Temperature and Strain-Rate Dependence of the Tensile Yield Stress of PVC

SYNOPSIS Data on the tensile yield behavior of poly(viny1 chloride) (PVC), reported in the literature, are interpreted in terms of a model involving a cooperative movement of several independent structural units, all with the same activation enthalpy. This analysis leads to physical parameters such as the internal stress, activation volume, and enthalpy, etc. These values are discussed and compared with those determined from thermodynamical considerations using stress relaxation tests and tensile curves at a constant strain rate. 0 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.