What is the difference between XPS and polystyrene board EPS?
What is the difference between XPS and polystyrene board EPS?table of Contents:
Chapter 1 Raw Materials
Chapter 2 Production Process
Chapter 3 Material Properties
Chapter IV Scope of Application
Let's get to know EPS and XPS first.
Polystyrene board, also known as EPS board, benzene board, foam board, expandable polystyrene foam board, English full name: expanded polystyrene board, English abbreviation: EPS.
Extruded board, also known as XPS board, extruded polystyrene board, extruded polystyrene foam board, English full name: extruded polystyrene board, English abbreviation: XPS.
Chapter 1 Raw Materials
Polystyrene foam is divided into two types: intumescent EPS and continuous extrusion XPS. That is to say, both extruded board and polystyrene board are produced with polystyrene resin as raw material.
Polystyrene (PS)
It is a colorless and transparent thermoplastic with a glass transition temperature higher than 100°C, so it is often used to make various disposable containers that need to withstand the temperature of boiling water, and disposable foam lunch boxes.
Polystyrene (PS) is divided into: general polystyrene (GPPS), expanded polystyrene (EPS), high impact polystyrene (HIPS) and syndiotactic polystyrene (SPS).
Chapter 2 Production Process
Both have foaming in the production process, the extruded board is continuously extruded and the polystyrene board is moulded.
Polystyrene board
The low-boiling liquid foaming agent is added to the polystyrene beads, and then the expandable polystyrene products are prepared through pre-hairing, aging, shaping, drying and cutting.
It can be used to make foam plastic products with different densities and shapes, and can also produce foam boards of various thicknesses, which are widely used in construction, packaging, daily necessities, industrial supplies and other fields.
Production process and equipment of polystyrene board:
Extruded board
A polystyrene, foaming agent and other additives are continuously extruded through an extruder to form a foaming material.
XPS has a perfect closed-cell honeycomb mechanism, and its structure has a closed-cell rate of over 99%, with extremely low water absorption rate (almost no water absorption) and thermal conductivity.
Chapter 3 Material Properties
Extruded board and polystyrene board have the same raw materials, so there are many similarities in material properties.
For example, compressive strength, thermal conductivity, flame retardancy, temperature and weather resistance, specific heat capacity, linear expansion coefficient, impact strength, dimensional stability, apparent density, etc.
The density can be made from dozens of KG/m³ to tens of KG/m³, the corresponding compression resistance is 100KPA to hundreds of KPA, flame retardant B3-B1. When the density is 15-40KG/m³, the thermal conductivity is 0.028-0.040W/m·k.
Due to the different material structure of the two, there are also differences in performance, such as open porosity, water absorption, and moisture permeability coefficient.
The extruded board is a perfect honeycomb structure, with a closed cell rate of over 99%, which is better than polystyrene board. This also causes the extruded board to be air-tight, the coefficient of moisture permeability is low, and the water absorption rate is also lower.
Chapter IV Scope of Application
Polystyrene board
Widely used in construction, thermal insulation, packaging, freezing, daily necessities, industrial casting and other fields. It is also used to display venues, merchandise cabinets, advertising signs and toys. In order to meet the national building energy saving requirements, it is mainly used for external insulation of external walls, internal insulation of external walls, and floor heating.
Extruded board
Widely used in building roof insulation, floor heating insulation, steel structure roof, building wall insulation, building ground moisturizing, square ground, ground frost heave control, central air conditioning ventilation ducts, airport runway insulation, high-speed railway subgrade, etc.
XPS extruded board and EPS polystyrene board are basically brothers with the same father (raw material) and half mother (production process), so there are certain mutual substitutions in many application fields. The pictures above are all floor heating insulation materials.
For example, in the field of building insulation, floor heating insulation, freezing transportation and other insulation. Because EPS is molded, it can be made into a special shape, which is more advantageous in the packaging field. Because XPS structure is more perfect, it has more advantages in the fields of high compression fill, airport runway, railway subgrade and so on.
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