Investigation of the effects of deep cryogenic treatment on the structural and mechanic properties of polyoxymethylene copolymer (POM-C) materials

Abstract

Polyoxymethylene is used as an engineering material in many fields such as aircraft, aviation, and automotive industries in today due to its thermal resistance and mechanical properties. In this study, it is aimed to investigate the effects on the mechanical and structural properties of polyoxymethylene copolymer (POM-C) materials, which are used in many different industrial applications, by applying cryogenic treatment. For this purpose, deep cryogenic treatment was applied to the prepared samples at −175°C for 6, 12, 18, and 24 h, and then tensile, abrasion, impact, and hardness tests were applied to the samples that were kept at room temperature. In order to understand the changes in micro and crystal structures, XRD (X-Ray Diffraction), SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope), and FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared Radiation) analyzes were performed, and based on these analyzes, the differences in the structure of the POM-C material were compared. It was observed that there was no improvement in the tensile strength of the deep cryogenically treated samples, but an increase in hardness and impact strength was detected.