Static electricity can discharge via an arc or spark when plastic material comes in contact with another body of a sufficiently different potential, such as a person or a microcircuit. When this electrostatic discharge (ESD) occurs, some electronic parts can be destroyed or damaged, resulting in equipment downtime, costly repair or total part replacement. ESD is also dangerous in an environment containing flammable liquids, solids or gases, such as in a hospital operating room or during the assembly of explosive devices.

Virtually all PCC products are now available in one or more conductive materials to protect against ESD damage. The following tables give the nominal physical characteristics of each of our conductive materi als. This information has been provided by the suppliers and, as such, is not warranted by PCC.

Electrically conductive ABS materials are intended for applications where dissipation of electro-static charge is required. Conductive ABS is permanently conductive and exceeds the mandatory static decay time required for static-sensitive electrical devices as defined in Military Standard MIL-B-81705B, Method 4046, Federal Test Method 101B. This material contains no halogens and is currently available only in black.