Polyvinyltoluene (PVT, polyvinyl toluene) is a

synthetic polymer Some familiar household synthetic polymers include: Nylons in textiles and fabrics, Teflon in non-stick pans, Bakelite for electrical switches, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in pipes, etc. The common PET bottles are made of a synthetic polymer, polye ...

alkylbenzenes The alkylbenzenes are derivatives of benzene, in which one or more hydrogen atoms are replaced by alkyl groups of different sizes. They are a subset of the aromatic hydrocarbons. The simplest member is toluene, in which a hydrogen atom of the benze ...

with a linear formula H2CH(C6H4CH3). Commercial vinyl toluene is a mixture of methyl styrene

isomer In chemistry, isomers are molecules or polyatomic ions with identical molecular formulae – that is, same number of atoms of each element – but distinct arrangements of atoms in space. Isomerism is existence or possibility of isomers. Iso ...

s File:Chemical_formula_for_polyvinyl_tolulene.png, chemical formula for PVT

Uses

PVT can be doped with

anthracene Anthracene is a solid polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) of formula C14H10, consisting of three fused benzene rings. It is a component of coal tar. Anthracene is used in the Economic production, production of the red dye alizarin and other dyes ...

or other wavelength-shifting dopants to produce a

plastic scintillator A scintillator is a material that exhibits scintillation (physics), scintillation, the property of luminescence, when excited by ionizing radiation. Luminescent materials, when struck by an incoming particle, absorb its energy and scintillate (i ...

. When subjected to

ionizing radiation Ionizing radiation (or ionising radiation), including nuclear radiation, consists of subatomic particles or electromagnetic waves that have sufficient energy to ionize atoms or molecules by detaching electrons from them. Some particles can travel ...

(both

particle radiation Particle radiation is the radiation of energy by means of fast-moving subatomic particles. Particle radiation is referred to as a particle beam if the particles are all moving in the same direction, similar to a light beam. Due to the wave–par ...

and

gamma radiation A gamma ray, also known as gamma radiation (symbol γ or \gamma), is a penetrating form of electromagnetic radiation arising from the radioactive decay of atomic nuclei. It consists of the shortest wavelength electromagnetic waves, typically s ...

), the amount of visible radiation emitted is proportional to the absorbed dose as long as the energy loss per length is not too large. A relation applicable to a wide range of values for energy loss per unit length is given by Birks' Law. PVT can be damaged by radiation with high stopping power, e.g.

ion beam An ion beam is a type of charged particle beam consisting of ions. Ion beams have many uses in electronics manufacturing (principally ion implantation) and other industries. A variety of ion beam sources exists, some derived from the mercury ...

s or by any kind of ionizing radiation. A review of radiation damage for PVT and other similar plastic scintillators can be found at. Such radiation breaks the C-H bonds and creates color centers which absorb the produced light, significantly reducing the light output. Following the increase in interest in Vinyl Records (as at 2022), PVT is being looked at as a replacement for PVC, the usual and historic material used to make Vinyl Records. PVT is considered more environmentally friendly than its older cousin PVC.

References

Vinyl polymers Phosphors and scintillators {{polymer-stub