Everywhere you look you will find plastics. We use plastic products to help make our lives cleaner, easier, safer and more enjoyable. Plastics are organic! The raw materials for plastics production are natural products such as cellulose, coal, natural gas and crude oil.
There are two main plastic groups –
Thermoplastics: which are softened by heat. Good examples are acrylic, polypropylene, polystyrene, polythene, ABS and PVC.
Thermosets: which are formed by heat process, but are then set (solid) and cannot change shape or soften by re-heating. Good examples are Bakelite and Polyester.
Plastic Types:
Nylon: very strong, nylon can be machined and will take a fine thread. It is also slippery and can be used to make washers, spacers and bushes. Nylons also have a natural ‘oily’ surface that can act as a natural lubricant.
Bonding with Nylons, suggested grades Tecbond 261, Tecbond 7784, Tecbond 1942
Acrylic: There are two types of acrylic: extruded, which is cheaper and cast, which machines better but is harder and less flexible. Acrylics withstand weather and are stable in sunlight.
Bonding with Acrylics, suggested grades Tecbond 240, Tecbond 265, Tecbond 246, Tecbond 242, Tecbond 248
PVC and uPVC: Stiff, hard, tough lightweight plastic. uPVC is stabilised for outside use and is used for plastic windows and plastic pipes.
Bonding with PVC, suggested grades Tecbond 240, Tecbond 246, Tecbond 430
Bonding with uPVC, suggested grade Tecbond 261
Polyethylene This plastic has a range of uses from food packaging to gas pipes. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) is a hard rigid plastic used commonly for household chemical bottles such as bleach. A low-density grade (LDPE )is tough and flexible used for carrier bags, bin liners and packaging films. Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) often used for Fizzy drink and water bottles, salad trays.
Bonding with Polyethylene, suggested grades Tecbond 261, Tecbond 267, Tecbond 263
Polypropylene Polypropylene is a tough, cheap plastic and it has a slightly waxy feel. It can be bent repeatedly without breaking. Polypropylene and polyethylene are called “low energy” or “non-stick” plastics.
Bonding with Polypropylene, suggested grades Tecbond 263, Tecbond 267, Tecbond 261 or Tecbond 430
Polycarbonate Polycarbonate is a versatile, tough plastic used for a variety of applications, from bulletproof windows to compact disks (CDs). The main advantage of polycarbonate over other types of plastic is unbeatable strength combined with light weight properties.
Bonding with Polycarbonate, suggested grades Tecbond 246, Tecbond 267, Tecbond 242, Tecbond 430
Bakelite A thermosetting plastic which is dark brown. It was very popular during the 1940’s – 60’s for manufacturing items such as radios, more recent times used to make circuit boards and heat proof insulated parts in the electronics industry.
Bonding with Bakelite, suggested grades Tecbond 261, Tecbond 267, Tecbond 430
ABS high impact resistant plastic, good low and high temperature resistance. ABS materials provides a combination of mechanical toughness, wide temperature range, good dimensional stability, chemical resistance, electrical insulating properties, and ease of fabrication.
Bonding with ABS, suggested grades Tecbond 240, Tecbond 248, Tecbond 242, Tecbond 1942
Polystyrene (PS), generally rigid and relatively inexpensive used for yoghurt pots, egg cartons, plastic cutlery, protective packaging and insulation material used in building and construction industries. High impact polystyrene grades (HIPS) are produced by adding rubber or butadiene copolymer which increases the toughness and impact strength of the polymer.
Bonding with Polystyrene, suggested grades Tecbond LM44, Tecbond 420, Tecbond 430
Try our Glue Selector
Our customers also asked
Q: How can you glue plastic safely?
A: Plastics are hugely diverse therefore each one needs to be treated differently. Try our glue selector, select the plastic you want to glue and read our product description. Our service and advice page answers lots of questions for you too.
