METHOD OF ACCELERATED AGING TESTS OF POLYMER WORKPIECES

The proposed method of accelerated aging tests of polymer workpieces consists in holding the samples of the workpiece material at temperatures within the range from a minimal temperature that is possible in the use of the workpieces to a maximal temperature when the physical and chemical properties of the material begin to change and determining the material characteristics that are used for estimating the state of the workpieces in storage and determining the allowable conditions and the period of the storage. For testing, at least two groups of the workpieces are selected. The samples of one of the groups are tested for determining the sensitivity of the material characteristics to parameters that characterize the storage conditions and the stability of these characteristics in storage. The samples of the other groups are held within the period that is equivalent to the storage period, at the minimal temperature that is possible in the use of the workpieces if the workpieces are made of material with increased activation energy or at the minimal temperature when the physical and chemical properties of the material begin to change if the workpieces are made of material with decreased activation energy. Than these samples are held at a normal temperature and tested according to the test procedure provided for the samples of the first group.