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Changes in properties of PVC compounds upon weathering are categorized as due to physical aging or due to chemical change. PVC's tensile strength, flexural strength, tensile modulus, and flexural modulus generally rise slightly with weathering. DSC data on weathered samples show an annealing effect identical to physical aging. The impact strength of weathered PVC is substantially lower than expected from physical aging. Molecular weight of PVC on the weathered surface is lowered upon weathering. Thus the loss of impact strength of PVC upon weathering is mainly due to chemical change.
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Rabinovitch et al. (1993) studied this question.
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