Engineering with polymers is a growing technical field which requires special knowledge. Filling a need, this ready reference brings together the hard-to-get and recently acquired knowledge usually only found scattered in the original literature. At the beginning, the reference introduces plastics as a class of technical materials, gives an overview of their properties, presents plastics processing and its possible influence on the achievable quality of plastic parts. Afterwards, plastics testing is presented as a separate, practical-scientific field of work. The possibilities and fields of application of plastics testing will be discussed. This is followed by a comprehensive treatment of the individual, relevant test areas for the characterization and qualification of plastics and plastic molded parts made from them, with descriptions of the corresponding, practical test methods. A comprehensive index provides easy access to relevant information for successful engineering with plastics and suitable methods for material characterization and for quality assurance and damage analysis of parts. Written by experienced academics and industrial researchers and developers who know the problems of plastics engineers in their daily work - and the solutions - inside out, this book offers first-hand practical knowledge and intensive discussion. The book is aimed at industry, scientists and students involved in plastics and plastic engineering and aims to help them gain the necessary understanding of polymer materials and knowledge of practical testing and evaluation of plastics.

The selection and application of engineered materials is an integrated process that requires an understanding of the interaction between materials properties, manufacturing characteristics, design considerations, and the total life cycle of the product. This reference book on engineering plastics provides practical and comprehensive coverage on how the performance of plastics is characterized during design, property testing, and failure analysis. The fundamental structure and properties of plastics are reviewed for general reference, and detailed articles describe the important design factors, properties, and failure mechanisms of plastics. The effects of composition, processing, and structure are detailed in articles on the physical, chemical, thermal, and mechanical properties. Other articles cover failure mechanisms such as: crazing and fracture; impact loading; fatigue failure; wear failures, moisture related failure; organic chemical related failure; photolytic degradation; and microbial degradation. Characterization of plastics in failure analysis is described with additional articles on analysis of structure, surface analysis, and fractography.

From the reviews of the bestselling First Edition: "A very useful contribution to the plastics industry. Mr. Shah has successfully filled a void between the identification of a test method, implementation of the test, and some understanding of the meaning of the results. . . . All in all, a job well done." -Polymer News "Provides a practical source for plastics testing . . . The appendices will prove invaluable." -SAMPE Journal. Sponsored by the Society of Plastics Engineers, the Handbook of Plastics Testing Technology, Second Edition is a valuable working resource for anyone involved with manufacturing, testing, studying, or developing plastics. Thoroughly updated and expanded with more than thirty-five percent new material, this new edition of the 1984 classic provides practical information on all aspects of contemporary plastics testing in a highly accessible, nonmathematical form. Following a concise introduction to basic concepts, the book moves straight to practical discussions of the full gamut of testing issues, including thermal, mechanical, weathering, optical, electrical, and chemical properties; materials characterization; flammability; analytical tests; quality control; product liability testing; failure analysis; nondestructive testing; and more. Rather than simply describing test procedures, the author clearly explains the broader significance of each test and the results it yields for engineers and materials scientists working in industry today. Professionals will also appreciate the Handbook's closing chapters and appendices, which offer a wide range of useful information on professional and testing organizations, uniform global testing standards, equipment manufacturers, trade publications, independent testing laboratories, and plastics specifications.

For plastics, technicians, engineers, and technical customer service representatives who need to identify at least the general class of a mystery plastic but do not have access to the sophisticated and expensive equipment used by the plastics industry. Braun has successfully carried out all of the tests. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

After price and delivery time, the most frequently asked question about a product is 'How long will it last?' Lifetime expectancy is often many years, the service conditions may be complex, and there is a scarcity of definitive data on durability. The situation is complicated by the fact that there are a vast number of degradation agents, service conditions, properties of importance and different plastics. There are many inherent difficulties in designing durability tests. In many cases, the time scale involved is such that accelerated test conditions are essential. Whilst large amounts of durability data are generated by accelerated methods, much of it is only useful for quality control purposes and relatively little has been validated as being realistically capable of representing service. Most assessments of the lifetime of plastics are made by considering some measure of performance, such as impact strength, and specifying some lower limit for the property, which is taken as the end point. Lifetime is not necessarily measured in time. For example, for some products it will be thought of as the number of cycles of use. The object of this publication is to provide practical guidance on assessing the useful service life of plastics. It describes test procedures and extrapolation techniques together with the inherent limitations and problems. The Guide aims to make available the wealth of information that can be applied to help maximise the effectiveness of a durability-testing programme. This guide seeks to be comprehensive but concentrates on the most common environmental effects causing degradation. The test procedures used are outlined and the relevant textbooks and international standards are well referenced. Examples of lifetime testing studies are cited. The Practical Guide will be useful for anyone responsible for designing, manufacturing or testing plastic components. It will also be of benefit to suppliers and users of end products, as assessment of useful lifetime is critical to the economics and safety aspects of any component. Key features Test methods outlined Accelerated testing discussed Prediction methods described Standards cited Key sources of information listed

Damage to plastic products requires immediate action in often complex situations. Failure and damage analysis is then an important tool for avoiding further economic losses and in the next steps for quality assurance and product safety. In order to solve problems and develop remedial measures, basic knowledge of plastics analysis, materials and typical damage mechanisms as well as systematic approach are necessary. The book supports the reader in all these points by providing a basic insight into the systematic approach and serving as a guide for practical implementation. In particular, manufacturing and material-related aspects are also taken into account, so that a comprehensive and universal method for determining the causes of damage to plastic products is presented. Examples in the form of briefly summarized cases of damage from practical experience as a damage analyst round off the descriptions of the procedure.