Amanda
Cool
Supervisor and Test Engineer - Chemical Testing, Materials Science and Engineering
United States
Contact AmandaThe composition of rubber and plastics in cured, compounded products can give researchers a view at the predicted life of the material. While certain polymers may have superior elasticity, for example, they may have inadequate ozone resistance in a given application. Through the identification of polymer types and blends, our team can compare performance criteria before specifying a material for use.
Some common techniques used determine the polymer type and polymer blends present in a compound include:
Other common methods are noted in ASTM D3677. 
Smithers experts can recommend the optimal testing technique for identifying polymer blends and polymer types based on the investigation that is required.
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			 Standard Test Methods for Rubber Products—Chemical Analysis  | 
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			 ASTM D1513  | 
			
			 Standard Test Method for Carbon Black, Pelleted—Pour Density  | 
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			 Standard Classification System for Rubber Products in Automotive applications  | 
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			 ASTM D2983  | 
			
			 Standard Test Method for Low-Temperature Viscosity of Automatic Transmission Fluids, Hydraulic Fluids, and Lubricants using a Rotational Viscometer  | 
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			 ASTM D3418  | 
			
			 Standard Test Method for Transition Temperatures and Enthalpies of Fusion and Crystallization of Polymers by Differential Scanning Calorimetry ASTM E1131 — Standard Test Method for Compositional Analysis by Thermogravimetry  | 
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			 ASTM D3566  | 
			
			 Standard Practice for Rubber—Determination of Bromine in the Presence of Chlorine by Oxygen Combustion  | 
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			 ASTM D3677  | 
			
			 Standard Test Methods for Rubber – Identification by Infrared Spectrophotometry ASTM E1252 — Standard Practice for General Techniques for Obtaining Infrared Spectra for Qualitative Analysis  | 
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			 ASTM D3849  | 
			
			 Standard Test Method for Carbon Black—Morphological Characterization of Carbon Black Using Electron Microscopy  | 
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			 ASTM D4004  | 
			
			 Standard Test Methods for Rubber—Determination of Metal Content by Flame Atomic Absorption (AAS) Analysis  | 
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			 ASTM D4574  | 
			
			 Standard Test Methods for Rubber Compounding Materials—Determination of Ash Content  | 
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			 ASTM D5667  | 
			
			 Standard Test Method for Rubber From Synthetic Sources—Total and Water Soluble Ash  | 
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			 ASTM D6869  | 
			
			 Standard Test Method for Coulometric and Volumetric Determination of Moisture in Plastics Using the Karl Fischer Reaction (the Reaction of Iodine with Water)  | 
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			 ISO 11357  | 
			
			 Plastics -- Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)  | 
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