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COMMON TYPES OF PLASTICS

1. POLYVINYL CHLORIDE (PVC)

PVC are the third-most widely produced plastic, after polyethylene and polypropylene. 

They are  mostly  used in construction because it is more effective than traditional materials such as copper, iron or wood in pipe and profile applications.

They can be made softer and more flexible by the addition of plasticizers, the most widely used being phthalates. In this form, they may  also  be used in clothing and upholstery, electrical cable insulation, inflatable products and many applications in which it replaces rubber.

APPLICATIONS:

1. They are used for sewerage pipes and other pipe applications where cost or vulnerability to corrosion limit the use of metal.
2. With the addition of impact modifiers and stabilizers, they have become a popular material for window and door frames.
3. By adding plasticizers, they can become flexible enough to be used in cabling applications as a wire insulator.
4. The material comes in a range of colors and finishes, including a photo- effect wood finish, and is used as a substitute for painted wood, mostly for window frames and sills when installing double glazing in new buildings, or to replace older single-glazed windows.
5. Other uses include making fascia boards, and siding or weatherboarding.
6. This material has almost entirely replaced the use of cast iron for plumbing and drainage, being used for waste pipes, drainpipes, gutters and downspouts.
   2. ACRYLIC

Most acrylics are polymers of methyl methacrylate (PMMA). Acrylics may be in the form of molding powders or casting syrups, and are noted for their exceptional clarity and optical properties.

They are widely used in lighting fixtures because they are slow-burning or even self-extinguishing, and they do not produce harmful smoke or gases in the presence of flame.

The most important properties for acrylic (PMMA) are their optical clarity, low UV sensitivity, and overall weather resistance. Acrylic is often used as a glass substitute

• APPLICATIONS:

1. In making transparent glass substitute.
   3. POLYMER FILM

       Plastic film/Polymer film is a thin continuous polymeric material.

Thicker plastic material is often called a “sheet”. These thin plastic membranes are used to separate areas or volumes, to hold items, to act as barriers, or as printable surfaces.

Plastic films are used in a wide variety of applications

These include: packaging, plastic bags, labels, building construction, landscaping, electrical fabrication, photographic film, film stock for movies, video tape, etc.

4. FIBRE REINFORCED PLASTIC

Fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) is a composite material made of a polymer matrix reinforced with fibres.

The fibres are usually glass, carbon, basalt or agamid, although other fibers such as paper or wood or asbestos have been sometimes used.

The polymer is usually an epoxy, vinyl ester or polyester thermosetting plastic, and phenol formaldehyde resins are still in use.

FRPs are commonly used in the aerospace, automotive, marine, and construction industries.

FRPs have been used widely in the design of new construction. Structures such as bridges and columns built completely out of FRP composites have demonstrated exceptional durability, and effective resistance to effects of environmental exposure.

5. SYNTHETIC RUBBER

Synthetic rubber is any type of artificial elastomer mainly synthesised from petroleum byproducts.

Synthetic rubber, like natural rubber, has uses in the automotive industry for door and window profiles, hoses, belts, matting, flooring and dampeners (antivibration mounts).

Synthetic rubber displays the capacity of elasticity, synonymous in colloquial terms to bounciness, flexibility or pliability.

Water-repellent materials are those that do not allow water molecules to penetrate or pass through. Thus, synthetic rubber absorbs little to no water.

6. ASBESTOS CEMENT PRODUCTS

Asbestos cement is primarily a cement-based product where about 10% to 15% w/w asbestos fibres are added to reinforce the cement.

Asbestos cement is weatherproof in that although it will absorb moisture, the water does not pass through the product

It was used for corrugated sheets, slates, moulded fittings, soffits and under cloak, water cisterns, rainwater gutters, down pipes, pressure pipes, underground drainage and sewer pipes, sills, copings, chalkboards, fascias, in fill panels, etc.

It is sometimes difficult to tell the difference between an asbestos cement product and a low-density insulation board

Where the product has been used as a roofing or cladding product, open to the weather, you can be confident that the product is asbestos cement.