Difference Between Glyptal and Dacron

The key difference between Glyptal and Dacron is that Glyptal is a thermosetting polymer, whereas Dacron is a thermoplastic polymer.

Both Glyptal and Dacron are polymer materials. These are trade names of polymers. They have different chemical compositions and properties, as well. Therefore, their applications in industries also differ from each other.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Glyptal
3. What is Dacron
4. Side by Side Comparison – Glyptal vs Dacron in Tabular Form
5. Summary

What is Glyptal?

Glyptal is a type of alkyd that contains polyester with fatty acids. Glyptal is the trade name of the polymer material that is made from glycerol and phthalic acid. Glyptal can be used as a substitute for dark-coloured Copal resins. Glyptal can form alkyd varnishes with pale colours. However, Glyptal is an older version of the alkyds that we use today. The major use of Glyptal is as a surface coating agent. Moreover, it is used as a binding material, cement, etc.

This polymer material does not occur naturally; it is a synthetic polymer. We can categorize it as a cross-linked polymer because it has a network structure with many crosslinks between polymer chains. These polymer chains are made of glycerol molecules. According to its properties, Glyptal is a thermosetting polymer.

What is Dacron?

Dacron is is the trade name of polyethylene terephthalate. This trade name is used mainly in the US. Sometimes, it is abbreviated as PET or PETE. It is the most common member of the thermoplastic polymers among polyesters. Also, this polymer material is very useful in the production of fibres for clothing, containers for the storage of food and beverage, production of resins, etc. Dacron polymer material contains units of ethylene terephthalate monomers linked to each other via polymerization. The repeating unit is C₁₀H₈O₄. Moreover, we can recycle this material easily.

Usually, we can categorize Dacron as a semicrystalline material. But, it may occur in an amorphous state as well. Therefore, it can exist in both opaque and transparent states. Naturally, it is a colourless material, and it can be rigid or semi-rigid depending on the method of production. However, it is very lightweight. Apart from that, this material makes a proper barrier for moisture and solvents. Besides, the most known characteristic feature of Dacron is its intrinsic viscosity.

What is the Difference Between Glyptal and Dacron?

Both Glyptal and Dacron are polymer materials. These are trade names of polymers. They have different chemical compositions and properties as well. Therefore, their applications in industries also differ from each other. The key difference between Glyptal and Dacron is that Glyptal is a thermosetting polymer, whereas Dacron is a thermoplastic polymer. Also, Glyptal is made from glycerol and phthalic acid while Dacron is made from ethylene terephthalate.

Moreover, Glyptal is useful as a surface coating agent, binding material, cement, etc. Dacron, on the other hand, is useful in the production of fibres for clothing, containers for the storage of food and beverage, production of resins, etc.

Below is a summary table of the difference between Glyptal and Dacron.

Summary – Glyptal vs Dacron

Both Glyptal and Dacron are polymer materials. These are trade names of polymers. They have different chemical compositions and properties as well. Therefore, their applications in industries also differ from each other. The key difference between Glyptal and Dacron is that Glyptal is a thermosetting polymer, whereas Dacron is a thermoplastic polymer.

Reference:

1. “Alkyd.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 2 Dec. 2018, Available here.
2. “Dacron Polyester.” Dacron Polyester – an Overview | ScienceDirect Topics, Available here.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Glyptal” By Smokefoot – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Polyethyleneterephthalate” By Schippmeister – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia