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Polymer Technology & Engineering Gets New Equipment

The Polymer Technology and Engineering department has acquired and installed the following laboratory equipment:


Melt Flow Indexer

This piece of equipment is used to measure the rheological (flow) behaviour of polymeric materials when pushed through a die orifice of a specified diameter at a controlled temperature and standard load.

Melt flow rate is an indirect measure of molecular weight, with high melt flow rate corresponding to low molecular weight. At the same time, melt flow rate is a measure of the ability of the material's melt to flow under pressure.
It assists in determining whether a particular grade of polymer is suitable for blow moulding or for injection moulding processes.

 


Tensometer

It is used to measure the mechanical properties of a polymer such as;

All polymeric fibres which work under tension or are exposed to pull forces (ropes) including those in the textile industry require the use of a tensometer to evaluate their strength during drawing, weaving and applications.

 

Izod/Charpy Impact tester

This equipment is used in the determination of the impact resistance of materials and is calculated from the height the arm swings to after hitting the sample.

Impact tests are used in studying the toughness of materials.

A notched sample is generally used to determine impact energy and notch sensitivity.

Impact is a very important phenomenon in governing the life of a structure. For example, in the case of an aircraft, impact can take place by a bird hitting a plane while it is cruising, or during takeoff and landing the aircraft,

Plastics bottles dropping off moving trucks, water tanks dropping off stands, a car bumper hitting against a hard surface needs to be tough enough to absorb the impact without serious damage to itself. Bullet proof vest must have high impact strength for life saving.

 


Glass synthesis reactor

This is used to synthesise or produce synthetic and natural polymer resins from various sources including;

The reactor can be used for the value addition to our local raw materials for generation of feedstock to the plastics processing industry.

 

UV-vis Spectrophotometer

The equipment is used for the quantitative analysis of compounds in a sample using absorbance or reflectance of UV or visible light. The equipment is capable of determining the concentration of analyte in sample solution.

The following pieces of equipment useful in characterisation and testing of polymeric materials and products have also been ordered: