Polyamide 4,6, (PA4,6)

Abstract

Polyamide (PA) or nylon is one of the engineering plastics employed in many engineering components. Various kinds of PA such as PA6, PA6,6, and PA4,6 are available in the market. Among the various kinds of PAs, PA4,6 is a new engineering plastic. PA4,6 is a type of PA prepared from tetramethylenediamine and adipic acid. PA4,6 has a high content of amide groups, a high flexibility of polymer chains, and a symmetric chain structure. Owing to these characteristic features, melting temperature, rate of crystallization, and crystallinity of PA4,6 are higher than that of PA6 and PA6,6 polymers. Therefore, PA4,6 gives excellent properties at high temperatures such as high stiffness, high creep resistance, high thermal stability, good toughness, and high fatigue resistance. In addition, PA4,6 shows better chemical resistance to acidic salts, methanol, mineral salts, oils, and greases. Excellent mechanical properties at high temperatures, low friction, excellent resistance to wear, and excellent chemical resistance of PA4,6 make this polymer a good candidate for the broad range of technical applications such as electrical, electronic, and automotive industries. Therefore, in this chapter, the studies about polymerization, properties, chemical stability, processing, and applications of PA4,6 were presented. The blends, composites, and nanocomposites of PA4,6 with other polymers were also mentioned in the current chapter. Environmental impact and recycling possibility of PA4,6 polymer were also presented.