Date of Award

Spring 5-2019

Degree Type

Honors College Thesis

Department

Polymers and High Performance Materials

First Advisor

Heather Broadhead

Second Advisor

Sarah Morgan

Advisor Department

Polymers and High Performance Materials

Abstract

The technique of dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) has been a frontrunner in the field of polymer science for decades. It’s used as a tool for characterization has been integral in mankind’s understanding of the properties of polymeric materials. The procedure for obtaining data using DMA is widespread and standardized, however the procedure for preparing the samples is a list of dimensions and tolerances with no mention of how to obtain said dimensions. Every research group using DMA is left to their own devices to prepare samples. This discontinuity can create the problem of nonuniform results across the scientific community. This thesis tackles the issue of disjointed DMA sample preparation and investigates a novel method which can be used to standardize and expediate DMA sample preparation in the future.

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