Vicat Softening Point Apparatus

Vicat Softening Point Apparatus - Vicat softening temperature of plastics is the temperature at which a standard flat-ended indenter penetrates one millimeter into the surface of the material under test under a specified load. The test is conducted by placing a test specimen taken from the sample under test on a flat platform inside a liquid bath and applying compression load over its upper face through a flat-ended indenter. The load is applied by placing a dead weight on the upper end of the indenter. After the test specimen attains the temperature of the bath, the bath temperature is increased gradually till the indenter penetrates by exactly 1 mm into the test specimen. The bath temperature in ºC at which this happens is reported as the Vicat Softening Temperature of the sample under test. The Vicat Softening Point Apparatus (High Temperature Model) consists of a specimen support, weights, a deflection measuring device, and an immersion bath. The specimen support consists of a circular supporting plate on which the specimen is kept and a loading plate having a bush for guiding a vertical rod carrying a hardened indenting tip. The two plates are joined together with spacer rods of same material (brass) as indenting rod so that they have identical co-efficient of linear expansion.