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Materials and Processes For Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering

1. Naturally occurring polymers like wood, rubber, and silk have been used for centuries, while synthetic polymers now make up many plastics, rubbers, and fibers. 2. Polymer molecules are composed of large repeating structural units that are linked together into linear, branched, or cross-linked chains. 3. Common polymers have a variety of applications and properties including strength, insulation, and corrosion resistance. They are often lighter weight alternatives to metals.

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Melanie D. Aquino Baguio
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21 views16 pages

Materials and Processes For Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering

1. Naturally occurring polymers like wood, rubber, and silk have been used for centuries, while synthetic polymers now make up many plastics, rubbers, and fibers. 2. Polymer molecules are composed of large repeating structural units that are linked together into linear, branched, or cross-linked chains. 3. Common polymers have a variety of applications and properties including strength, insulation, and corrosion resistance. They are often lighter weight alternatives to metals.

Uploaded by

Melanie D. Aquino Baguio
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Materials and Processes for Agricultural

and Biosystems Engineering

Polymers and Plastics


Introduction
Naturally occurring polymers—those derived from plants and animals
have been used for many centuries; these materials include wood,
rubber, cotton, wool, leather, and silk. Other natural polymers such as
proteins, enzymes, starches, and cellulose are important in biological
and physiological processes in plants and animals.

Many of our useful plastics, rubbers, and fiber materials are synthetic polymers.
Hydrocarbon Molecules
Many organic materials are hydrocarbons; that is, they are composed
of hydrogen and carbon. Furthermore, the intermolecular bonds are
covalent. Each carbon atom has four electrons that may participate in
covalent bonding, whereas every hydrogen atom has only one
bonding electron. A single covalent bond exists when each of the two
bonding atoms contributes one electron.
Hydrocarbon Molecules
Example:
Methane (CH4)
Ethylene (C2H4) – double covalent bonds
Acetylene (C2H2) – triple covalent bonds

Molecules that have double and triple covalent bonds are termed
unsaturated hydrocarbon. That is, each carbon atom is not bonded to
the maximum (four) other atoms; as such, it is possible for another atom
or group of atoms to become attached to the original molecule.
Furthermore, for a saturated hydrocarbon, all bonds are single ones,
and no new atoms may be joined without the removal of others that
are already bonded.
Polymer Molecules
The molecules in polymers are gigantic in comparison to the
hydrocarbon molecules because of their size they are often referred to
as macromolecules.

These long molecules are composed of structural entities called repeat


units, which are successively repeated along the chain. The term
monomer refers to the small molecule from which a polymer is
synthesized.
The Chemistry of Polymer Molecules
The physical characteristics of a polymer depend not only on its
molecular weight and shape but also on differences in the structure of
the molecular chains. Modern polymer synthesis techniques permit
considerable control over various structural possibilities.
Molecular Structures
Linear Polymers – are those in which the repeat units are joined together
end to end in single chains.
Branched Polymers – can be indicated by a side-branch chains connected
to the main ones. The branches, considered to be part of the main chain
molecule, may result from side reactions that occur during the synthesis of
the polymer.
Cross-linked Polymers – adjacent linear chains are joined one to another at
various positions by covalent bonds.
Network Polymers – multifunctional monomers forming three or more active
covalent bonds, make three-dimensional networks. These materials have
distinctive mechanical and thermal properties; the epoxies, polyurethanes,
and phenol-formaldehyde belong to this group.
General Properties of Polymeric Materials
Electrical Insulation
Strength/Weight Ratio
Corrosion Resistance
Mechanical Behavior of Polymers/ Stress-Strain Behavior
The mechanical properties of polymers are specified with many of the
same parameters that are used for metals that is, modulus of elasticity,
and yield and tensile strengths.

The mechanical characteristics of polymers, for the most part, are


highly sensitive to the rate of deformation (strain rate), the temperature,
and the chemical nature of the environment (the presence of water,
oxygen, organic solvents, etc.).
Features of Polymers
The fracture strengths of polymeric materials are low relative to those of
metals and ceramics. As a general rule, the mode of fracture in
thermosetting polymers (heavily cross linked networks) is brittle.

For thermoplastic polymers, both ductile and brittle modes are possible,
and many of these materials are capable of experiencing a ductile-to-
brittle transition. Factors that favor brittle fracture are a reduction in
temperature, an increase in strain rate, the presence of a sharp notch,
increased specimen thickness, and any modification of the polymer
structure that raises the glass transition temperature. Glassy
thermoplastics are brittle below their glass transition temperatures.
Polymer Types
Plastics - materials that have some structural rigidity under load, and
are used in general-purpose applications. Some plastics are very rigid
and brittle . Others are flexible, exhibiting both elastic and plastic
deformations when stressed, and sometimes experiencing considerable
deformation before fracture.

Polyethylene, polypropylene, poly(vinyl chloride), polystyrene, and the


fluorocarbons, epoxies, phenolics, and polyesters may all be classified
as plastics.
Polymer Types | Plastics
Advantages
The great increase in the use of plastics is due to
- their many useful properties,
- couples with comparatively low cost,
- their low densities,
- their high resistance to chemical attack,
- their thermal and electrical insulation properties,
- their ease of fabrication in to a wide variety of both simple and
complex shapes.
Polymer Types | Plastics
Disadvantages
The main disadvantages of plastics are :
- The low strength and elastic modulus values, in compression with
those of metals
- The low softening and thermal degradation temperature
- Their comparatively high thermal expansion coefficients.
Polymer Types
Fibers - are capable of being drawn into long filaments having at least
a 100:1 length-to-diameter ratio. Most commercial fiber polymers are
utilized in the textile industry, being woven or knit into cloth or fabric.
Polymer Types
To be useful as a textile material, a fiber polymer must have a host of
rather restrictive physical and chemical properties. While in use, fibers
may be subjected to a variety of mechanical deformations stretching,
twisting, shearing, and abrasion. Consequently, they must have a high
tensile strength (over a relatively wide temperature range) and a high
modulus of elasticity, as well as abrasion resistance. These properties
are governed by the chemistry of the polymer chains and also by the
fiber drawing process.
Polymer Types
Convenience in washing and maintaining clothing depends primarily
on the thermal properties of the fiber polymer, that is, its melting and
glass transition temperatures.

Furthermore, fiber polymers must exhibit chemical stability to a rather


extensive variety of environments, including acids, bases, bleaches, dry
cleaning solvents, and sunlight. In addition, they must be relatively
nonflammable and amenable to drying.

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