ForMatter/Materials/polymer/PMMA (Acrylic)
mat_pmma

PMMA (Acrylic)

thermoplastic, amorphous · acrylic, Plexiglas, Lucite, Perspex, polymethyl methacrylate
highlast updated 2026-04-26
metallic 0.00
hue shift +0°

Clear, glasslike plastic. Cuts on a laser, bends in an oven, glues with a syringe and a clear solvent. The plastic that taught most product designers how plastic feels in the shop. Scratches easily, shatters when sharply hit — but the cut edge can be polished to look exactly like glass.

Amorphous thermoplastic with high optical clarity (>92% light transmission), excellent UV stability, notch-sensitive. Tg ~105 °C. Attacked by aromatic and chlorinated solvents; bonded with methylene chloride or acrylic cement. Cell-cast PMMA outperforms extruded grades for optical clarity and machinability.

mechanical

  • tensile_strength_mpa72
  • yield_strength_mpa70
  • elastic_modulus_gpa3.2
  • elongation_pct4.5
source: MakeItFrom

thermal

  • glass_transition_c105
  • thermal_conductivity_w_mk0.19
source: MakeItFrom

optical

  • light_transmission_pct92
  • refractive_index1.49

Sustainability

  • embodied carbon kg co2e per kg7.2
  • sourceEditorial estimate from ICE / Granta CES EduPack class databases — industry mean, with cradle-to-gate boundary unless otherwise noted. Embodied carbon for any specific product depends on supplier mix, recycled content, and energy grid; verify against a primary source before using these numbers in a sustainability claim.
  • recyclabilityrecyclable in principle (depolymerizes back to MMA monomer at ~400 °C) but rarely recycled in practice
  • biodegradableFalse
  • certifications—
visual
transparent like glass, edges glow when polished, accepts vivid colors when dyed
tactile
warmer than glass to the touch, slick, faintly waxy
weight perception
light
acoustic
muted thock when struck — never the ring of glass
Roland Barthes (dead — channeled)

Acrylic is the plastic of the showroom — the plastic that wants you to see through it. Glass without the weight of glass, vitrine without the cathedral. It promises transparency the way a window promises a view, and forgets, like the window, that it has been made.

Channeled within the philosophy of Roland Barthes, *Mythologies* (1957), 'Plastic'.

PBR starter values

Principled BSDF defaults derived from the sphere transparent finish. Reasonable seed for Blender, Substance, Keyshot, Rhino — tune per material.

# finish:      transparent
albedo        #c8d8e0
metallic      0.00
roughness     0.05
ior           1.50
transmission  1.00
clearcoat     0.00
sheen         0.00
anisotropic   0.00
copy as JSON 
{
  "albedo": "#c8d8e0",
  "metallic": 0.0,
  "roughness": 0.05,
  "ior": 1.5,
  "transmission": 1.0,
  "clearcoat": 0.0,
  "sheen": 0.0,
  "anisotropic": 0.0
}
Blender 4.x Python 
# Blender 4.x — Principled BSDF
# PMMA (Acrylic) · finish: transparent
import bpy
mat = bpy.data.materials.new(name="mat_pmma")
mat.use_nodes = True
bsdf = mat.node_tree.nodes["Principled BSDF"]
bsdf.inputs["Base Color"].default_value         = (0.5776, 0.6867, 0.7454, 1.0)
bsdf.inputs["Metallic"].default_value           = 0.000
bsdf.inputs["Roughness"].default_value          = 0.050
bsdf.inputs["IOR"].default_value                = 1.500
bsdf.inputs["Transmission Weight"].default_value = 1.000
bsdf.inputs["Coat Weight"].default_value        = 0.000
bsdf.inputs["Sheen Weight"].default_value       = 0.000
bsdf.inputs["Anisotropic"].default_value        = 0.000
KeyShot Python (lux) 
# KeyShot 11+ — lux Python API, Generic material
# PMMA (Acrylic) · finish: transparent
# Run from Window → Scripting Console
import lux
mat = lux.createMaterial(name="mat_pmma", materialType="Generic")
mat.setProperty("diffuse",      (200, 216, 224))   # 8-bit sRGB
mat.setProperty("metallic",     0.000)
mat.setProperty("roughness",    0.050)
mat.setProperty("indexOfRefraction", 1.500)
mat.setProperty("transparency", 1.000)
mat.setProperty("coatingWeight", 0.000)
Substance pbrMetalRough 
{
  "_format": "Substance Designer / Painter \u2014 pbrMetalRough constants",
  "_about": "PMMA (Acrylic) \u00b7 finish: transparent",
  "baseColor": {
    "r": 0.5776,
    "g": 0.6867,
    "b": 0.7454
  },
  "metallic": 0.0,
  "roughness": 0.05,
  "ior": 1.5,
  "opacity": 0.0,
  "anisotropyLevel": 0.0,
  "_notes": "Channels listed are the standard Substance pbrMetalRough output. Drop into a Uniform Color node per channel, or as the constant input on a layered stack."
}
glTF 2.0 Metallic-Roughness 
{
  "asset": {
    "version": "2.0",
    "generator": "ForMatter"
  },
  "materials": [
    {
      "name": "mat_pmma",
      "pbrMetallicRoughness": {
        "baseColorFactor": [
          0.5776,
          0.6867,
          0.7454,
          1.0
        ],
        "metallicFactor": 0.0,
        "roughnessFactor": 0.05
      },
      "extensions": {
        "KHR_materials_transmission": {
          "transmissionFactor": 1.0
        }
      }
    }
  ]
}
USD Preview Surface 
# USD Preview Surface — UsdShade.MaterialLook prim attributes
# PMMA (Acrylic) · finish: transparent
def Material "mat_pmma" {
    token outputs:surface.connect = </mat_pmma/PreviewSurface.outputs:surface>

    def Shader "PreviewSurface" {
        uniform token info:id = "UsdPreviewSurface"
        color3f inputs:diffuseColor = (0.5776, 0.6867, 0.7454)
        float   inputs:metallic     = 0.000
        float   inputs:roughness    = 0.050
        float   inputs:ior          = 1.500
        float   inputs:opacity      = 0.000
        float   inputs:clearcoat    = 0.000
        token   outputs:surface
    }
}
↓ download glTF material
ProcessLaser Cutting · CNC Milling · Vacuum Forming (Thermoforming) · Adhesive Bonding
Used inConsumer-Electronics Enclosure · Architectural Facade Panel
Substitutes
PETG (Glycol-Modified PET)
Soda-Lime Glass
Borosilicate Glass

Citations