Elastomers in the form of TPEs, TPVs, TPOs, TPUs and LSRs add a soft touch and good haptics, as well as sound dampening, when added to rigid plastics via overmolding and coextrusion.
Tracing the History of Polymeric Materials, Part 25: Silicones
The long road to the development of silicone resulted in a chemistry that is remarkably versatile.
Elastomers: Essential Reading
Tracing the History of Polymeric Materials: Polyesters
Beyond PET, PBT and their analogues, development of polyester chemistry led to unsaturated thermosetting resins, copolyester thermoplastic elastomers, liquid-crystal polymers and, most recently, biopolymers.
Materials Part 6 of 7: Annealing Tips for Thermoplastic Polyurethanes
TPUs form physical, rather than chemical, crosslinks that can be broken by reheating. Formation of these crosslinks can be sped up by annealing, which improves a variety of properties.
Technology Is the Solution For This Compounder
Compounding Solutions has seen its business grow by 20% in each of the last 12 years. That’s no accident. The firm has become a mainstay supplier of compounds—primarily for medical—by tapping into its expertise in technology and processing.
Materials: Cycle Time—Science vs. Rules of Thumb, Part 6
This installment—on elastomers—completes a series, whose theme is to bring more science to the discipline of molding. The overall message: Ask a lot of questions whenever someone posits this or that ‘rule of thumb’ about processing.
How to Prevent Stress Whitening in PP Copolymers
A look at causes, detection, and prevention.
FAQ: Elastomers
TPUs form physical, rather than chemical, crosslinks that can be broken by reheating. Formation of these crosslinks can be sped up by annealing, which improves a variety of properties.
