Sheffield Plastics Polycarbonate Sheet offering light weight and break resistance

Polycarbonate plastic products have a great blend of beneficial features which include temperature resistance, impact resistance and optical properties position polycarbonates between commodity plastics and engineering materials.
Polycarbonate is a very durable material. Although it has very high impact-resistance, it possesses lower scratch-resistance and so a hard coating can be applied to polycarbonate eye wear lenses and polycarbonate exterior motor vehicle equipment. The characteristics associated with polycarbonate tend to be comparable to those of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA, acrylic), and yet polycarbonate is definitely stronger, it is usable in a wider temperature range and is a bit more expensive. This plastic polymer is highly transparent to visible light and it has better light transmission characteristics than many kinds of glass.
Polycarbonate has a glass transition temperature of approximately 150 °C (302 °F), so it softens gradually above this point and flows above about 300°C (572 °F). Tools will have to be held at high temperatures, generally above 80 °C (176 °F) to help make strain- and reduced stress products.
Unlike almost all other thermoplastics, polycarbonate can undergo dramatic changes in basic shape without cracking or breaking. As a result, it is sometimes processed and formed   at room temperature using sheet metal techniques, such as forming bends on a brake. Even for sharp angle bends with a tight radius, no heating is usually necessary. This makes it valuable in prototyping applications where transparent or electrically non-conductive parts are required, which may not be made from sheet metal. Please keep in mind PMMA/Plexiglas, which happens to be similar in looks to polycarbonate, but is brittle and can't be bent unless it is heated.

The light weight of polycarbonate, unlike glass, has led to advancement of electronic display screens that replace the traditional glass with polycarbonate, for use in mobile and portable devices. Such displays include newer e-ink and several LCD screens, though CRT, plasma screen and other LCD technologies which still do require glass for its higher melting temperature and its ability to be etched with finer detail.
Other types of items manufactured from Polycarbonate include durable, lightweight luggage, MP3/digital audio player cases, computer cases, riot shields, instrument panels, and blender jars. Many toys and hobby goods are produced from polycarbonate parts, e.g. fins, gyro mounts, and flybar locks for use with radio-controlled helicopters.
For use in applications subjected to weathering or UV-radiation, a special surface treatment is needed. This either can be a coating (e.g. for improved abrasion resistance), or as a coextrusion for enhanced weathering resistance.
The Makrolon Polycarbonate is a thermoplastic that starts as a solid material in the form of small pellets. In a manufacturing process called injection molding, these small pellets are heated until they melt. The melted liquid polycarbonate is then rapidly injected into molds, compressed under high pressure and cooled to produce a finished product in a matter of minutes.

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