A new equipment to measure the combined effects of humidity, temperature, mechanical stress and UV exposure on the creep behaviour of polymers

Creep properties of catalyst coated membranes for polymer electrolyte fuel cells

“…polymers. In addition to the temperature, creep strain is a function of the applied stress, time [18], and humidity [19,20]. In polymers, once the applied stress is released, a certain portion of the creep strain is recovered instantaneously followed by a gradual strain recovery due to the visco-elastic e visco-plastic nature of the material.…”

“…Maksimov et al [19] examined the creep properties of polyester below yield stress and showed that analogous to temperature, elevated humidity would increase the creep compliance [19]. Scaffaro et al [20] measured the creep behavior of Polyamide 6 under controlled environmental conditions. By increasing the humidity from 15% to 50%, they observed an increase in the initial creep rate although the final strain was similar [20].…”

“…Scaffaro et al [20] measured the creep behavior of Polyamide 6 under controlled environmental conditions. By increasing the humidity from 15% to 50%, they observed an increase in the initial creep rate although the final strain was similar [20]. They expressed that at 50% RH, in the early stages humidity acts as a plasticizer and facilitates chain slip in the amorphous phase.…”

“…They expressed that at 50% RH, in the early stages humidity acts as a plasticizer and facilitates chain slip in the amorphous phase. However, the increase in crystallinity due to the structural rearrangement caused by creep strain slows down the creep rate [20]. Launay et al [21] modeled non-linear mechanical response of cyclic creep and recovery in a polymer matrix composite of polyamide.…”

Viscoelastic Behavior of Polymer-Modified Cement Pastes: Insight from Downscaling Short-Term Macroscopic Creep Tests by Means of Multiscale Modeling

“…Creep tests on macroscopic polymer specimens revealed that the creep activity of polymers decreases with decreasing relative humidity to which the polymers are exposed [59][60][61]. The polymers within the cement pastes are also exposed to considerable decreases of the internal relative humidity, resulting from self-desiccation, i.e., from the water-consuming hydration reaction.…”