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Softening rates for polystyrene under shear conditions
Author(s) -
Sundstrom D. W.,
Lo J. R.
Publication year - 1978
Publication title -
polymer engineering and science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.503
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1548-2634
pISSN - 0032-3888
DOI - 10.1002/pen.760180515
Subject(s) - softening , materials science , polystyrene , composite material , shear rate , shear (geology) , mechanics , solid surface , thermodynamics , rheology , polymer , physics , chemical physics
The processing of thermoplastics often requires conversion of a solid to a viscous fluid under shear conditions. In this study, solid blocks of polystyrene were softened on a hot, moving surface over a range of surface temperatures and velocities. The conservation equations for mass, momentum, and energy were applied to the fluid layer and simplified by an order of magnitude analysis. An integral method of solution was developed which predicted rates of softening that agreed closely with the measured rates.