PC | POLYCARBONATE

Trivially definable as “universal,” polycarbonate is a plastic material with a thousand merits and as many uses. 

It goes from the optical field to the military, passing through transportation, aeronautics, digital, medical, industrial and electronics, without forgetting the construction sector for which it has become, over the years, one of the protagonists.

This thermoplastic polymer discovered in 1928, obtained from carbonic acid and characterized by remarkable thermal and mechanical resistance turned out, over the following years, to be a revolutionary invention. 

It took, in fact, many years before the full benefits of this material were realized.

Polycarbonate, also known by the acronym PC, is probably the most interesting among polymers.

It is nontoxic, versatile, very durable, and has excellent insulating properties. In addition to its ease of processing, the advantages associated with its strength, combined with its durability, make it particularly suitable for countless applications of use.

Its transparency, light weight, and excellent mechanical and impact resistance make it a worthy substitute for glass. 

Again by virtue of its transparency, this material is also often used for the creation of small plastic parts such as screws, washers, nuts and many others, useful in the assembly or fastening of many installations.

Choosing this plastic material means choosing an element that lasts in time and can ensure significant energy savings, since a structure made of PC manages to thermally insulate rooms by keeping the temperature constant, while allowing natural light to filter through.

Polycarbonate can be made into the shape you want by melting the polymer; the main processes used are extrusion and injection molding.

In the former case, the molten polycarbonate is pushed into an orifice and this pressure operation generates a continuous outflow of the polymer which is then cut and transformed into profiles, tubes and sheets.

With the injection method, on the other hand, polycarbonate is injected inside the mold of the specific shape of the desired object.

PC can be plain translucent or glass fiber filled, UV and flame resistant, and even anti-abrasion.