Study of the thermal effects in the necking of polymers with the use of an infrared camera

When a polymer specimen yields under tension by the process of cold-drawing, heat is generated in the necking region. This beating effect has been studied in polycarbonate, polyethylene, polypropylene, and PVC with the use of a thermovision system which produces a real time thermal image of the necking specimen. In this way it was possible to observe the temperature distribution over the surface of the neck and to show that at least 85% of the mechanical work done on the specimen during necking was converted into heat. A semiempirical equation relating the maximum temperature to the drawing rate has been derived.