How to Improve the Flexibility of Plastics?

Soft PVC pipe

Intuitively speaking, the flexibility of plastics refers to the softness of plastic products, that is, the softer of plastic products, the better its flexibility. In polymer physics, flexibility is defined as the ability of polymer chains to change their homogeneity. The flexibility of a plastic depends on the molecular chain structure of its polymer.

1. Addition of plasticizer

Plasticizer is a kind of material which can improve the plasticity of polymer. It is mainly used in PVC resin. The amount of plasticizer in PVC accounts for more than 98% of the total amount of plasticizer. In addition to PVC, plasticizers are also used in PVDC, CPE, SBS, polyvinyl acetate, cellulose nitrate, PA, ABS, PVA and so on.

2. The main role of plasticizer

a. The melting temperature and melt viscosity of polymer are reduced, and the molding temperature is reduced.

b. The polymer products have softness, elasticity and low temperature resistance.

3. Specific mechanism of plasticizer

a. Volume effect

b. Shielding effect