Scribd
Upload
29 views4 pages

Polymer Engineering Concepts and Calculations

This document contains a tutorial for a polymer engineering course. It includes sample problems and questions about polymer properties such as molecular weight distribution, tensile strength, tensile modulus, crystallinity, and suitable polymers for hot coffee cups. The tutorial covers concepts such as the relationship between molecular weight, crystallinity, branching and various mechanical properties. It asks students to analyze polymer pairs and identify which would have a higher tensile modulus based on their molecular structure.

Uploaded by

dvian
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
29 views4 pages

Polymer Engineering Concepts and Calculations

This document contains a tutorial for a polymer engineering course. It includes sample problems and questions about polymer properties such as molecular weight distribution, tensile strength, tensile modulus, crystallinity, and suitable polymers for hot coffee cups. The tutorial covers concepts such as the relationship between molecular weight, crystallinity, branching and various mechanical properties. It asks students to analyze polymer pairs and identify which would have a higher tensile modulus based on their molecular structure.

Uploaded by

dvian
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

UNIVERSITI TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN

Faculty
Course

:
:

:
Year/
Trimester
Session
:

Faculty of Engineering & Science


CL

Unit Code
Unit Title

:
:

Year 4/ Trimester 2

Lecturer/
Tutor
Date

201506

UEMK4263
Polymer Engineering and
Application
Ir. Dr. Lee Tin Sin

Tutorial No.1
1. A polymer sample combines five different molecular-weight fractions, each of equal weight.
The molecular weights of these fractions increase from 20,000 to 100,000 in increments of
20,000. Calculate M n , M w and M z . Does this sample to have a broad or narrow molecular
weight distribution.
Answer:

2. Describe the following phenomenon


a. It is important to keep concentration of the by-product low enough in order to obtain
high molecular weight polymers.
Answer
According to the Le Chatelier principle, the concentration of the by-product need to be
removed so that it reaction will shift to the product side in a reversible reaction. Thus, by
removing the by-product, the condensation polymerization process will yield high
molecular weight product. Otherwise, if the concentration of the by-product is high, it tends
to undergoes depolymerization process resulted low molecular weight polymer.
b. High molecular weight polymers lead to higher tensile strength.
Answer
High molecular weight polymers cause higher entanglement of the polymer chains. Thus,
the extra force is required to disentangle the chains to make it slide on chains each other.
c. High degree of crystallinity polymers lead to higher tensile modulus.
Answer
Tensile modulus increases with increasing degree of crystallinity for semicrystalline
polymers. This is due to enhanced secondary interchain bonding which results from
adjacent aligned chain segments as percent crystallinity increases. This enchanced
interchain bonding inhibits relative interchain motion.

3. For each of the following pairs of polymers, do the following: (1) State whether it is possible to
decide whether on polymer has a higher tensile modulus than the other; (2) if this is possible,
note which has the higher tensile modulus and then cite the reason(s) for your choice: and (3) if
it is not possible to decide, then state why.
a. Random acrylonitrile-butadiene copolymer with 10% of possible sites crosslinked;
alternating acrylonitrile-butadiene copolymer with 5% of possible sites crosslinked.
Answer

b. Branched and syndiotactic polypropylene with degree of polymerization of 5000; linear


and isotactic polypropylene with a degree of polymerization 3000
Answer

c. Branched polyethylene with a number average molecular weight of 250,000 g/mol;


linear and isotactic poly(vinyl chloride) with a number average molecular weight of
200,000 g/mol
Answer
Yes, it is possible. The branching of polyethylene will reduce the crystallinity by
causing irregular packing of polymer in solid state. Meanwhile, the linear and isotactic
PVC promotes the crystallization and packing. Moreover, large pendant group of
chlorine attach to PVC backbone will increase the difficulty in drawing. The
insignificant different of molecular weights do not affect much on the tensile modulus.
d. Network polyester; lightly branched polypropylene.
Answer

4. Would you expect the tensile strength of polychlorotrifluoroethylene to be greater than, the
same as or less than that of a polytetrafluoroethylene specimen having the same molecular
weight and degree of crystallinity? Why?
Answer

5. Name the following polymer(s) that would be suitable for the fabrication of cups to contain hot

coffee: polyethylene, polypropylene, poly(vinyl chloride), PET polyester, and polycarbonate.


Why?
Answer

6. List the two molecular characteristics that are essential for elastic.
Answer

Common questions

Powered by AI

PCTFE is likely to have a higher tensile strength than PTFE due to its more rigid molecular structure, which enhances intermolecular forces compared to PTFE, which has a more linear structure allowing more slippage between chains .

Yes, linear and isotactic poly(vinyl chloride) tends to have a higher tensile modulus due to its ability to crystallize with aligned chains. Branching in polyethylene reduces crystallinity by causing irregular packing, thus having a lower tensile modulus despite similar molecular weights .

Essential molecular characteristics for elasticity in polymers include a high molecular weight and flexible chain segments, allowing the material to stretch and recover after deformation .

Polymers suitable for hot coffee cups are those that can withstand high temperatures without degrading, such as polypropylene and polycarbonate, due to their thermal stability and strength .

Crosslinking in network polyesters leads to a rigid three-dimensional structure, enhancing tensile modulus and thermal resistance. In contrast, lightly branched polypropylene lacks the network structure, resulting in lower rigidity and tensile properties, illustrating the profound impact of crosslinking on polymer properties .

According to Le Chatelier's principle, keeping the concentration of by-products low shifts the reaction toward the product side, enabling the formation of high molecular weight polymers. If by-product concentration is high, it leads to depolymerization, resulting in low molecular weight polymers .

For semi-crystalline polymers, increased crystallinity enhances interchain bonding, leading to a higher tensile modulus. The structure, such as isotactic versus syndiotactic arrangements, also influences crystallinity and, consequently, tensile modulus .

Branching typically reduces crystallinity by disrupting regular packing of polymer chains, which can lower tensile modulus and strength compared to their linear counterparts due to the hindered packing and reduced interchain interactions .

High molecular weight polymers have greater chain entanglement, requiring more force to disentangle and slide chains past each other, which leads to increased tensile strength .

An alternating acrylonitrile-butadiene copolymer with 5% crosslinking has a higher tensile modulus due to more uniform and tight packing of chains, unlike random copolymers which may have less efficient packing despite higher crosslinking .

You might also like