If you are looking for a high-performance engineering plastic that can withstand demanding conditions, you might have heard of POM. POM, or polyoxymethylene, is a thermoplastic polymer that has excellent mechanical, thermal, and chemical properties. It is widely used in various industries, such as automotive, medical, electrical, and consumer goods.
But how does POM compare with other engineering plastics, such as nylon, ABS, and PET? These plastics are also popular choices for many applications, and they have their own strengths and weaknesses. In this article, we will compare POM with nylon, ABS, and PET in terms of mechanical properties, thermal properties, chemical resistance, and cost. We will also provide some examples of applications where each plastic is preferred.
Mechanical Properties
One of the main criteria for comparing different plastics is their mechanical properties. These include strength, stiffness, toughness, impact resistance, wear resistance, and fatigue resistance. Mechanical properties determine how well a plastic can handle stress, strain, impact, friction, and vibration.
POM is known for its high strength and stiffness. It can resist deformation and maintain its shape under high loads and temperatures. It also has good toughness and impact resistance. It can absorb shocks and impacts without cracking or breaking. POM has excellent wear resistance and low friction. It can slide smoothly against other surfaces without wearing out or generating heat. POM also has good fatigue resistance. It can endure repeated stress cycles without losing its strength or stiffness.
Nylon is another strong and stiff plastic. It has high tensile strength and modulus. It can withstand stretching and bending forces without breaking or snapping. Nylon also has good toughness and impact resistance. It can handle shocks and impacts better than most plastics. Nylon has moderate wear resistance and low friction. It can slide against other surfaces with minimal wear or noise. Nylon has fair fatigue resistance. It can withstand some stress cycles but not as many as POM.
ABS is a plastic that has moderate strength and stiffness. It has lower tensile strength and modulus than POM or nylon. It can handle some loads and temperatures but not as much as POM or nylon. ABS has good toughness and impact resistance. It can absorb shocks and impacts better than most plastics. ABS has fair wear resistance and low friction. It can slide against other surfaces with some wear or noise. ABS has poor fatigue resistance. It can lose its strength or stiffness after a few stress cycles.
PET is a plastic that has high strength and stiffness. It has higher tensile strength and modulus than POM or nylon. It can withstand high loads and temperatures without deformation or creep. PET also has good toughness and impact resistance. It can handle shocks and impacts better than most plastics. PET has poor wear resistance and high friction. It can slide against other surfaces with high wear or heat generation. PET also has poor fatigue resistance. It can lose its strength or stiffness after a few stress cycles.
Thermal Properties
Another important criterion for comparing different plastics is their thermal properties. These include melting point, glass transition temperature, thermal expansion coefficient, thermal conductivity, heat deflection temperature, and flammability. Thermal properties determine how well a plastic can handle heat, cold, fire, and thermal stress.
POM has a high melting point of about 175°C (347°F). This means it can resist melting or softening at high temperatures. POM also has a high glass transition temperature of about 105°C (221°F). This means it can maintain its stiffness and strength at high temperatures. POM has a low thermal expansion coefficient of about 110 x 10^-6 /°C (61 x 10^-6 /°F). This means it does not expand or contract much when heated or cooled. POM has a low thermal conductivity of about 0.23 W/mK (0.13 BTU/hr ft °F). This means it does not conduct heat well from one part to another. POM has a high heat deflection temperature of about 110°C (230°F) at 0.46 MPa (66 psi) or 95°C (203°F) at 1.82 MPa (264 psi). This means it can resist deformation or sagging when heated under load. POM is flammable but self-extinguishing when removed from the flame source.
Nylon has a lower melting point than POM, ranging from 160°C to 260°C (320°F to 500°F) depending on the type of nylon. This means it can melt or soften at lower temperatures than POM. Nylon also has a lower glass transition temperature than POM, ranging from 40°C to 80°C (104°F to 176°F) depending on the type of nylon. This means it can lose its stiffness and strength at lower temperatures than POM. Nylon has a higher thermal expansion coefficient than POM, ranging from 80 x 10^-6 /°C to 200 x 10^-6 /°C (44 x 10^-6 /°F to 111 x 10^-6 /°F) depending on the type of nylon. This means it can expand or contract more when heated or cooled than POM. Nylon has a higher thermal conductivity than POM, ranging from 0.25 W/mK to 0.4 W/mK (0.14 BTU/hr ft °F to 0.23 BTU/hr ft °F) depending on the type of nylon. This means it can conduct heat better from one part to another than POM. Nylon has a lower heat deflection temperature than POM, ranging from 60°C to 100°C (140°F to 212°F) at 0.46 MPa (66 psi) or 50°C to 80°C (122°F to 176°F) at 1.82 MPa (264 psi) depending on the type of nylon. This means it can deform or sag more when heated under load than POM. Nylon is flammable but self-extinguishing when removed from the flame source.
ABS has a lower melting point than POM, ranging from 105°C to 125°C (221°F to 257°F). This means it can melt or soften at much lower temperatures than POM. ABS also has a lower glass transition temperature than POM, ranging from 85°C to 110°C (185°F to 230°F). This means it can lose its stiffness and strength at much lower temperatures than POM. ABS has a higher thermal expansion coefficient than POM, ranging from 70 x 10^-6 /°C to 120 x 10^-6 /°C (39 x 10^-6 /°F to 67 x 10^-6 /°F). This means it can expand or contract more when heated or cooled than POM. ABS has a higher thermal conductivity than POM, ranging from 0.19 W/mK to 0.25 W/mK (0.11 BTU/hr ft °F to 0.14 BTU/hr ft °F). This means it can conduct heat better from one part to another than POM. ABS has a lower heat deflection temperature than POM, ranging from 85°C to 100°C (185°F to 212°F) at 0.46 MPa (66 psi) or 75°C to 90°C (167°F to 194°F) at 1.82 MPa (264 psi). This means it can deform or sag more when heated under load than POM. ABS is flammable but self-extinguishing when removed from the flame source.
PET has a higher melting point than POM, ranging from 250°C to 280°C (482°F to 536°F). This means it can resist melting or softening at higher temperatures than POM. PET also has a higher glass transition temperature than POM, ranging from 70°C to 90°C (158°F to 194°F). This means it can maintain its stiffness and strength at higher temperatures than POM. PET has a lower thermal expansion coefficient than POM, ranging from 50 x 10^-6 /°C to 80 x 10^-6 /°C (28 x 10^-6 /°F to 44 x 10^-6 /°F). This means it does not expand or contract much when heated or cooled than POM. PET has a higher thermal conductivity than POM, ranging from 0.24 W/mK to 0.34 W/mK (0.14 BTU/hr ft °F to 0.2 BTU/hr ft °F). This means it can conduct heat better from one part to another than POM. PET has a higher heat deflection temperature than POM, ranging from 115°C to 150°C (239°F to 302°F) at 0.46 MPa (66 psi) or 100°C to 130°C (212°F to 266°F) at 1.82 MPa (264 psi). This means it can resist deformation or sagging when heated under load better than POM. PET is flammable but self-extinguishing when removed from the flame source.
Chemical Resistance
Another key criterion for comparing different plastics is their chemical resistance. This refers to how well a plastic can resist corrosion, degradation, or dissolution by various chemicals, such as acids, bases, solvents, oils, fuels, and water. Chemical resistance determines how long a plastic can last in a harsh environment without losing its properties or functionality.
POM has good chemical resistance to most chemicals. It can resist corrosion by acids, bases, solvents, oils, fuels, and water. It can also resist hydrolysis and oxidation. However, POM is not resistant to strong acids, such as sulfuric acid or nitric acid. It can also be attacked by chlorine or ozone.
Nylon has fair chemical resistance to most chemicals. It can resist corrosion by some acids, bases, solvents, oils, fuels, and water. It can also resist oxidation. However, nylon is not resistant to strong acids or bases. It can also be hydrolyzed by water or steam at high temperatures or pressures.
ABS has poor chemical resistance to most chemicals. It can be corroded by acids, bases, solvents, oils, fuels, and water. It can also be oxidized by air or sunlight. ABS is especially vulnerable to organic solvents, such as acetone or benzene.
PET has good chemical resistance to most chemicals. It can resist corrosion by acids, bases, solvents, oils, fuels, and water. It can also resist hydrolysis and oxidation. However, PET is not resistant to strong acids or bases. It can also be attacked by some organic solvents, such as methylene chloride or chloroform.
Summary
In this article, we have compared POM with other engineering plastics such as nylon, ABS, and PET in terms of mechanical properties, thermal properties, chemical resistance, and cost. We have seen that POM is a versatile and high-performance engineering plastic that can meet various requirements for different applications. However, POM is not perfect and it has some limitations and disadvantages compared to other plastics.
Therefore, when choosing the best plastic for a specific application, it is important to consider several factors such as:
- The design and function of the part
- The operating conditions and environment of the part
- The performance and durability requirements of the part
- The availability and affordability of the plastic
By doing so, you can select the most suitable plastic that can deliver the best results for your project.
I hope you found this article helpful and informative. If you have any questions or comments about POM or other engineering plastics, please feel free to contact me or leave a comment below. I would love to hear from you and answer your queries. Thank you for reading and have a great day!
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