Advantages of PVC Sheet

    PVC sheet has good hardness and mechanical properties
    Good electrical insulating properties
    Very high chemical & moisture resistance
    Excellent forming characteristics
    Good dimensional stability
    Bondable and an excellent for welding
    Self-extinguishing
    Fairly inexpensive

Disadvantages of PVC Sheet

    The heat stability of PVC isn’t great– when the temperature reaches 140 °C PVC starts to decompose and its melting temperature is 160 °C
    PVC is an engineering plastic with good insulation properties but its electrical insulating property aren’t quite as good as plastics such as polyethylene and polypropylene
    It’s generally only suitable for medium or low voltage and low frequency insulation materials

How it performs
Most products made with PVC are long lasting – up to and over 60 years. Because of this reliability throughout their service lives, maintenance or repair is reduced significantly.  It is the most widely used plastic in building and construction applications. PVC is resistant to oxidation and degradation and its inherent chlorine content gives it excellent fire resistance.

What is PVC Sheet used for?
Common applications include chemical processing tanks, valves, fittings & piping systems. In addition, other applications include:                

    Cladding
    Electrical insulators
    Acid tanks
    Templates
    Fabricated fittings
    Battery boxes

Why not to use PVC Sheet?
PVC sheet should not be used for components that need very high wear resistance or will come into continuous contact with food products or maybe items requiring a lot of flexibility, low friction, or high temperature resistance.

Machining characteristics
PVC is quite hard and machines pretty well leaving a nice machined finish. If possible use double edged milling cutters. When sawing using a circular saw, use saw blades with hard metal-inserted teeth and a tooth spacing of 10 to 20 mm as this has been found to be especially effective.

Is PVC Sheet easy to bond with adhesives?
Gluing PVC is pretty easy and there are quite a few compatible adhesives. Solvent cements and contact adhesives all work fine as does super glue. High frequency welding (gluing) is possible.

Food applications suitability
PVC sheet is not currently FDA approved.

Does PVC Sheet have any wear resistance?
PVC sheet exhibits mediocre resistance to wear and abrasion in comparison to Nylon and UHMWPE. PVC is pretty tough though although becomes more brittle as the temperature falls below zero.

Chemical resistance
In general, PVC is suitable to withstand most strong acids, alkalis, aqueous solutions that are not strongly oxidising, aliphatic hydro carbons, fluorides, photographic and plating solutions, brine, mineral oils, fats and alcohols. However it should not normally be used with aldehydes and ketones, ethers, cyclic ethers, esters and aromatic and chlorinated hydrocarbons, nitro compounds, some petrol / benzene mixtures and similar solvents which lead to a marked swelling and softening of the material.

Unique characteristics
PVC pipes have been analyzed after in-ground use for over 35 years and have shown no detectable corrosion or degradation and have been estimated to possess an additional 50 years of service life.

Trade names (also known as):
Simona®
Veka®
Vintec®
Corzan®

Size range, colours and availability
Our PVC sheets are available in grey colour and in thickness ranging from 1.5mm up to and including 50mm.

Why should you choose PVC Sheet?
PVC sheet is an extremely durable material that is much stronger than some other plastics. It can typically withstand impacts many times that which completely shatter components made of Acrylic or Styrene, for example. PVC is extremely chemical resistant and resists attack or degradation from a wide range of chemicals, making it the material of choice in many tough industrial applications.

Summary
PVC sheet is a durable, tough material that is resistant to chemicals, acids, weather and abrasion. It can be machined and tooled into a vast variety of shapes and components. It is strong yet relatively lightweight, affordable and widely available. While it has a low melting point in comparison to other plastics, this is a great advantage to fabricators. It has a very good fire rating as its self extinguishing.