Polyvinyl chloride is transparent and has a slight bluish tint. When blended with phthalate ester plasticizers, PVC becomes soft and pliable, providing the useful tubing to be found in every well-equipped laboratory. It is used for several small caps and plugs on filtration and ultracentrifuge ware products. These resins offer exceptional strength and durability in demanding lab applications. For specific uses, they are superior to the polyolefins.
Typical products are centrifuge ware, filterware and safety shields.
It is produced by polymerization of formaldehyde. Acetal retains its dimensions and other properties at elevated temperatures. It offers excellent resistance to most organic solvents and fair to good resistance to strong acids and bases. Reinforced with glass fibers for increased stiffness when molded into test tube racks. It is autoclavable, nontoxic and the toughest of all thermoplastics.