Updated throughout to reflect advances over the last decade, the Fifth Edition continues the handbook’s tradition of authoritative coverage of fundamentals, production methods, properties, and applications of plastics and polymer-based materials. It covers tooling for plastics fabrication processes, thermoplastics, thermosetting plastics, foamed plastics, reinforced plastics, plastisols, and new developments in mold design. It also discusses rubber compounding and processing technologies. More recent developments in polymer fabrication and processing, including electrospinning, electrografted coating, polymer-metal hybrid joining, flex printing, and rapid prototyping/ 3D printing, are also presented. The handbook highlights advanced materials including natural and synthetic gfnanosize polymers, their unusual properties, and innovative applications, as well as polymer-carbon nanocomposites, graphene-based polymer nanocomposites, smart healable polymer composites, smart polymer coatings, electroactive polymers, polymer nanomaterials, and novel nano-/microfibrillar polymer composites. It offers updates on polymer solar battery development, plastics recycling and disposal methods, new concepts of "upcycling" and single-polymer composites, renewable synthetic polymers, biodegradable plastics and composites, and toxicity of plastics. The book also provides an overview of new developments in polymer applications in various fields including packaging, building and construction, corrosion prevention and control, automotive, aerospace applications, electrical and electronic applications, agriculture and horticulture, domestic appliances and business machines, medical and biomedical applications, marine and offshore applications, and sports.

Polymer optical fibers (POFs) have been regarded as a viable alternative to silica fibers in a variety of sensing applications. Fiber optic sensors offer key advantages over other sensing technologies, which include immunity to electromagnetic interference, compact, lightweight, multiplexing capability, and higher sensitivity. This book gives an overview of the polymer optical fiber Bragg grating (POFBG) technology over the last 20 years, covering aspects related to the fiber Bragg grating fabrication and also sensing applications. The book is split into five chapters, and it is written in such a way that can provide a comprehensive and simple route to new users, scientists and engineers working or wishing to work in the field of POFBGs: Describes the systems commonly employed for producing fiber Braggs gratings (FBGs) in silica fibers that can be used for the production of POFBGs; Explores different laser sources for the inscription of POFBGs; Explores the capability of using this technology at the visible and infrared region, in different fiber types (e.g., step-index, microstructured, unclad, highly birefringent) and in fibers composed of different polymer materials such as PMMA, doped PMMA, PS and ZEONEX; Reports the fabrication of different types of POF gratings, such as uniform, phase-shifted, tilted, chirped, and long-period gratings; Shows the opportunities of POFBGs for a variety of sensing applications. The insight to the use of POFBGs provides a vision for the opportunities of this fiber optic technology.

Plastic Optical Fiber Sensors cover the fundamentals and applications of a new class of fiber sensors. With contributions from leading academics in the area, this book covers the theory of plastic optical fiber sensors or (POFs), as well as applications in oil, gas, biotechnology, and energy fields. Using multiple examples, the editors showcase the advantageous characteristics of POFs, such as ease of handling, large diameter, inexpensive peripheral components and simple termination tools. By doing so, the editors assert that there has been a proliferation of the use of POFs in new consumer products. The book also highlights uses for building various products, such as a POF sensor for oil trucker valve monitoring, a monitoring system for high voltage substation switch, an oil leaking sensor for offshore platforms and a solar tracker for illumination. Including over 300 black and white images, this book would be highly beneficial for professionals in manufacturing as well as academics in universities, particularly those who use optical fiber sensors on a regular basis.