WEBINAR: Degradation Failure of Plastics

FREE for SPE Members
Non-Members: $199

Summary

Plastic materials offer a unique balance of strength and ductility associated with their inherent viscoelastic nature. However, they are susceptible to molecular degradation through a variety of exposures. Molecular degradation is a permanent change in molecular weight that reduces the mechanical properties and integrity of the plastic material. This degradation can occur during compounding, processing, storage, or while in service. Such degradation mechanisms include:

• Thermal Oxidation
• Hydrolysis
• Ultraviolet Radiation
• Chain Scission
• Destructive Crosslinking

The various forms of molecular degradation account for approximately 20% of plastic part failure, and an understanding of the nature of degradation can help to prevent failure. Topics covered during this session will include:

• Introduction to plastic molecular degradation, including the various mechanisms
• Material susceptibility to degradation
• Stabilizers to prevent degradation
• Testing to assess the level of degradation

Biography

Jeffrey A. Jansen is Senior Managing Engineer and a Partner at The Madison Group, an independent plastics engineering and consulting firm. Jeff specializes in failure analysis, material identification and selection, as well as compatibility, aging, and lifetime prediction studies for thermoplastic materials. He has been solving polymer-related problems for 26 years. In that time, he has performed over 3,820 investigations, both for industrial clients and as a part of litigation. Jeff is a regular presenter on the SPE webinar series, covering a wide range of topics related to plastics failure, material performance, testing, and polymer technology. Jeff is a graduate of Carroll College and the Milwaukee School of Engineering.