Strength development in powder processing of poly (tetrafluoroethylene)

Poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE) is a versatile engineering plastic with excellent chemical and electrical resistance, a wide working temperature range, and a low coefficient of friction. PTFE is processed by the powder processing technique because of its high melt viscosity. The powder processing of polymers involves cold compaction of the polymeric powders, followed by sintering of the preforms at elevated temperatures. Sintering is a critical operation since the mechanical properties of the products are determined by the interparticle coalescence and diffusion of polymer chains across the interface. The results of the studies of the strength development during sintering of PTFE are reported here. The strength was measured in terms of the tensile strength at break, and the dependence of the tensile strength on compaction pressure, particle size, and processing time is discussed. The time dependence of strength development could be described by a diffusion controlled process in which the strength is proportional to the ¼th power of the processing time