Estimation of Tensile Modulus of a Thermoplastic Material from Dynamic Mechanical Analysis: Application to Polyamide 66

The mechanical properties of thermoplastic materials depend on temperature and strain rate. This study examined the development of a procedure to predict tensile moduli at different strain rates and temperatures, using experimental data from three-point-bending dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). The method integrated different classical concepts of rheology to establish a closed formulation that will allow researchers save an important amount of time. Furthermore, it implied a significant decrease in the number of tests when compared to the commonly used procedure with a universal testing machine (UTM). The method was validated by means of a prediction of tensile moduli of polyamide PA66 in the linear elastic range, over a temperature range that included the glass-transition temperature. The method was applicable to thermo-rheologically simple materials under the hypotheses of isotropy, homogeneity, small deformations, and linear viscoelasticity. This method could be applicable to other thermoplastic materials, although it must be tested using these other materials to determine to what extent it can be applied reliably.