Course Description
Instructor: Brian Young
Fee: $900
Offerings
Click the appropriate date link to register for that course section.
Register for september 10–november 19
Educational Goals
The ten-week online course will introduce the participant to fundamental concepts and properties of plastic materials and the influence of chemical structure on polymer properties. It will also introduce the participants to the primary types of plastic processes used in industry today. The participants will gain a better understanding of plastic materials and their importance in today's society.
Throughout the duration of the course, the participants will be taught:
- The common different polymerization processes used to make thermoplastic materials
- The concept of molecular weight of polymers and the effect this has on material properties
- The different types of bonding that occur in polymer materials and the effect this has on the material properties
- Polymer morphology
- Viscoelastic, time-dependent, and temperature-dependent behavior of polymer materials
- The different families of plastic materials and the strengths and weaknesses of each
- Recycling and biodegradability of plastic materials and the effect on the plastics industry
- The main plastic fabrication processes currently used in industry
Who Should Attend
Among those who can benefit from this ten-week online seminar are operators, process and project engineers, manufacturing engineers, molding technicians, team leaders, designers, mold makers, and sales and marketing staff.
Course Outline
There are ten modules that will be released at the beginning of the ten-week course. A tentative schedule is established below. You are welcome to work ahead, but only questions on the scheduled material will be answered unless special arrangements are made with the instructor. Questions on the course material should be posted on the course discussion board. Questions of a personal nature or concerning grading should be e-mailed to the instructor. Both posted questions and e-mails will be responded to within 24 hours during the week and 48 hours on weekends. Office hours will be established weekly where the instructor will be available to answer emails, phone calls, instant messages, etc.
Schedule
Week 1..................Module 1
Week 2.……...........Module 2
Week 3..................Module 3
Week 4……............Module 4
Week 5……….........Module 5
Week 6……….........Module 6
Week 7…….….......Module 7
Week 8……...….....Module 8
Week 9...……….....Module 9
Week 10………......Module 10
The textbook used for this course is Thermoplastic Materials: Properties, Manufacturing Methods and Applications by Christopher C. Ibeh, 2011.
Module 1 Introduction and History of Plastics
Module 1 will provide a brief overview of plastic materials and discuss some of the issues surrounding plastic materials in today's society. It will also lead the student through some of the important events in the plastics industry which brought it to where it is today.
Module Objectives
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- List several (>5) advantages of using plastic materials
- List several (>3) disadvantages of using plastic materials
- Define "Plastic" and "Polymer"
- Understand the two methods the plastics industry uses to address the volume of plastic waste generated
List at least four historic events in the plastics industry and describe their significance
Module 2 Polymerization and Molecular Weight
Module 2 will go into greater depth concerning the two main processes that are used to create plastic molecules. It will also cover different types of copolymers and the effect that side group arrangement can have on the material properties. The second part of the lesson will cover how the length of the polymer chains can affect the material's properties due to the entanglement of those chains.
Module Objectives
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- Name and explain the two primary means of creating polymers
- Differentiate between different types of copolymers
- Understand how branching and tacticity can affect the properties of a material
- Understand the effect of molecular weight on material properties
Module 3 Polymer Structure and Morphology
Module 3 will discuss how the arrangement of the different atoms in the polymer chain along with the different types of bonding can affect the flexibility of the molecule which in turn affects how the material flows in both when melted and when in solid form. The second part of the lesson will cover two basic morphologies of thermoplastic materials and how their properties differ.
Module Objectives
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- Explain how polymer structure and the types of bonds affect the polymer properties
- Name and describe the two basic morphologies of thermoplastic materials
- Understand the difference between Tg and Tm and the significance of each.
- Understand Orientation and how it affects properties.
- Name several property differences that exist between the two different morphologies
- Name several materials that belong to each morphological family
Module 4 Viscoelasticity and Viscosity
Module 4 will discuss two of the most important fundamental concepts dealing with the behavior of thermoplastic materials, viscoelasticity and viscosity. It will also cover how temperature and strain rate have the greatest effect on the viscoelasticity of a plastic material which is important when dealing with polymer materials whether you are designing or troubleshooting. It will also discuss how plastic materials flow differently than most other materials due to their long thin shape (high aspect ratio) and high viscosities.
Module Objectives
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- Understand entanglement and viscoelasticity
- Understand how changes in temperature and strain rate affect thermoplastic products
- Understand how other polymer factors such as molecular weight, fillers, branching, crystallinity, and structure affect a material’s properties.
- Understand why viscosity is an important property of plastic materials
- Explain several primary factors that affect a material’s viscosity
- Explain the difference between a Newtonian and a non-Newtonian fluid
Module 5 Commodity Plastics and Sustainability (Recycling)
Module 5 will discuss Commodity Plastics. When the average person is asked what a plastic component is made of, the usual response is 'Plastic'. This will not be an acceptable response from any of the students who complete Modules 5 and 6. There are many different material families of thermoplastics and thermosets in existence, and it is important for prospective or current plastics engineers to be able to distinguish between the properties, strengths, and weaknesses of the different families. The second part of the lesson will discuss all aspects of sustainability. It is important to be aware of the facts and science behind the idea of sustainability with regard to plastics.
Module Objectives
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- Understand the difference between a commodity polymer and an engineering polymer
- Know the advantages and disadvantages for using commodity polymers
- Know how commodity materials compare in many categories related to design specifications.
- Define the idea of sustainability and explain its impact on the plastics industry
- List and explain the main industry initiatives for trying to attain sustainability.
- Explain why Plastic materials are the best choice for the environment.
Module 6 Engineering Plastics
Module 6 discusses how Engineering plastics are different from commodity plastics. One reason is the quantity produced annually and the associated price. Only Polyesters rival the commodity plastics in terms of quantity produced. Another reason is that in most cases, the choice to use Engineering plastics is usually made based on the specific material properties required by the application.
Module Objectives
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- Recognize and be able to name the differences between commodity polymers and engineering polymers
- Know the advantages and disadvantages for using engineering grade polymers
- Describe how engineering grade thermoplastic materials compare in many categories related to design specifications.
Module 7 Additives and Fillers
Thermoplastics have a wide variety of properties among the different material families, but we can further modify them and alter their properties with the addition of additives, fillers, and fibers. Many of today's applications with plastic materials would not be possible without some of these additives.
Module Objectives
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- Explain the importance of additives in the plastics industry
- List several of the main types of additives currently used in the plastics industry and explain the effect of their use on a material’s properties.
- Explain how different additives can affect a material’s processing properties.
- Explain the property changes associated with adding fillers and fibers to thermoplastic materials
- Name several fillers and fibers as well as the advantages and disadvantages of each
Module 8 Injection Molding and Extrusion
Module 9 Blow Molding
Module 10 Thermoforming and Rotational Molding
Modules 8, 9, and 10 will provide a brief overview of some of the processes used to make the materials into useable products. Because of the unique features of plastic parts (size, shape, is it hollow?, …), many types and variations of processes have been developed to create these parts.
Module Objectives
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- Understand the basic operation of each process
- Understand the key processing parameters
- Understand several advantages of each process
- Understand several disadvantages of each process
- Understand how to identify parts made by each process