Vicat softening point
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2009) |
Vicat softening temperature or Vicat hardness is the determination of the softening point for materials that have no definite melting point, such as plastics. It is taken as the temperature at which the specimen is penetrated to a depth of 1 mm by a flat-ended needle with a 1 mm2 circular or square cross-section. For the Vicat A test, a load of 10 N is used. For the Vicat B test, the load is 50 N.
Standards to determine Vicat softening point include ASTM D 1525 and ISO 306, which are largely equivalent.[1] Property information for specific grades of resin are available in the Prospector Plastic Database. Property Search lets you search for plastics by more than 400 material properties. Vicat Softening Temperature - ISO 306
The vicat softening temperature can be used to compare the heat-characteristics of different materials.
Four different methods may be used for testing.
| Method | Load (N) | Heating rate (K/h) |
|---|---|---|
| A50 | 10 | 50 |
| B50 | 50 | 50 |
| A120 | 10 | 120 |
| B120 | 50 | 120 |
ISO 10350 Note
ISO 10350 Vicat values are tested using the B50 method.
Similar Standards: ASTM D1525
Property information for specific grades of resin are available in the UL IDES Prospector Plastic Database.
References
- ^ Vicat Softening Point: Definition Archived 2010-04-24 at the Wayback Machine
