Difference Between Polycarbonate and Plexiglass

Thekey differencebetween polycarbonate and Plexiglass is thatpolycarbonate contains carbonate linkages as repeating units, whereas Plexiglass contains methyl methacrylate units as repeating units.

Polycarbonate and Plexiglass are polymers. Polycarbonate is a synthetic resin in which the monomer units link with each other through carbonate linkages while Plexiglass is the trade name forpolymethyl methacrylate. They have different chemical structures, thus different physical properties and applications.

CONTENTS

1.Overview and Key Difference
2.What is Polycarbonate
3.What is Plexiglass
4.Side by Side Comparison – Polycarbonate vs Plexiglass in Tabular Form
5.概括

What is Polycarbonate?

Polycarbonate is a synthetic resin whose monomer units link to each other through carbonate linkages. This material is a form of plastic that forms from the reaction betweenBisphenol Aandphosgene,基于“增大化现实”技术e two are monomers that do not contain any carbonate groups. However, after polymerization, the polymer chains are composed of carbonate linkages, which leads to name these polymers as polycarbonates.

Polycarbonate polymers contain aromatic rings. This material is available in different colours. Usually, these polymers have a transparent nature, but we can make some coloured products that are typically translucent, depending on the intensity of colour.

在考虑聚碳酸酯的聚合过程时，它是一个阶跃增长的聚合过程。在此过程中，发生涉及两个官能团的冷凝反应（不涉及不饱和单体）。聚碳酸酯是一种强壮且透明的材料。此外，该材料的韧性和光学清晰度也适用于室内和室外应用。聚碳酸酯很容易加工，并且该材料具有良好的尺寸稳定性，并具有较高的冲击强度。

What is Plexiglass?

Plexiglass is the trade name for polymethyl methacrylate. It is a polymer material. The IUPAC name of this polymer is Poly(methyl 2-methyl propanoate), and the chemical formula of the repeating unit of the polymer is (C5O2H8)n. However, the molar mass varies. The density is 1.18 g/cm3, and the melting point is 160 °C. There are three major ways of synthesizing this polymer:emulsion polymerization, solution polymerization and bulk polymerization.

Luciteis the tradename of polymethyl methacrylate. Other well-known tradenames are Crylux, Plexiglass, Acrylite, and Perspex. It is a transparent thermoplastic polymer. It is important as an alternative to glass in its sheet form. Moreover, it is useful as a cast resin in inks and coatings.

除此之外，这种聚合物很强，坚固且具有轻量级。该聚合物的密度小于玻璃密度的一半。但是，它具有比玻璃和聚苯乙烯更高的冲击强度。除此之外，该聚合物可以传输约92％的可见光，因此它还可以滤波其波长低于300 nm的紫外线。

What is the Difference Between Polycarbonate and Plexiglass?

Polycarbonate and Plexiglass are polymer materials. The key difference between polycarbonate and Plexiglass is that polycarbonate contains carbonate linkages as repeating unit whereas Plexiglass contains methyl methacrylate units as the repeating unit.

此外，聚碳酸酯包含芳香环，而有机玻璃没有芳香环。因此，这是聚碳酸酯和有机玻璃之间的另一个区别。

下面的信息图总结了聚碳酸酯和有机玻璃之间的差异。

概括– Polycarbonate vs Plexiglass

Polycarbonate and Plexiglass are polymer materials having different chemical structures; thus, have different properties and applications. The key difference between polycarbonate and Plexiglass is that polycarbonate contains carbonate linkages as repeating unit whereas Plexiglass contains methyl methacrylate units as the repeating unit.

Reference:

1. “Poly(Methyl Methacrylate).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 3 Aug. 2020,Available here.
2. “What Is Acrylic (PMMA) Plastic?” PMMA or Acrylic: Guide to Support Your Future ‘Transparent’ Developments, Omnexus,Available here.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Lexan” By Ed (Edgar181) – Own work, (Public Domain) viaCommons Wikimedia
2. “PMMA repeating unit” By DrTorstenHenning – Own work, drawn with bkchem (Public Domain) viaCommons Wikimedia