Home › Technical Resources ›

SPE Online Plastics Encyclopedia

Welcome to the SPE Plastics Encyclopedia. Use the search box below to find specific topics, or browse the Plastics Encyclopedia Directory to browse through the topics. For more information on how you can become an SPE Plastics Encyclopedia contributor, visit the SPE Plastics Encyclopedia Contributors' page.

Hot Topics
SPE Online Plastics Encyclopedia Directory

Use the Plastics Encyclopedia directory to browse the various Categories and Topics of the Plastics Encyclopedia.
Materials

Materials are solids which can be used for things. We live in a physical world in which doing physical things requires the use of materials. A material may be simple or complex. A simple, homogeneous material...
Applications

Application or design is putting polymers to work. These applications are the payoff for the science and technology behind polymers. An application is the use of polymers for a practical purpose other than discovery and learning. (RDC 3/25/2009)
Compounding

Compounding is the ancient art and science of mixing resins, fillers, reinforcements and other additives to make a functional and useful material. It began with early man formulating paints for cave painting as well as personal decoration and has continued ever since....
Environment

Nanotechnology

Nanocomposites

A composite is a combination of two or more different...
Nanoparticles

Polymers (Resins)

Resins refer to polymers before they are mixed with other additives or components.

...
Processing

Processing is the molding or fabrication of the final resin mixture, usually a melt into the desired structure.  Although usually it involves moving and manipulating a melt mixture, some methods only...
Reactions

"A chemical reaction is a process that changes the nature of chemical substances. The substances involved in a chemical reaction are the reactants. Chemical reactions are usually characterized by a...
Recycling

Recycling is the reuse of materials after use in another application. Recycling reduces the raw material consumption, energy usage, air pollution, water pollution band greenhouse gas emissions....
Properties

"A material's propertyis an intensive, often quantitative property of a material, usually with a unit that may be used as a metric of value to compare the benefits of one material versus another to aid in materials selection."
Anti-Friction Additives (Lubricants)

Anti-friction additives or lubricants reduce friction between surfaces or increase the slippery nature of materials. (RDC 3/26/2009) 
Anti-Static Agents

An antistatic agent is used to reduce or eliminate buildup of static electricity generally caused by the triboelectric effect. It's action is to make the surface slightly conductive, either by being conductive itself, or by absorbing moisture from the air. The antistatic agent often has...