27
votes
Accepted
What makes ABS plastic turn yellow?
What you're specifically describing is typically known as UV degradation. The color change is due to the oxidation of the polymers that make up the plastic. These chemical reactions are demonstrated ...
- 508
18
votes
Accepted
What causes plastic to become brittle and can it be softened again?
Unfortunately, there is not too much to do. The original ABS substance is a copolymer made of acrylonitrile, butadiene and styrene. It is rather hard and brittle. To make it softer, some proportion of ...
- 27.1k
15
votes
Accepted
Does latex protect against acids?
There are all sorts of resources for picking the best gloves for handling any given type of chemical. This resource describes latex as being good for protecting against bases, alcohols, dilute water ...
- 23.9k
13
votes
Why is polyethylene not called polymethylene?
Polyethylene is prepared by polymerizing ethylene. Ethylene has a double bond, thanks to which the polymerization goes on. You could not do that with a methylene group. So the name comes after the ...
- 241
11
votes
Why does alcohol crack acrylic (plexiglass)?
If a solvent causes an amorphous polymer to craze, this is because the polymer is principally soluble in it. It diffuses into the surface, but without instantly dissolving it, as the polymer chains ...
- 12k
9
votes
Does latex protect against acids?
It depends on the acid. I would recommend Neoprene gloves instead of latex gloves. I did this excerpt from this guide that I think is taken from the website that ringo mentioned:
VG= Very Good G= ...
- 9,069
9
votes
How do I heat my borosilicate reflux column?
That should pose no issue regarding the glass
Without images to see how unevenly you will apply the heat, I have to modify my instinctual reaction "That cannot possibly be an issue" to "Most likely ...
- 2,747
9
votes
How do I heat my borosilicate reflux column?
The first answer is great and the borosilicate glass can indeed survive harsh conditions. Here I'd like to suggest a DIY-project to improve the efficiency of the heater and make the column be warmed ...
- 37.4k
7
votes
Accepted
At what temperature do complex hydrocarbons become ashes?
What happens depends whether it is being heated in the presence or absence of oxygen. For example, in the manufacture of coke (mostly carbon), coal is heated without oxygen and from Coke Production ...
- 40.2k
7
votes
Accepted
Oily residue on old toy rubbery tyres
The "rubber", or elastomer, likely has plasticizers to soften the material and make it more elastic and less brittle. These often migrate to the surface as parts age. Some of these ...
- 30.3k
6
votes
Accepted
Suggestions for 200-600 nm range transmitting polymers/materials
No plastic of any practically useful thickness$^\dagger$ has $80\%$ transparency down to $200~\mathrm{nm}$. Period.
Below is a UV transmission chart for various materials from a marketing brochure ...
- 17.3k
6
votes
Accepted
Why plastic sheets contract when heated?
When plastic sheets are produced, they are rapidly cooled to keep the polymer chains oriented in a way that makes the sheets nice and flat. This is a relatively high-strain orientation since it is ...
- 1,690
6
votes
Accepted
Etching ITO on PET without damage
My lab has a lot of experience with ITO-coated PET, but unfortunately I don't think anyone's tried etching it.
We typically etch ITO-coated glass with a mixture of hydrochloric acid/water/nitric acid (...
- 12.9k
6
votes
Is bamboo based plastic less likely to leak chemicals?
Inspired by the other answer and the comment to my question, i have dug a little deeper. The tableware in the picture is sold by a company called Zuperzozial and made from bamboo and corn reinforced ...
- 249
6
votes
Accepted
Is polylactic acid (PLA) soluble in ethylacetate?
D- and L- polylactic acids come from both enantiomers of the monomeric lactic acids.
There will be no difference in solubility between both polymers.
Besides, lactic acid is normally produced by ...
- 4,332
6
votes
Accepted
What is the chemical reaction between coins (copper and nickel) and polyvinyl chloride?
Far, far too broad a question. I don't know what is going on in your situation.
I can, perhaps, clear up some misconceptions you may have. PVC is NOT commonly used in sandwich bags. PVDC is a close ...
- 76
6
votes
Accepted
Why aren't plastic bottles of coca cola full of microplastics?
You are talking about two different things and phenomena. One is leaching-which means chemicals in the plastic dissolve into the solution with the passage of time. The other thing is literally ...
- 39k
5
votes
Why does plastic tear easier when you pull it quickly?
Polymers have a special property called viscoelasticity, which means they may strain elastically (elasticity) then flow (visco). The models below are mechanical representations of this phenomenon ...
- 12.4k
5
votes
Accepted
Degrading Bakelite
Although Bakelite has extraordinarily high resistance to electricity, heat and chemical action$^1$, it is ultimately just an organic hydrocarbon polymer, strengthened by organic binders and some ...
- 17.4k
5
votes
Accepted
Does melting HDPE plastic produce toxic fumes? (melting, not burning)
This table indicates that polyethylene (HD/LD not specified) "melts at" 135°C, decomposes in the range 335-450°C, and produces vapors that will ignite between 341-357°C.
I'm sure melting/softening ...
- 1,572
4
votes
What is the name of the crinkly plastic used in clear parts of envelopes?
It usually is BOPS: Biaxially oriented polystyrene.
4
votes
Accepted
Why are plastics lipophilic?
First, many plastics are somewhat porous. Since plastics are permeable to water vapor and oxygen, coffee and other food products are sometimes packed in two-layer bags of polyethylene (for strength) ...
- 30.3k
4
votes
Accepted
Is HDPE affected by long term exposure to methanol?
HDPE should be fairly stable to MeOH, but it crazes in the presence of UV, when subject to oxidization or to environmental stress.
Since only some of the containers failed, were those subjected to ...
- 30.3k
4
votes
Accepted
Which is the cheapest plastic that retains its structure at 85 °C or higher temperature?
The melting point is not going to give you the answer you want. To properly select a polymer you need to look at the glass transition temperature $(T_\mathrm{g})$. This is the temperature at which a ...
- 12.4k
4
votes
Why aren't plastic bottles of coca cola full of microplastics?
"Microplastic" breaks off from solid plastic material by mechanical wear, often following a degradation of the material by environmental influence like oxygen, light, ...
The inside of reusable water ...
- 12k
4
votes
Accepted
Will toluene vapors damage a mirror made from PETG?
PETG is also not resistant against toluene.
A month-long contact under ambient conditions results a complete swollen/disintegrated PETG material (PDL rating 0), and an year-long exposure even causes ...
- 37.4k
4
votes
Accepted
The desirable property of plastics
The property of "moldability" can be based on several properties of plastics
There are broadly two types of polymer commonly used. Polymers that set and thermoplastics that can be molded ...
- 35.4k
4
votes
higher viscosity base oil instead of better lubrication results in worse
The effectiveness of lubricants depends on a number of factors. If the objects are in motion, hydrodynamic lubrication is important.
For static friction, adhesion of the lubricant to the surface is ...
- 30.3k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible