One of the main concerns for builders and consumers when they are looking to purchase fencing, decking or railing materials is how well the product will withstand the elements year after year. Aside from aesthetics, the value that is added by a product that has already proven it can withstand extreme heat and freezing cycles, without losing performance expectations is tremendous.
For manufacturers of outdoor building materials, knowing how a material will react to heat build-up, ultraviolet radiation and other outdoor exposure conditions is vital. Choosing capstocks that have been proven to last, through extensive weathering testing and in accordance to industry standards (ASTM methods), means you can be assured the materials you’ve chosen to produce your product will meet your performance expectations.
Teknor Apex has developed a weathering program composed of four different testing methods that exposes our compounds to environmental stresses.
Our weathering program includes:
QUV Testing
This machine runs accelerated simulation tests to show how shortwave UV rays from continuous sun exposure will affect a polymer. It also simulates other naturally occurring circumstances such as dew, condensation, rain exposure (moisture and water spray effects) and humidity. The machine is carefully calibrated to allow for accelerated weathering, so what would typically take months or years of real-world testing can be done in a much shorter timeframe, with results comparable to what they would be in the field. Compounds are examined to see if there is damage including color changes, chalking, cracking, crazing, hazing, loss of glossiness, brittleness, blistering, oxidation and overall strength of the material.
Xenon ARC Testing
Like the QUV testing apparatus, a Xenon weatherometer simulates exposure to UV light from the sun. It is useful for testing color retention in dyes, inks, pigments and materials that may be indirectly exposed to sunlight on a regular basis. It is also able to perform humidity stability testing for materials that are sensitive to moisture.
Environmental Weathering Chamber
The Environmental Weathering Chamber tests a product’s durability by exposing it to significant changes in temperature and humidity levels.
Outdoor Field Weathering Sites
Teknor Apex runs field testing at 5 sites across the US. Real-time, natural weathering testing and data collection is on-going. This testing typically runs for 2 to 5 years, but it can run much longer in some instances. We continually monitor how our compounds perform in natural settings over long periods of time. Our test sites are located in Arizona, Ohio, North Carolina, New Jersey and Florida. Having sites across the country, in different locations, allows us to test in a variety of conditions – high ultraviolet exposure, extreme heat with temperature fluctuations, subtropical humidity, as well as areas that see sustained spans of cold or dry air throughout the year. We can test compound specimens, as well as our customer’s finished goods, as prescribed by industry standards. (NJ not represented in image below)
Weather being unpredictable and not an exact science, we have found using this combination of weathering tests very helpful in determining how our compounds will perform over time. Our extensive weathering data provides our customer’s with insight into the performance of our materials.
Teknor Apex will work with you to guide you to the right weatherable capstock or mono-profile compound that will perform the way you expect it to for your specific needs.
With our extensive market knowledge and years of documented weathering data to prove what our compounds can achieve, we are confident we offer the best selection of highly weatherable polymer compounds in the industry.
Please contact the Vinyl Division for more information.
