Performance of Plastics is devoted to the subject of service performance of polymers and composites. It introduces the reader to the basic properties of polymers and their behavior. It continues with the description of the various testing procedures and the information they convey, before it provides the reader with the latest on performance of polymers in service and its prediction. The final section of the book is devoted to special polymer-based materials and their applications in important industries such as automotive, aircraft, aerospace, and electronics.

Target Audience: Students, engineers, and researchers interested in plastics performance.

Table of Contents:

Polymer Structures: Thermodynamics and Morphology

Fracture, Impact, and Toughness

Toughness of Ductile Polymers

Computer Simulations of Mechanical Properties

The Chain Relaxation Capability

Quasi-Static Testing

Viscoelasticity, Creep, and Stress Relaxation

Thermal Transitions and Their Measurement

Acoustic Behavior

Dielectric Relaxations in Polymers: Molecular Mechanisms, Structure—Property Relationships, and Effects of Crystallinity

Effects of Processing on Mechanical Behavior of Thermoplastics

Nucleation by Additives in Semi-Crystalline Polymers: Effects on Mechanical Behavior

Crazing

Physical Aging: Effects on Physical and Mechanical Performance

Interfaces and Adhesion

Surfaces and Their Modifications

Elastomers and Rubber-Like Elasticity

Performance of Textile-Reinforced Structural Composites

Fiber-Reinforced Heterogeneous Composites (HCs)

Toughened Thermoplastics and Thermosets

High Performance Polymers

Composites with Field Responsive Rheology

Polymers as Biomaterials

Polymer-Based Hybrid Organic-Inorganic Materials

Polymers for Electronics and Photonics Applications

Polymers in Automobiles

Reliability and Durability of Aircraft Structures Made of Fiber-Reinforced Plastics

Index