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OVERVIEW |
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| 1. Weather-Ometer, Atlas Ci 5000, Xenon |
| 2. Melt Flow Index instrument, Dynisco |
| 3. Differential Scanning Calorimetry, Shimadzu |
| 4. Optical Microscopes, Olympus BX 60M, 500X |
| 5. Scanning Electron Microscope with EDX, Joel, |
| 6. Gel Permeation Chromatography, Waters, alliance |
| 7. Oven, Hereaus, 300C |
| 8. Injection Molding Machine, |
| 9. Twin-Screw Extruder, Farrel FTX 20 |
| 10. Injection Blow Molding Machine |
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| Weather-Ometer, Atlas Ci 5000, Xenon |
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Applications:
It is an apparatus that uses extensive UV radiation as an accelerated method to simulate the effect of ambient UV radiation on the plastic parts. The plastic part or sample could be irradiated at different temperatures, for different length of time, and with or without water exposure.
The sample is tested after the irradiation to study the effect of UV exposure on the properties. This test is best done along with an actual UV exposure in sun light. This will enable us to correlate real life exposure to the accelerated test data. |
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| Melt Flow Index instrument, Dynisco |
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Applications:
This instrument measures the weight of resin that flows under constant load through a specific die in 10 minutes. The MFI value is reported as ## g/10 min. The test is done under constant load, temperature, and dwell time. To gain more information about the resin "flowability", MFI could be done at different loads, temperatures, and dwell times.
The MFI gives an indication of the melt viscosity of the resin. It could be used as a QA/QC method. It could also be used as a preliminary method of studying the effect of molecular weight changes or additives or processing temperatures on the "flowability" of resins. |
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| Differential Scanning Calorimetry, Shimadzu DSC60 |
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Applications:
This instrument measures some of the thermal properties of the polymers. It could measure the crystallization behavior, glass transition temperature (Tg), and the specific heat of the resin. The heating and cooling rates and the temperature ranges of the test could be changed to give us a wide range of testing conditions.
This test could be used to study the crystallinity of resins. It could be also used to study the effect of compounding on the Tg of plastics. With certain experimental design, it could be used to differentiate between different processing conditions, which in turn is very useful in failure analysis. |
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| Optical Microscopes, Olympus BX 60M, 500X |
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Applications:
It gives us an immediate view of the part, or plastic resin, visual appearance. It is appropriate for a quick examination. However, it lacks the capability of extended depth-of-field. For applications that need high depth-of-field, SEM is used.
Typical usages of OMs are for fracture surface examination, geometrical appearance of the resin or part, and for photo-elasticity applications when the accessories are available. |
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| Scanning Electron Microscope with EDX, Joel, JSM 6360A |
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Applications:
This machine uses electron beams, as opposed to light beams for OM, to bombard the samples for visual inspection. With SEM a higher magnification and depth-of field could be achieved as compared to OM. When the machine is equipped with Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis, or EDX, basic elemental analysis is possible.
Typical uses of SEM are studying the details of the fracture surfaces or the structure of polymer pellets. The morphology of polymers could be studied as well with SEM, however, Atomic Force Microscopy is a better method for morphological characterizations.
Typical use of EDX is to identify the basic elemental composition of foreign particles within the resin matrix. |
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| Gel Permeation Chromatography, Waters, alliance GPC 2000 |
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Applications:
This instrument uses one of the separation techniques to give us a fingerprint of the molecular distribution of the resin. The machine is capable of analyzing the polymer's, after being dissolved, molecular weight and molecular weight distribution.
Molecular weight and molecular weight distribution affect numerous properties and the process ability of polymers. Knowledge of molecular weight and its distribution is used in synthesis development, characterization after UV exposure, processing windows, and much more. |
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| Oven, Hereaus, 300C |
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Applications:
This instrument uses one of the separation techniques to give us a fingerprint of the molecular distribution of the resin. The machine is capable of analyzing the polymer's, after being dissolved, molecular weight and molecular weight distribution.
Molecular weight and molecular weight distribution affect numerous properties and the process ability of polymers. Knowledge of molecular weight and its distribution is used in synthesis development, characterization after UV exposure, processing windows, and much more. |
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| Injection Molding Machine |
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Applications:
The machine (Asian Plastic Machinery Co., Double Toggle IM machine, Super Master Series SM 120) could be used as pilot equipment to optimize the processing conditions of new compounds. It could be also used to make standard samples for testing. The machine could be used to characterize the effect of processing parameters on the properties of the final part. Additionally, it could be used as an educational tool for students and those who will attend our seminars and workshops. |
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| Twin-screw Extruder, Farrel FTX 20 |
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Applications:
The machine could be used as pilot equipment to make new compounds and palletize them. It could be also used as an educational tool for students and those who will attend our seminars and workshops. It could be used as a mean of investigating the effect of compounding conditions on the final compound properties. |
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| Injection Blow Molding Machine |
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Applications:
The machine could be used as pilot equipment to optimize the processing conditions of new compounds. It could be used to study the effect of processing conditions on the part properties. It could be also used as an educational tool for students and those who will attend our seminars and workshops. |
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