Everything You Need To Know About PVC Plastic-5

Is PVC Toxic?

PVC can pose a health hazard when burned as it emits hydrogen chloride (HCl) fumes. In applications where the likelihood of fire is high, PVC free electrical wire insulation is sometimes preferred. Fumes can also be emitted when melting the material (such as during prototyping and manufacturing processes like 3D printing, CNC machining, and injection molding). We recommend taking a look at the Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) for different chlorinated hydrocarbon gases like chlorobenzene and discussing the production process with a professional manufacturer.

What are the Advantages of Polyvinyl Chloride?

PVC provides industries with a series of critical advantages that have cemented its place as one of the most popular and widely used plastics on the market. These advantages include:

  - Polyvinyl Chloride is readily available and relatively inexpensive.

  - Polyvinyl Chloride is very dense and thus very hard and resists impact deformation very well relative to other plastics.

  - Polyvinyl Chloride has outstanding tensile strength.

  - Polyvinyl Chloride is very resistant to chemicals and alkalis.

PVC's advantages helped solidify its place as one of the most used plastics around the world. However, even though it's widely effective and popular, you have to consider some factors when using the material.

What are the Disadvantages of Polyvinyl Chloride?

While PVC has a host of advantages that make it a desirable material to work with, there are some reasons to take caution. The disadvantages that you have to account for when using PVC include:

  - Polyvinyl Chloride has very poor heat stability. For this reason, additives that stabilize the material at higher temperatures are typically added to the material during production.

  - Polyvinyl Chloride emits toxic fumes when melted or subject to a fire.

Although there are some shortcomings, Polyvinyl Chloride is an excellent material overall. It has a unique blend of qualities that make it particularly useful for the construction business. By taking note and accounting for the shortcomings of the material, you can effectively navigate and compensate so you can effectively use the material in your upcoming projects.

What are the properties of Polyvinyl Chloride?

Technical Name: Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)

Chemical Formula: (C2H3Cl)n

Melt Temperature: 212 - 500 °F (100 - 260°C) ***

Heat Deflection Temperature (HDT): 92 °C (198 °F) **

Tensile Strength:

Flexible PVC: 6.9 - 25 MPa (1000 - 3625 PSI)

Rigid PVC: 34 - 62 MPa (4930 - 9000 PSI) **

Specific Gravity: 1.35 - 1.45

*At standard state (at 25 °C (77 °F), 100 kPa)