Many people have heard of PVC piping, but not many know what it’s all about; like that PVC stands for polyvinyl chloride for instance! Since the industrial revolution, and even before then, PVC has been making appearances all throughout history. There are literally thousands of different things that can be manufactured with use of raw PVC, including ceiling tiles, portable electronics, pipes, and signs. One need look no further than the price and easy manipulation of the PVC material to find out why it has become so popular. PVC has completely taken over industries, many having to do with construction, and has saved workers as well as customers a lot of time and money. It is just so easy to deal with, and the tallahassee custom extrusion process has come such a long way that it only takes a few minutes to complete! In fact, it is estimated that by 2016, plastic production of the PVC material will rise above at least 40 million tons!

As can be expected, PVC is made up of a vinyl polymer, consisting of dense groups of vinyl known as ethenyls. The chemical structure of the vinyl groups change, allowing for one of the vinyl’s hydrogen groups to be replaced with chloride. After the discovery of plasticizing PVC, or adding additives in order to make the material more flexible, the applications for the material increased tenfold. This plasticizing was largely responsible for why it climbed to the third most widely used plastic in America.

Plasticizers allow PVC piping to be used in a much wider range of products, such as clothing, fabrics, hoses, and electrical cable insulation. A typical plasticizer for manufacturers to use in order to make the PVC this way is one by the name of phthalates. PVC treated by this plasticizer is also commonly used with things like waterbeds, pool toys, and a variety of inflatable objects. There are truly so many possibilities when it comes to polyvinyl chloride, and the work of so many individuals has led to some really great innovations!

PVC has to go through a process to become what it is, often referred to as polymerization, and specifically the polymerization of VCM, or vinyl chloride monomer. Most manufacturers of the PVC material put it through a type of polymerization called suspension polymerization. In order to go about this, they must place raw VCM in a machine which takes it through a series of steps including intense pressure, heating, and shaping of the raw material. It is then taken out of the machine and put into a cooling container in order to retain its shape.

PVC was actually first discovered by mistake in at least two recorded instances during the 1800’s. In 1835, Henri Victor Regnault, and in 1872, Eugen Baumann discovered that after leaving the material vinyl chloride out in the sunlight for an extended period of time, it developed hard white flakes/chunks. Nobody furthered the testing of this material until the early 20th century, when two men tried to manipulate the product. Russian Ivan Omstromislensky and German Fritz Klatte both tried and failed to manipulate it because it was just too difficult to work with.

In 1926, the idea to plasticize the PVC by using additives in order to make it easier to manipulate was coined by Waldo Semon with help from the B.F. Goodrich Company. Finally, the material had reached the point where it could be manufactured from a commercial standpoint, and with the industrial revolution it flourished. Companies made several jumps in the industry, creating so many products out of PVC that could have never been thought possible. Even in light of all this, the applications of PVC continue to flourish.

The product most often created out of PVC would have to be piping, which unsurprisingly makes up more than half of all polyvinyl chloride production. PVC pipes have been hugely adopted by such industries as sanitary sewer construction and water distribution. In addition to its being light weight and low-priced, its quite easy to connect PVC piping, to run great distances underground. It’s also extremely durable, so the piping can stay good for decades before having to be replaced.

As well as the wide use of window shutters, polyvinyl chloride shows up in so many other products that we have become extremely familiar with. For example, many advertising signs, and things on vehicles (such as stripes) employ the use of PVC. During the manufacturing process, it can be flattened, expanded, and dyed for almost no additional cost. Then this form of PVC is cut by a computer-controlled machine and sold in mass quantity.

So, it’s obvious that miami plastic extrusion goes on around us and we either don’t notice, or we just don’t choose to. Just because we have nothing to do with the installation of storm shutters doesn’t mean we wouldn’t be lost without them. Trusted plastic product manufacturers deserve way more credit than is given to them!

– Elijah Mort