Evaluation of the economic feasibility of core-shell baroplastic polymers and a comparison to traditional thermoplastic elastomers

Abstract

Baroplastic materials are pressure miscible systems that can be molded by the application of pressure at low/room temperature. They have the potential to replace traditional thermoplastic elastomers in many applications. To quantitatively determine the competitiveness of baroplastic materials in current markets, a detailed cost model was developed. Embedded in the cost model is a polymer flow model that predicts processing times as a function of processing pressure. The raw material cost of baroplastics was roughly estimated to input into the cost model. The results of the cost model show that baroplastics have a significant economic advantage over thermoplastic elastomers due, mostly, to the greatly reduced cycle times associated with processing baroplastic materials. Recommendations for future work include developing a more refined estimate of the raw material price of baroplastics as well as investigating the costs of more specific applications.