How to Identify the Plastic material?

Plastic material identification

Judging thermoplastics and thermosets: All thermosets have no softening process when heated or burned, only become brittle and coked;

All thermoplastics, which are heated or burned, undergo a soft melting process, but different plastics burn. The phenomenon is different.

  • pp

PP burns slowly, the upper end of the flame is yellow, the middle is blue, there is a dripping drop, and after extinguishing the flame, there is a paraffin smell.

The SAN burns slowly, the flame flashes, the yellow light, and the black smoke. When it is extinguished, there is a PS-like odor (smell).

  • POM

POM has medium flammability and continues to burn. The flame is pure blue, no charcoal flies, the plastic melts and turns black, and it has a very pungent smell of formaldehyde.

Methacrylate is flammable and does not self-destruct after leaving the fire. The top of the flame is yellow, the bottom is blue, and there is a slight tail of carbon. When burning, the plastic melts and foams, and has a fruity smell.

  • PA

The PA burns slowly, and it extinguishes itself when it leaves the fire source. The color of the flame is yellow and blue. When burning, there is dripping and foaming of the melted,and after the fire is extinguished, there is a smell of burning wool or nails.

  • PS, HIPS, and ABS

PS, HIPS, and ABS are flammable, continue to burn after the fire, the flame is yellow, there is thick smoke. When PS and HIPS burn, the surface foams, but ABS isl not be coked. PS, HIPS has a faint floral fragrance, and ABS has a distinctive smell.

  • PC

The PC burns slowly. After leaving the fire source, it slowly extinguishes. The flame is yellow with smoke. When burning, the plastic softens, foams, and carbon black, giving a comfortable, slight flower and fruit odor.

plastic material
  • PMMA

The  most color of PMMA and PS are both transparent, and the light transmission effect is the same after dyeing, but PMMA does not have charcoal flies when burning, and the latter has,

When PMMA is burned, it is light blue, and the top is white. It is easy to drip and blistering after burning. After leaving the fire source, it can continue to burn. After burning, it emits a strong floral and fruity smell and rotten vegetable smell.

  • PVC

PVC burns slowly, the upper part of the flame is yellow, the lower part is green, and the black smoke is emitted. After leaving the fire source, it can self-extinguish, and there is a pungent burnt smell. Check whether the plastic contains chlorine, the copper wire is heated to a colorless red hot state, and then a small amount of plastic to be tested is placed on the copper wire to heat it. The flame is blue-green (CuCl2), and the plastic is considered to contain chlorine.

  • PE

PE is flammable. After leaving the fire source, it continues to burn. The upper end of the flame is slightly yellow, the lower end is blue, and the smoke is less. There is glue dripping near the flame, and there is a paraffin burning smell after the fire is extinguished.

Phenolic plastics have moderate flammability. Most of material can be extinguished after leaving the fire source. The flame is yellow and with ash, and the plastic burns out.

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