Glass Transition Temperature Measurement of Polycarbonate Specimen by Dynamic Mechanical Analyser Towards the Development of Reference Material

In recent years, Dynamic mechanical analyser (DMA) has served as a principal tool for measurement of dynamic mechanical properties and glass transition temperature (T-g) of a material. However, absence of an appropriate reference material and abundances of methods available for T-g evaluation is often seen in significant variation from data to data. In this regard, development of an appropriate reference material for T-g measurement is important for research and industrial community. This work studies the behaviour of Polycarbonate specimens prepared via injection moulding for study of its dynamic mechanical properties including storage modulus, loss modulus, and Tan delta w.r.t. temperature. T-g was evaluated from peaks and inflexion points of storage modulus curve, loss modulus curve, and Tan delta curve as indicated. The obtained values were then tested statistically for standard deviation and uncertainty values. Measurement uncertainty of less than 0.2 degrees C was found to be associated in T-g measurement in all employed methods indicating that polycarbonate can be explored as a reference material in T-g measurement using DMA.

Automated summary

In recent years, DMA has been widely used for measuring the dynamic mechanical properties and T-g of materials. However, the lack of an appropriate reference material and the availability of various methods often result in significant variation in the T-g evaluation. This study focuses on developing an appropriate reference material for T-g measurement and evaluates the behavior of Polycarbonate specimens prepared by injection molding. The results show that Polycarbonate can be used as a reference material with a measurement uncertainty of less than 0.2 degrees C in T-g measurement using DMA.