Plastics & Polymers
for your next build.

In the simplest terms, a polymer is a substance made up of many repeating units. You can think of it as a chain, where each individual link is a "mer"—a basic chemical unit composed of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and/or silicon. When these links are hooked together chemically, the process is called polymerisation.

Thermosets (traditionally referred to as Duroplastics) are polymers that undergo a permanent chemical change while they are being formed. They react through processes called polycondensation and cross-linking to create a rigid, three-dimensional lattice structure.

No. The process of forming a thermoset is called curing, which involves an irreversible structural change at the molecular level. Once a thermoset plastic has achieved its final shape, it cannot be melted down, reformed, or recycled into a new shape.

Common examples of thermosets include:

• Polyester resins
• Epoxies
• Polyurethanes
• Silicones
• Phenolic resins, melamines, and urea resins