Polycarbonate plate (PC) is made of polycarbonate polymer with advanced formula and the latest extrusion technology. PC board is a new type of high-strength transparent material, and is the best material to replace glass and plexiglass. Compared with laminated glass, toughened glass, and insulating glass, PC board has excellent properties such as light weight, weather resistance, super strength, flame retardant, and sound insulation. Additionally, PC board can be used in applications requiring laser safe pexiglass for enhanced protection.The acrylic sheets are made of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) polymerized by methyl methacrylate monomer (MMA) and organic glass. While the Monport 40w CO2 laser excels at engraving various materials like wood, acrylic, and leather, it's not recommended for laser shield acrylic. Tempered glass is a safety glass treated to shatter into small, blunt pieces upon breakage, making it unsuitable for laser protection window purposes.
The laser engraving process can introduce stress points into the tempered glass, potentially causing it to break unexpectedly, posing a safety hazard, especially when considering laser safe plexiglass as alternatives, and black laser marking spray can be used to enhance the contrast and clarity of engravings on safer materials. Laser marking polycarbonate is a safer alternative to working with brittle glass during such processes. These two materials are generally used for the safety observation window of the laser engraving machine, but acrylic sheets cannot isolate and digest the heat generated by the high-power engraving machine during the engraving process. Acrylic sheets inevitably have fire safety problems to a certain extent. Therefore, Monport launches fireproof viewing windows to ensure the safety of engravers as much as possible.
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A Brief Introduction to Polycarbonate
Production process
The raw material of polycarbonate plate is polycarbonate. The production typically involves extrusion molding. For example, processing PC resin often uses imported extruders. Whether layering is single or double impacts the quality. When using laser shield acrylic, ensuring proper production processes is crucial for optimal material performance and laser protection window quality.
In the debate of polycarbonate vs acrylic laser safety, the manufacturing process of PC adds to its superior resilience and engraving safety, especially when enhanced with black laser marking spray or for traceability using laser marking polycarbonate techniques. This is why polycarbonate is often selected for laser protection window applications in industrial and home laser setups.
Product characteristics
Polycarbonate plates offer superior impact resistance, transparency, and flame resistance. They are lighter and more weather-resistant than other glass types. When evaluating polycarbonate vs acrylic laser safety, polycarbonate excels in industrial safety applications, particularly when used as a laser protection window material.
Bullet points:
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High impact resistance
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Comparable light transmission to glass
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Flame retardant (UL94V-0)
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Sound insulation and weather resistance
Black laser marking spray can be applied on polycarbonate to boost engraving contrast, making laser marking polycarbonate a safe and effective process even in demanding conditions and ensuring laser protection window clarity.
Material properties
Polycarbonate has five key advantages:
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Excellent wear resistance
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Strong UV protection
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High flame resistance
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Chemical resistance
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Durability in extreme temperatures
These make laser marking polycarbonate ideal for permanent markings in chemical and industrial settings. When discussing polycarbonate vs acrylic laser safety, PC clearly offers longer-lasting performance in laser environments, making it a top choice for laser protection window installations.
Application scope
Used in construction for skylights and roofs, polycarbonate replaces traditional glass due to its durability and transparency. In laser safety, this material offers safer alternatives to acrylic. For safety windows in engraving machines, polycarbonate vs acrylic laser safety should be evaluated carefully—polycarbonate being the preferred choice for its resistance to impact and heat, especially in laser protection window manufacturing.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of polycarbonate plate?
High strength
High strength includes the strength and impact strength of polycarbonate plate. Therefore, polycarbonate plate can also be used for positions with explosion-proof requirements. For example, we may have heard that explosion-proof glass is used in explosion-proof positions. In fact, polycarbonate plate can also replace explosion-proof glass in this aspect. In the process of laser engraving for laser shield acrylic, if there is something leaking out, it may cause a certain impact on the cover, that is, the cover will explode, so polycarbonate plate is also a good choice.
Strong flame retardancy
Polycarbonate has good impact resistance, high refractive index, good production and processing characteristics, and has UL94V-0 flame retardant grade without additives. PC has high heat resistance and cold resistance, and can be used for a long time at -60 to 120°C. It has no obvious melting point of 220-230°C, which is much higher than the melting point of general plastics. This makes polycarbonate an excellent material for applications requiring laser safe plexiglass, offering durability and protection in challenging environments, and black laser marking spray can be used to enhance the contrast and clarity of engravings on polycarbonate surfaces.
According to various research data, polycarbonate plate has very high flame retardancy during processing. It can still maintain good effect and performance in the fire. Therefore, it can effectively prevent the spread of fire. In fact, this advantage also indicates that this kind of plate may be gradually accepted in the market.
Good sound insulation effect
Polycarbonate endurance board has obvious sound insulation effect, and has better sound insulation than glass and subadditive board with the same thickness. Under the same thickness, the sound insulation capacity of polycarbonate board is 3-4db higher than that of glass.
High transparency
Because the abbreviation of polycarbonate is a high molecular polymer containing carbonate groups in the molecular chain. PC is an amorphous polymer in glass state with almost no color, so it has very good optical properties, that is, it is a transparent plate similar to glass. The transmittance of PC plate is higher than 87%.In laser cutting, it is convenient for the engraver to better observe the process and condition of engraving.
Disadvantages
The processing technology requirements are relatively high. The process requirements are relatively high. The polycarbonate plate is manufactured through the processing process of extrusion molding machine, and PC materials need to be extruded according to our requirements. At present, the extruder is basically imported. Therefore, the requirements for the production process are relatively high. In fact, the fundamental reason is that the melt viscosity of the material is relatively high and the fluidity is relatively poor. Therefore, the forming process is very difficult. This also determines that its price may remain relatively low.
Polycarbonate board has a biggest disadvantage that it is not resistant to chlorine hydrocarbon, alkali, ammonia, ketone and other media. If we choose polycarbonate plate, these materials may be easily corroded. Polycarbonate plate is generally not allowed to be used in the places of some chemical process products. In addition, the material of polycarbonate plate is easy to be corroded by chlorinated hydrocarbon materials such as dichloromethane and dichloroethane. In fact, this is also a defect of chemical products, but black laser marking spray can help enhance the durability and contrast of engravings on polycarbonate, provided the material is not exposed to corrosive substances.
Comparison of advantages between PMMA and PC
Different ingredients
Acrylic sheets are a special treatment of plexiglass and are a replacement product of plexiglass. PC board is mainly composed of polycarbonate and co-extrusion technology.
Different intensities
The impact resistance of acrylic sheets is strong, which is 16 times that of ordinary glass. It is suitable for installation in areas where safety is particularly required. The impact strength of PC plate is 250-300 times that of ordinary glass, 30 times that of acrylic sheets with the same thickness, and 2-20 times that of laser shield acrylic. The impact resistance of PC board is 8 to 10 times that of acrylic sheets.
Different transparency
Acrylic has good transparency, and PC board has high transparency, which is basically difficult to distinguish. Both are clear plastic. Under the same thickness and the same raw material particles, the light transmittance of acrylic sheet is 2-3% higher than that of PC, and both are close to 90%, which is difficult to distinguish with the naked eye.
Different flame retardancy
When burning acrylic, it will produce clear flames and bubbles without smoke. When the flame goes out, the filament can be pulled out. The PC board cannot be burned by fire because it is flame retardant and will emit some black smoke. In general, the acrylic plate is easy to soften when it reaches 70 ℃, while the PC is likely to soften when it faces 120 ℃, so the PC is more resistant to high temperature and the working temperature can be higher.
Different cleaning needs
During the transportation of laser shield acrylic, the surface protective film or protective paper shall not be scratched. When cleaning the acrylic sheets, only 1% soapy water can be used. Immerse the soft cotton cloth in soapy water. Do not use hard objects or dry wipes, or the surface will be easily scratched. However, due to the self-cleaning effect of polycarbonate plate, the dust is not easy to adhere. Besides the engraving industry, this is also the reason why building materials prefer to use it. Just rinse with clean water. It will help to take away dirty things and save you trouble and trouble, making it an ideal choice for laser safety window material applications, and black laser marking spray can be used to enhance engravings on these surfaces without affecting their self-cleaning properties.
Read More: How to Cut Polycarbonate with a CO2 Laser Cutting Machine
Final Thoughts
If you are having a hard time choosing laser window material, it is a good idea to contact your laser safe plexiglass officer to discuss it. If you do not have a laser safe plexiglass, you can contact us, or you can give us a call to discuss your laser system and which window is best. The most important thing is always safety. Thanks for reading, and stay safe! Additionally, using black laser marking spray can enhance your laser engraving projects, providing clear and precise markings.
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