Abstract
Not the least remarkable and useful of the properties of polyethylene is its chemical inertness. PE is unaffected by prolonged contact with those strong acids (including hydrogen fluoride) which attack many metals, highly caustic alkalis which rapidly damage glass, as well as most organic substances. Yet the pure polymer weathers rapidly when exposed outdoors to the atmosphere, burns easily and may be affected by common detergents. These properties are all aspects of the chemical behaviour of the material, the subject of this chapter. The contrast between the inertness of PE and some other polymers towards many aggressive reagents, including solvents, and its sensitivity to atmospheric degradation warn us to expect some complexity in the chemical properties of polymers. We shall discuss a number of agents of chemical change which are of engineering importance for polymer materials. These are solvents, environmental agents (producing weathering and aging), fire, radiation, and biological organisms.
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© 1981 Christopher Hall
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Hall, C. (1981). Chemical Properties. In: Polymer Materials. Palgrave, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-10187-0_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-10187-0_5
Publisher Name: Palgrave, London
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