Naked Science Forum

Non Life Sciences => Chemistry => Topic started by: thedoc on 15/05/2015 20:50:01

Title: How can I dissolve polystyrene?
Post by: thedoc on 15/05/2015 20:50:01

Danny asked the Naked Scientists:
   
What cheap solvent can I use to dissolve polystyrene to make another usable material?
What do you think?

Title: Re: How can I dissolve polystyrene?
Post by: chris on 15/05/2015 21:32:32

I'd imagine that petrol would work extremely well...

Title: Re: How can I dissolve polystyrene?
Post by: chiralSPO on 15/05/2015 21:39:02

Acetone works very well for dissolving polystyrene, relatively non-toxic, and fairly easy to remove from the polystyrene (you can do this by evaporation outside or in a well ventilated area). It may also be possible to remove the acetone with water (acetone is very soluble in water but polystyrene is not) so you could try pouring the solution into a bucket of water and then collecting the resulting polystyrene scum from the surface of the water...

You can buy acetone quite cheaply at a hardware store, and some pharmacies might carry it as well.

*Note that acetone is also quite flammable, so be careful around possible sources of ignition (no smoking, no mad-scientist-style van de Graaf generators etc. etc.)*

Title: Re: How can I dissolve polystyrene?
Post by: Colin2B on 15/05/2015 23:17:06

Quote from: thedoc on 15/05/2015 20:50:01

Danny asked the Naked Scientists:   
What cheap solvent can I use to dissolve polystyrene to make another usable material?

When you say usable material, what do you have in mind??

Title: Re: How can I dissolve polystyrene?
Post by: Bored chemist on 16/05/2015 20:27:06

Polystyrene does not dissolve in acetone.
However the solvent softens it to a sticky putty like material that may be "useful"

Title: Re: How can I dissolve polystyrene?
Post by: 1011300 on 12/06/2015 09:01:29

Standard model glue works extremely well at dissolving polystyrene.
The glass containers, not the tubes.