Polymers, as any other material, can experience some degradation during their service life, resulting in modifications in their properties. The durability of a polymeric material, i.e. its average lifetime under the service conditions, depends on several parameters, the most important being: the type of polymer, the process used to manufacture and/or to apply it, the usage and load regime and the kind and level of environmental exposure. The durability of polymeric materials and their long‐term performance significantly affect their reliability in common as well as in high tech applications.

Due to a wide selection of polymeric materials (semi-crystalline or amorphous thermoplastics, cross-linked thermosettings, elastomers, natural and biodegradable polymers, composites and nano-composites, etc.), to the variety of their applications and utilization and to the variability of exposure regimes, the durability studies, capable to predict their long-term behavior, must be carefully set on the basis of an adequate knowledge of the aging mechanisms taking place in the specific polymer, possibly subjected to complex and coupled mechanical-environmental conditions, and of the available methods and procedures, including accelerated aging tests and outdoor exposure experiments.

The durability studies performed on polymeric materials for different purposes are among the main consolidated expertise of the MaTech-Ccult group. They include: chemical and physical aging processes, the effects of temperature and thermal cycles, the transport properties of water/moisture or other fluid substances, the influence of UV-solar radiations, the effects of other detrimental agents. This subject is of particular relevance if polymeric materials are used in critical applications, that is when their reliability in service, even when exposed to severe environmental conditions, represents a fundamental requirement. This is the case, for instance, of polymeric materials employed to strengthen existing infrastructures, to repair them or to extend their life-time: the use of FRP based on structural resins is dominating this field, due to their low weight and encumbrance and the possibility to design the more appropriate solution for each specific requirement, provided they are durable in the service conditions.

Related publications (last 5 years, only open access are listed):

Durability of Polymers

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