Plastic LCP GF30 vs. Plywood

Compare Plastic LCP GF30 vs. Plywood strength, stiffness, weight and thermal properties.

Plastic LCP GF30Bulk polymer (molded or machined)

Mechanical	Plastic LCP GF30	Plywood
Yield strength	not given (tensile used)	not given (tensile used)
Ultimate tensile strength	tensile strength115MPa1	modulus of rupture41.4MPa2
Flexural strength	184MPa14.45x stronger in bending	static bending MOR41.4MPa2
Elongation at break	tensile elongation1.5%1	not sourced
Young's modulus (stiffness)	tensile modulus11.5GPa11.54x stiffer	7.45GPa2
Density	1,610kg/m³1	not sourced
Strength to weight	71.4kN·m/kg	not sourced
Stiffness to weight	7.14MN·m/kg	not sourced
Poisson's ratio	not sourced	not sourced
Shear modulus	not sourced	not sourced
Bulk modulus	not sourced	not sourced
Speed of sound	2,673m/s	not sourced

Stiffness against densityHigher and further left: stiffer for its weight

Strength against densityHigher and further left: stronger for its weight

Thermal	Plastic LCP GF30	Plywood
Thermal conductivity	hot disk0.5W/m·K1	0.12W/m·K3
Thermal expansion	flow direction20µm/m·K1	base material3.1–4.5µm/m·K4
100 mm part over a 50 °C swing	100µm growth	19µm growth5.26x less
Specific heat	ASTM E1269839J/kg·K1	base material1,700J/kg·K42.03x higher
Heats up and cools (diffusivity)	0.37mm²/s	not sourced
Thermal shock resistance	not sourced	not sourced
Max service temperature	HDT 1.8 MPa288°C1	not sourced

Thermal conductivity against densityHigher and further left: spreads more heat for its weight

Thermal expansion against thermal conductivityLower and further right: warps less when heated

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Sources4 documents: Sumitomo Chemical, USDA Forest Products Laboratory

Plastic LCP GF30: Sumitomo Chemical SUMIKASUPER LCP E6006L (30% glass fibre; high strength, low shrinkage); SUMIKASUPER LCP Technical Note, Version 04 / Nov. 2023, typical values.
Plywood: Douglas-fir plywood sheathing (construction plywood per PS 1), static bending properties from USDA FPL Wood Handbook FPL-GTR-282 Ch. 12 Table 12-2 (Biblis 2000)

1
SUMIKASUPER LCP Technical Note, Version 04 (2023)Sumitomo Chemicalarchived copyPlastic LCP GF30 · Ultimate tensile strength: tensile strength (ISO 527)Plastic LCP GF30 · Flexural strength: typical (ISO 178)Plastic LCP GF30 · Elongation at break: tensile elongation (ISO 527)Plastic LCP GF30 · Young's modulus (stiffness): tensile modulus (ISO 527)Plastic LCP GF30 · Density: typicalPlastic LCP GF30 · Thermal conductivity: hot disk (ISO 22007-2), temperature not statedPlastic LCP GF30 · Thermal expansion: flow direction (MD), mean 50-150 °CPlastic LCP GF30 · Specific heat: ASTM E1269, temperature not statedPlastic LCP GF30 · Max service temperature: HDT 1.8 MPa (ISO 75)
2
Wood Handbook (FPL-GTR-282), Chapter 12: Mechanical Properties of Wood-Based Composite MaterialsUSDA Forest Products LaboratoryPlywood · Ultimate tensile strength: modulus of rupture (no direct tensile value)Plywood · Flexural strength: static bending MOR (Douglas-fir); range 33.72-42.61 across speciesPlywood · Young's modulus (stiffness): static bending MOE of the panel (Douglas-fir); range 6.96-8.55 across species
3
Thermal Properties of Wood and Wood Panel Products for Use in Buildings (1988)USDA Forest Products Laboratoryarchived copyPlywood · Thermal conductivity: APA-recommended design value (Douglas-fir plywood), as reported by FPL/ORNL
4
Wood Handbook (FPL-GTR-282), Chapter 4: Moisture Relations and Physical Properties of WoodUSDA Forest Products LaboratoryPlywood · Thermal expansion: base material: solid wood parallel to grain, ovendry, range across speciesPlywood · Specific heat: base material: solid wood (all species), 12% MC, 27 C

Each number points to the document that states it, with the exact basis. Values without a number are computed from the sourced ones. "Not sourced" means no citable source states it (or only a specification minimum); figures computed from it are left out too.

Questions

Mechanical

Is Plastic LCP GF30 stronger than Plywood?

Plastic LCP GF30 is stronger: its tensile strength is 115 MPa against 41.4 MPa for Plywood (2.78x).

Which is stiffer, Plastic LCP GF30 or Plywood?

Plastic LCP GF30 is stiffer: Young's modulus 11.5 GPa against 7.45 GPa for Plywood, so the same part in Plastic LCP GF30 deflects less under the same load.

Thermal

Which conducts heat better, Plastic LCP GF30 or Plywood?

Plastic LCP GF30 conducts heat better: 0.5 W/m·K against 0.12 W/m·K for Plywood.

Which expands less with temperature?

Plywood expands less: 3.8 µm/m·K against 20 µm/m·K for Plastic LCP GF30.