

Pendant groups: The presence of pendent group can change the glass transition
temperature.

(a) Bulky pendant groups: the presence of bulky pendant group, such as a benzene
ring, can restrict rotational freedom, leading to higher glass transition temperature.
 As in polystyrene, the presence of benzene ring increases the Tg. In
polypropylene, there is no benzene ring that leads to lower Tg Value.
(b) Flexible pendant groups: the presence of flexible pendant groups, for example,
aliphatic chains, limits the packing of the chains and hence increases the rotational
motion, tending to less Tg value. In polybutylmethacrylate, the presence of large
aliphatic chain reduces the Tg value when compared with that of
polymethylmethacrylate.

Plasticizers: Plasticizers are low molecular weight and non-volatile materials added to
polymers to increase their chain flexibility. They reduce the intermolecular cohesive
forces between the polymer chains, which in turn decrease Tg.

Molecular Weight: The glass transition temperature is also affected by the molecular
weight of the polymer. Tg is increased with the molecular weight. The molecular weight
is related to the glass transition temperature by the Fox–Flory Equation:

Tg= -

where, Tg,∞ is the glass transition temperature at the molecular weight of infinity, and K is
the empirical parameter called Fox–Flory parameter related to the free volume inside the
polymer. It is observed that Tg is increased up to the molecular weight of approximately
20000, and after this limit, the Tg is not affected appreciably.

5. What are mechanical properties of polymer?

The mechanical properties of polymer are:

 Strength
 Stress
 Strain
 Toughness
 Ductility
5. What do you understand by strength of polymer? Discuss on the different
strength of polymers. [19 4

Strength - the amount of stress an object can receive before it breaks.

There is more than one kind of strength. They are:

 Tensile strength,
 Compressional strength,
 Flexural strength,
 Torsional strength,
 Impact strength etc.

Tensile strength: Tensile strength is the amount of load or stress that can be handled by
a material before it stretches and breaks. Tensile strength is important for a material that
is going to be stretched or under tension. Fibers need good tensile strength.

Compressional strength: Compressive strength or compression strength is the capacity

of a material or structure to withstand loads tending to reduce size (as opposed to tensile
strength which withstands loads tending to elongate). In other words, compressive
strength resists compression (being pushed together), whereas tensile strength resists
tension (being pulled apart).

Then there is compressional strength. A polymer sample has compressional strength if it

is strong when one tries to compress it. Concrete is an example of a material with good
compressional strength. Anything that has to support weight from underneath has to have
good compressional strength.

Flexural strength: Flexural strength is the ability of the material to withstand bending
forces applied perpendicular to its longitudinal axis.

Torsional strength: Torsional strength is the ability of the material to withstand the
twisting load.

Impact strength: Impact strength also called impact toughness -is the amount of energy
that a material can withstand when the said load is suddenly applied to it. It may also be
defined as the threshold of force per unit area before the material undergoes fracture.
6. Define stress and strain.

Stress - the amount of force exerted on an object, divided by the cross-sectional area of
the object. The cross-sectional area is the area of a cross section of the object, in a plane
perpendicular to the direction of the force.

Stress is usually expressed in units of force divided by area, such as N/cm2.

Strain - the amount of deformation of a sample undergoes when one puts it under stress.
Strain can be elongation, bending, compression, or any other type of deformation.

.
7. What is toughness? Draw the stress-strain curve and show the toughness of a
polymer sample. [19 4

Toughness - a measure of the ability of a sample to absorb mechanical energy without

breaking, usually defined as the area under a stress-strain curve.

That plot of stress versus strain can give us another very valuable piece of information. If
one measures the area underneath the stress-strain curve the number you get is something
we call toughness.

Think about it, if the height of the triangle in the plot is strength, and the base of the
triangle is strain, then the area is proportional to strength times strain.

The toughness of a material is given by the area under a stress– strain curve.

8. Define elongation of polymer.

There's more to understanding a polymer's mechanical properties than merely knowing

how strong it is. All strength tells us is how much stress is needed to break something. It
doesn't tell us anything about what happens to our sample while we're trying to break it.
That's where it pays to study the elongation behavior of a polymer sample.

Elongation is a type of deformation. Deformation is simply a change in shape that

anything undergoes under stress. When we're talking about tensile stress, the sample
deforms by stretching, becoming longer. We call this elongation.
Usually we talk about percent elongation, which is just the length the polymer sample is
after it is stretched (L), divided by the original length of the sample (L0 ), and then
multiplied by 100.

% Elongation : L × 100 / Lo

L = Length after stressed or elongation, Lo = Original length of the sample.

Elastic elongation is the percent elongation we can get without permanently deforming of
sample.

9. Clarify young’s modulus and discuss a typical stress-strain curve of polymer.[20

7

Young’s Modulus is the initial part of a stress/strain curve and describes the ability of a
material to resist elastic deformation under load. It describes a material’s propensity to
retain its shape, even when it is being stretched, pulled, twisted, or compressed.

The mechanical property of a material to withstand the compression or the elongation

with respect to its length is known as young’s modulus.

It is denoted as E or Y.

Y= = =

Where,

E is Young’s modulus in Pa

𝞂 is the uniaxial stress in Pa

ε is the strain or proportional deformation

F is the force exerted by the object under tension

A is the actual cross-sectional area

ΔL is the change in the length

L0 is the actual length

The slope is not constant as stress increases. The slope, that is the modulus, is changing
with stress. The initial slope as the modulus, as we can see in the stress-strain curve
above.
A typical stress-strain curve of polymer:

In general, fibers have the highest tensile moduli, and elastomers have the lowest, and
plastics have tensile moduli somewhere in between fibers and elastomers.

10. Mention uses of polymer in daily life.

Product made from polymers are all around us: clothing made from synthetic fibers,
polyethylene cups, fiberglass, nylon bearings, plastic bags, polymer-based paints, epoxy
glue, polyurethane foam cushion, silicone heart valves, and Teflon-coated cookware.
Uses of polymer in daily life:

 Clothing
 Oil recovery
 Food and flavors
 Agriculture
 Packaging
 Consumer items clothing, toys, skin care -
 Automotive parts
 Industrial (pipes, parts, additives, etc)
 Electronics
 Medicines (proteins, antibodies, coatings for tablets, gel caps)
11. Mention household uses of polymer.

Lunch box Rubber bands Lawn chair

Gravy Super glue CDs

Computer Automobile Bicycle

Shoe strings Tennis shoes Plastic fork/spoon

12. Write the medical and biomedical applications of polymer. [20, 19 3.66

High polymers are used in medicine, surgery, or artificial organs in three ways:

1) to construct complete artificial replacements for human organs,

2) to repair, sustain, or augment function of normal organs, and
3) to provide a biochemical function.

Another important area where polymers have been widely used is in biomedical
applications. One of the most widely used synthetic polymers is poly (lactic acid) (PLA).
Other polymers used for biomedical applications due to their biocompatibility,
controllable degradation rate and their degradation into non-toxic components, include
natural polymers, such as polysaccharides or proteins and synthetic polymers, such as:
poly(glycolic acid) (PGA), poly(hydroxyl butyrate) (PHB) and poly (ε-caprolactone)
(PCL).