Which plastics are sunlight-resistant?

[Paul Ciszek]

A guy I know is looking for a good sun-resistant plastic for a
homemade radome. This is in Colorado, where the UV is extra-brutal.
Since he isn't using it for solar collection, transparency is not an
issue. However, the usual method of making a plastic light-resistant
is to add carbon black, which makes the plastic absorb in the RF
range. I figure if anyone knows which plastics hold up to sunlight,
these two newsgroups would.

 

[SJC]

A guy I know is looking for a good sun-resistant plastic for a
homemade radome. This is in Colorado, where the UV is extra-brutal.
Since he isn't using it for solar collection, transparency is not an
issue. However, the usual method of making a plastic light-resistant
is to add carbon black, which makes the plastic absorb in the RF
range. I figure if anyone knows which plastics hold up to sunlight,
these two newsgroups would.

You could ask plastic distributors, they have application groups.
It is my understanding that acrylic is reasonably UV resistant.
http://sdplastics.com/

 

[TKM]

You could ask plastic distributors, they have application groups.
It is my understanding that acrylic is reasonably UV resistant.
http://sdplastics.com/

Yes. Acrylic is the long-time favorite of the plastic sign industry for
long service life. Sign companies or plastic distributors in your area can
help you since they are familiar with local conditions. Other plastics,
such as polycarbonates (GE "Lexan") also come in various forms some of which
are UV stabilized.

TKM

 

[[email protected]]

... acrylic has a natural UV resistance, just about everything else must
be stabilized. And the great thing is that acrylice is so available!

Does it come thin, in 0.01 inch x 4-foot wide rolls, like polycarbonate?

Degusa twinwall acrylic seems to last a lot longer than Therma-glas Plus
twinwall polycarbonate ($11 vs $2/ft^2), with better transmission and
U-value, but it seems to cost 5X more ($11 vs $2/ft^2 or less), partly
because it comes from Germany.

Nick