POLYCARBONATE SHEETS

What are the properties of polycarbonate?

PC is an ideal material well known for its versatile characteristics. It is widely used in the industry for its eco-friendly processing and recyclability. It comprises a unique set of chemical and physical properties. This makes it suitable over glass, PMMA, and PE. The key properties of polycarbonates include:

Toughness -Polycarbonate maintains a toughness value between -20°C to 140°C. They are virtually unbreakable.
High Impact Strength -PC has a high strength that makes it resistant to impact and fracture. It provides safety and comfort in applications that demand high reliability and performance. The polymer has a density of 1.2 – 1.22
Transmittance -PC is an extremely clear plastic that can transmit over 90% of light as well as glass. Polycarbonate sheets are available in a wide range of shades. These sheets can be customizable depending on an end-user application.
Lightweight -This feature allows virtually unlimited possibilities for OEMs to design as compared with glass. The property increases efficiency and makes the installation process easier. It also reduces overall transportation costs.
Protection from UV Radiations -Polycarbonates can be designed to block ultraviolet radiation. They provide 100% protection from harmful UV rays.
Optical Nature -For having an amorphous structure, PC offers excellent optical properties. The refractive index of clear polycarbonate is 1.584.
Chemical Resistance -Good chemical resistance against diluted acids, aliphatic hydrocarbons, and alcohols. It shows moderate resistance against oils and greases. PC is readily attacked by diluted alkalis, aromatic, and halogenated hydrocarbons. Manufacturers recommend cleaning PC using agents which do not affect their chemical nature. It is sensitive to abrasive alkaline cleaners.
Heat Resistance -Polycarbonates have high heat resistance. They are thermally stable up to 135°C. Further heat resistance can be improved by adding flame retardants without impacting material properties.

What is polycarbonate?

To put it simply, polycarbonates are strong, stiff, hard, tough, transparent engineering thermoplastics that are known for being moldable, durable and lightweight. This makes it one of the most widely used engineering thermoplastics. The consumption of PC has increased exponentially; it is partly thanks to polycarbonate roofing becoming more popular, replacing glass, acrylic, and other similar materials thanks to its ease of installation, durability, the passage of safe light, excellent insulation, aesthetic appeal and availability of different varieties.

Through extrusion, it can be formed into different profiles with uniform cross-section or continuous length. Such products can be used for roofing applications. In most cases, this process can be categorized as a solid sheet, multiwall sheet and profile extrusion.

What are the different types of polycarbonate?

The variety of ways polycarbonate can be created is virtually limitless thanks to its flexible nature. Just a few of the different types include:

Clear
Abrasion-Resistant
Mirrored
Anti-Static
Bulletproof
Coloured/Tinted

What are the characteristics of polycarbonate?

Polycarbonates can maintain rigidity up to 140°C and toughness down to -20°C or, with special grades, even lower. The material is amorphous; therefore it displays excellent mechanical properties and high dimensional stability. It’s heat resistant up to 135°C and rated as slow-burning, plus special flame retardant grades exist, which pass several severe flammability tests.

Polycarbonate possesses impact resistance 250 times greater than that of glass while also exhibiting exceptional tensile strength. It doesn’t have to be clear, it can be tinted and coloured, or even made to reflect like a glass mirror, which thanks to polycarbonates’ high impact strength (up to 250 times greater than that of glass!), makes it perfect for destructive environments. It can even be made to be bulletproof, and in this case, is often referred to as bulletproof glass.

One of the downsides of the transparent sheeting is that it’s more susceptible to scratching than glass, however, there are abrasive resistant forms of polycarbonate that are specifically designed to address this and give it high abrasion resistance.

Some polycarbonate is made anti-static by coating it with a metal and plastic mixture that prevents the generation of static electricity and can provide excellent chemical resistance.

Polycarbonate is fully recyclable and provides an excellent yield for plastic recycling facilities. The usual process for recycling it is to sort, shred, wash and granulate and then compound ready for re-use. This is because thermoplastic materials become liquid at their melting point, then they can be cooled, and reheated again without significant degradation, allowing them to be easily injection molded and recycled. Whereas thermoset plastics can only be heated once. If you tried to heat them a second time it would simply burn.

Polycarbonate Sheets Manufacturing Process-

There are different techniques can be used to manufacture polycarbonate components; these may include injection molding, extrusion, blow molding, and thermoforming. The production of polycarbonate panels requires a series of steps, including:

Raw Material Preparation -The first step is preparing the polycarbonate resin by blending BPA with stabilizers and UV absorbers. This mixture is melted to form a homogenous liquid.
Extrusion -The molten polycarbonate resin is then fed into an extruder, which applies pressure and heat to further melt the material. The extruder consists of a screw that pushes the molten resin through a die, shaping it into a continuous sheet.
Cooling and Solidification -As the extruded polycarbonate sheet exits the die, it passes through a series of cooling rollers or a water bath to rapidly cool and solidify the material. This controlled cooling process helps prevent warping and ensures uniform thickness across the sheet.
Trimming and Finishing -After solidification, the polycarbonate sheet is trimmed to the desired dimensions. It may undergo additional processes like surface treatments (e.g., UV protection coating) or texturing for specific applications.
Quality Control -Throughout the manufacturing process, quality control measures are implemented to ensure final product meets the required standards. This includes checking for defects, verifying thickness and clarity, conducting various performance tests, etc.

Quality, Reliability, and Innovation - Your Polycarbonate Sheets Experts at Excelite Plastics, we go beyond being a supplier of clear roofing products.

With our expertise and dedication, we aim to support your projects and help you achieve success. Here's what you can expect when you choose our polycarbonate sheet solutions:

• Quality: We make it our goal to deliver high-quality products to our customers. Our polycarbonate sheets undergo stringent quality control measures at every stage of the manufacturing process. This ensures that our products meet the highest standards of durability, impact resistance, and optical clarity. With us, you can trust in the quality of our polycarbonate transparent sheet for roofs.
• Reliability: We value our customers and strive to be a reliable supplier to fulfill their project’s needs. You can rely on us to provide you with polycarbonate sheets of premium quality. Our team maintains a consistent supply chain and efficient production processes to ensure timely delivery of our products.
• Innovation: We are dedicated to continuous innovation in the field of polycarbonate sheet manufacturing. Therefore, we stay updated with the latest technological advancements and industry trends. This allows us to offer innovative solutions to cater to different industry needs. Whether it's developing new sheet profiles, incorporating advanced coatings, or exploring eco-friendly options, our experts bring innovative products and solutions to the market.

Moreover, our team is dedicated to assisting you in finding the perfect polycarbonate sheet solution for your construction project. With our customized options, we provide various polycarbonate thicknesses, colors, and finishes to match your preferences.

What is polycarbonate sheeting?

Polycarbonate sheeting is typically polycarbonate that has been formed into a sheet via injection molding, structural foam molding, extrusion, vacuum forming or blow molding.

What can polycarbonate sheeting are used for?

Thanks to its durability, weight and flexibility, polycarbonate is incredibly versatile and is used in a variety of markets, most noticeably in the automotive, glazing, electronic, business machine, optical media, medical, and lighting and appliance markets.

Polycarbonate sheeting has almost unlimited applications, here are just a few:

Conservatories, Canopies, Vertical glazing, Displays, Curved and Industrial Roof lights, Signage, Covered Walkways, Swimming Pool Covers, Insulation, Power Distribution, Connectors, Mobile Phones, Vehicle Dashboards, Cladding, Power Tools, Baby Bottles, Gym Mirrors, Riot Shields, Water Dispensers, Garden Equipment, Medical Applications, Sporting Goods, Train Windows, Bus Shelters, Traffic Lights

What are the different types of polycarbonate roof systems?

In regards to building, specifically roofing, polycarbonate sheeting comes in the form of twin-wall, multiwall, solid and corrugated sheets.

Twin-wall and multiwall polycarbonate sheets are the most widely used form of thermoplastics, often used for conservatories and lean-to roofs. Ideal for conservatories, canopies, vertical glazing, displays, roof lights, signage, walkways, swimming pool covers, insulation and more.

Solid polycarbonate sheets are thick for a solid and virtually unbreakable roofing system. This is ideal for protective screens, vertical glazing, bus shelters, windows and doors, train windows and riot shields. Solid Polycarbonate sheets deliver the transparency of glass, are UV protected on both faces and are ideal for skylights, helmets, security glazing, balustrades, balconies and more.

Corrugated polycarbonate sheets can be bent or folded into your desired design and can be layered on top of other sheets making it easier to fit the pieces of roofing sheets. These can be used for conservatories, signage, roofing, glazing, DIY, swimming pools, greenhouses and more.

What are the advantages of polycarbonate sheeting?

Polycarbonate sheeting can provide abrasion resistance, chemical protection, strength and impact resistance, UV protection, heat and flammability resistance, workability, transparency, and it’s recyclable.

The various layers that multiwall polycarbonate sheeting is made up from provide superb thermal insulation, as well as relatively good sound insulation.

Our wide range of polycarbonate sheeting is co-extruded with a UV protection layer, offers high levels of impact resistance, outstanding strength to weight ratio, superior insulation, high optical clarity, and is energy-saving, lightweight and easy to handle.

On special request, we can provide coloured sheeting, ideal for school canopies.