WEBINAR: Environmental Stress Cracking

FREE for SPE Members
Non-Members: $199

Summary

Environmental stress cracking (ESC) is the leading cause of plastic component failure, and a recent study suggests that 25% of plastic part failures are related to ESC. If you deal with plastic components, then “Environmental Stress Cracking of Plastics” will provide you with information that will enhance your understanding of the interaction between chemicals and plastic resins, with the goal of preventing part failure. ESC is a solvent-induced failure mode in which a plastics crack through contact with a chemical agent while under stress.

The webinar will be presented from a practical viewpoint with actual case studies to illustrate the ESC mechanism and explain plastic performance. Topics covered during this session include:

• Introduction to ESC
• How plastics fail
• Explanation of the ESC failure mechanism
• Generalizations related to chemical interaction with plastics
• ESC resistance testing used to evaluate plastic/chemical compatibility
• Case Illustrations of some common solvent-based failure modes

At the end of this presentation you will:

• Have a better understanding how chemicals effect plastic components.
• Recognize potential situations where ESC failure could occur in your parts.
• Be able to design a chemical resistance program to evaluate plastic/chemical combinations.

About Speaker

Jeffrey A. Jansen is the Engineering Manager and a Partner at The Madison Group, an independent plastics engineering and consulting firm. Jeff is a proven plastic professional with more than 30 years of experience solving problems and addressing opportunities related to polymeric materials. Jeff specializes in failure analysis, material identification and selection, as well as compatibility, aging, and lifetime prediction studies for thermoplastic materials. Jeff has performed over 5,000 investigations, both for industrial clients and as a part of litigation. Jeff is a regular presenter on the SPE webinar series, covering a wide range of topics related to plastics failure, material performance, testing, and polymer technology. Jeff is a graduate of Carroll College and the Milwaukee School of Engineering.