Why Use Polyethylene?
Polyethylene (PE) is available in a wide range of melt indexes and densities. That’s why it’s usable in a variety of applications from roll-out carts to lids. The versatility of the material is enabled by the way it’s produced, giving it a distinct advantage over other polymers such as polypropylene and polyvinyl chloride.
Converters can produce goods for a wide variety of applications with polyethylene resins. Popular PE variants include:
- High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE Resin)
- Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE)
- Linear Low-Density Polyethylene (LLDPE Resin)
- Medium Density Polyethylene (MDPE)
- Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (UHMW)
In a plant that runs different resins, the unintentional mixing of resin types is a common cause of contaminated products. For example, if PET resin is accidentally mixed in during an HDPE process, it will be present on the final product as an unmelt. This is because PET resin requires a higher melt temperature than HDPE.
- Chemical resistance
- Moisture resistance
- Impact resistance
- Range of melt indexes
- Flexibility
- Transparency
Protect Products Against Potential Contaminants
Outside contamination can quickly compromise the quality and usability of a product, both in the development process and once the product is made. For example in the blow molding process, a leading cause of product quality complaints is contamination, which can be caused by a variety of factors, such as:
- the degradation of the resin
- a mixture of foreign material
- improper housekeeping
- the inadvertent spread of machine grease
These issues are incredibly common and can result in defects such as die lines, streaks, bubbles, bottle in mold shutdowns, parison blow-outs, and off-coloring.
In a plant that runs different resins, the unintentional mixing of resin types is a common cause of contaminated products. For example, if PET resin is accidentally mixed in during an HDPE process, it will be present on the final product as an unmelt. This is because PET resin requires a higher melt temperature than HDPE.
Proper training on how to eliminate the unintentional transfer of contaminant substances is a positive practice to protect products in the development stage.
In its end-use form, polyethylene can be extremely resistant to outside contaminants such as chemicals or moisture. In fact, moisture resistance is one of the high-density polyethylene properties that makes it shine over similar materials. For example, it can be made into a film to protect sensitive electronics during shipping. In some instances, HDPE is used to make school lockers since they are bacteria resistant and can be easily power washed or steamed. 1 In the home care sector, HDPE bottles are typically made to contain household chemical products such as laundry or dish detergent. This is because HDPE withstands exposure to the chemicals in cleaning agents without corroding. We see HDPE bottles in industries like personal care for similar reasons.