If you’ve ever gone through a restaurant drive-thru window, or bought a music CD, you’ve encountered styrene. Among it’s hundreds of other applications, it’s used to make the plastic containers for fast food and CD jewel cases.

CD jewel case, Source: alibaba

These other uses include models, prototypes, signs, displays, enclosures, exhibits, light lenses, appliance panels, trim strips, electronic components, packaging, drinking cups and more. Styrene is also great for screen printing point of purchase displays. And, although it’s routinely criticized for its environmental flaws, the fact remains that it is here to stay. Plus, Styrene has been a conduit for an increase in the quality of life as well as the general advance of mankind as a whole. It’s made life easier – and better. Product displays for brochures, racks, counter displays, donation / suggestion boxes and point of purchase (p.o.p) items are not made from styrene.

It’s also extremely versatile. Styrene can be drilled, threaded, sawed, sheared, punched and machined. In addition, it can also be painted and, with the use of vacuum pressure, has excellent forming properties. It is non-toxic and odorless, dimensionally stable, has low water absorption, and is electronic and heat sealable. It is resistance to most mineral oils, organic acids, alkalis, salts and alcohols. Styrene has high impact resistance and good electrical properties. Its light weight makes it suitable for many unique applications.

Styrene Sheets, Source: Kelvin

Key Properties:

• FDA approved
• Tasteless / Odorless
• Excellent machinability
• Easy fabrication
• Great dimensional stability
• Can be easily machined

Styrene plastic can also be easily die cut for brochure displays, racks, counter displays, donation / suggestion boxes and point of purchase (p.o.p) displays or used in component parts. In outdoor applications it can only be used short-term because it generally does not do well in inclement weather. However, sometimes you can purchase it with a weather resistant coating.

So, what is this seemingly magical material, and how was it discovered? Polystyrene is a polymer made from the monomer styrene, a liquid hydrocarbon that is commercially manufactured from petroleum. At room temperature, polystyrene is normally a solid thermoplastic, but it can be melted at higher temperature for molding or extrusion and then made solid again.

Polystyrene Container, Source: Ideasbynet

In terms of discovery, the whole thing happened by accident. Polystyrene was discovered in Berlin in 1839 by Eduard Simon who was working with storax at the time, the resin of Liquidambar orientalis. While he was working with it, it distilled an oily substance, a monomer which he named styrol. Several days later the styrol had thickened into a jelly he dubbed styrol oxide.In 1866 Marcelin Berthelot correctly identified the formation of metastyrol from styrol as a polymerization process. At that point, 80 years went by before it was understood that heating of styrol starts a chain reaction which produces macromolecules. German organic chemist Hermann Staudinger discovered this, which led to the substance receiving its present name, polystyrene. In 1931, The I.G. Farben Company began manufacturing polystyrene in Ludwigshafen, hoping it would be a good replacement for die cast zinc in many applications. Soon, they got what they were looking for when they developed a reactor vessel that extruded polystyrene through a heated tube and cutter, producing polystyrene in pellet form.
And the rest is history. Today, styrene is being produced and used at a higher rate than ever. It continues to be a material that has many applications.

Plastic acrylics are used in so many applications, in so many areas of life; it’s hard to imagine a world without them. Where would we be had the science behind this revolutionary material never been explored? If acrylic had never been developed, would we be stuck with heavy, expensive objects instead of the relatively light and inexpensive materials we are familiar with today? What would brochure holders, brochure displays, racks, counter displays, donation / suggestion boxes and point of purchase (p.o.p) displays be made from? We all take it for granted, but the history of plastics and acrylics is worthy of understanding.

Dr. Otto Rohm

“Plastic” means to form or model something. This helps to understand the overall concept. It all really started in 1773 with the discovery and isolation of the compound “urea”, which is found in the urine of mammals and other higher forms of animal life.

Urea Cycle, Source: nlm.nih.gov

In 1828, when urea was synthetically produced, the foundation for phenol-formaldehyde plastics was formed. That brings us to 1843 when an acrylic acid preparation was reported. Following that, Dr. Otto Rohm published the results of his research with acrylic resinoids in 1901. His thesis, “On the Polymerization Products of Acrylic Acid” explained how the polymers obtained in his research had simultaneous properties of a tough, flexible glass and a rigid plastic.

Dr. Leo Baekeland
Baekeline, Source: University of Regensburg

Next came Dr. Leo Baekeland. In 1909, he secured the first patent for phenol- formaldehyde, which he combined to form a resinous substance, a phenolic plastic. He called it “Bakelite”. This material could be softened with heat and then molded into shape. It could then be set into final form by continued heating under pressure while in the mold; a true plastic. This was revolutionary. As a result, Baekeland’s discovery triggered the imagination and research of organic chemists worldwide.

Acrylic resins started being used in 1931 for industrial coatings and laminated glass binders. The better known derivative of methacrylic acid, polymethyl methacrylate, was not introduced until 1936 as a transparent sheet and in 1937 as a molding powder. This marked the start of the acrylic era and the Plexiglas revolution.

In World War II, acrylic sheet played an important role as a bullet resistant glazing in warplanes because it was light, strong and could be easily formed to fit into the structural designs of aircraft. It was at this time that Plexiglas started being used in homes and factories for safety glazing, electrical and chemical applications, skylights, windscreens and many other uses.

Acrylic Airplane Nose, Source: Aerovintage

Key Dates:

· 1911: Research commenced in the field of acrylics.

· 1928: Methyl methacrylate was synthesized in the laboratory.

· 1933: A method was found to cast methyl methacrylate between two plates of glass and to polymerize it inside this cell. This was a crystal-clear, hard and break-resistant plastic.

· 1934: Initial applications were for cover glasses, watch glasses and lenses for protective goggles.

· 1950: New fields of application included shop window displays, protective screens around machine tools, jointless tubes for conveyors etc. The procurement of raw material returned to normal after World War II.

Today, acrylics are used in millions of unique products, including brochure displays, racks, counter displays, donation / suggestion boxes and point of purchase (p.o.p) displays sold by Plastic Products Manufacturing. There is one thing you can say: The beauty, simplicity and low cost of acrylic continues to make it one of the greatest manufacturing materials in the world.

Have you ever looked at something made of plastic and wondered how it was made? It’s obviously not a metal, wood or plant based derivative. To the educated person, it could be assumed that it’s made by a chemical process, but not much more about it is as easily surmised. Clearly, acrylic thermoplastics have some very interesting characteristics and properties. Of course, they are well known for their crystal clarity and outstanding weatherability. But did you also know they are available in cast sheet, rod, and tube, extruded sheet and film, and compounds for injection molding and extrusion? Acrylic can be used to manufacture brochure holders, racks, counter displays, donation / suggestion boxes and point of purchase (p.o.p) displays among other products.Below are some general properties of acrylic sheet:

Acrylic Sheets, Source: Acrylics in China

* Strong and resists weathering
* Flexible when compared with glass
* Less breakable than glass
* Abrasion resistant
* Can withstand sunlight for long durations
* Resistant to most chemicals and industrial fumes
* Can transmit or filter ultraviolet light
* Can be cleaned easily
* Can be cut by various methods
* Corrosion resistant
* Good insulator.

Other general properties include the ability to transmit and control light. They are also stable against discoloration, and have superior dimensional stability, as you would notice if you have an acrylic brochure display, counter display, donation / suggestion box or point of purchase (p.o.p) display. Possessing an excellent combination of structural and thermal properties, clear acrylic plastic is as transparent as the finest optical glass:

* Possess a light transmittance of 92%
* Low haze level of approximately 1%
* Index of refraction of 1.49
It also has the ability to be injected with color, producing a full spectrum of transparent, translucent, or opaque colors depending on your needs. This process does no harm in terms of long-term durability; colored acrylics can be used outdoors for a long time. Why? They are formulated to filter ultraviolet energy in the 360-nm and lower band. Other acrylic formulations are opaque to UV light or provide reduced UV transmission.

Colour Spectrum, Source: Photoinf

And how about mechanical properties? Although not known for having many, acrylics can be used for short-term loading. If the intended use is long-term, stresses must be limited to 1,500 psi to avoid surface cracking and deterioration.

Acrylic does well in the cold, as the impact resistance of standard formulations is maintained in these conditions. It should be noted that high-impact acrylic grades have greater impact strength than standard grades at room temperature, but impact strength decreases as temperature drops. Some types of acrylic are even known to resist bullets!

Acrylic plastics are highly scratch resistant, especially among other thermoplastics. It’s a good idea, however, to ensure proper maintenance and cleaning. Keep in mind that abrasion-resistant acrylic sheet is available and has the same optical and impact properties as standard grades. You will see this in many of our brochure displays, racks, counter displays, donation / suggestion boxes and point of purchase (p.o.p) displays.

Jet, Source: Wayfaring

This brings up a good point – its versatility and adaptability. Are you aware that Jet-aircraft cabin windows are made from acrylic sheet? They do this by inducing molecular orientation during forming. This proves the potential strength of acrylic sheet. How do they react to other chemicals and compounds? Acrylic sheet and moldings resist solutions of inorganic acids and alkalies and aliphatic hydrocarbons such as VM&P naphtha, as well as most detergent solutions and cleaning agents. They are attacked by chlorinated and aromatic hydrocarbons, esters, and ketones.