A guide to the properties of plastic sheets, with information on properties such as density, hardness, toughness, stiffness and so on
The properties of plastics are important in their use as a base material for many products. They are also used in many industries other than manufacturing. Plastics offer advantages over metals and wood because they do not corrode or rot when exposed to water or air. They can be molded into shapes that are impossible for wood to duplicate and they are lightweight compared with metals
Density: Density is one of the most important properties of plastics; it determines how much weight is needed to support a given object. The density of a plastic can be found by dividing its mass by its volume (kg/m3 or lb/ft3). The higher the density the greater the strength required to carry out an action or process that would be difficult if done with less dense materials like wood or paper
Hardness: Hardness is another very important property of plastics; it indicates how much force it takes to break a specimen into small pieces without plasticizer being added (aka tensile strength). It is measured using a scale where numbers 0-40 represent increasing hardness levels from brittle materials
cnc plastic sheets
