Quote:
Originally posted by bigben2k
A styrofoam cup dissolves quickly because it's very porous, and has lots of air in it. Put acetone against a hard plastic, like a PVC fitting, and it will only soften up, increasingly over time, until it gives (PVC will soften up, right?).
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Good call on the styrofoam cup thing. I've used acetone to dissolve small pieces of polystyrene, and it sure does take a while.
I *think* that poly(vinyl chloride) itself can withstand stuff like acetone, but other chemicals mixed with it to make the PVC piping we see don't stand up so well. I think it will break up the softeners so that PVC will actually become really hard and brittle instead of soft.
I've never worked with PVC, though, so maybe someone who's tried it might know better.
Also, any thermosetting polymer, like a real epoxy, should be able to withstand nearly any solvent.
Alchemy