Jan 5, 2019
Plastic additives as pellets, which are added to the natural raw polymer to dye or to change the properties, are called Masterbatch.
They have a higher amount of colorants or additives than the raw polymer.
It is to be noted, which substrate is used (mainly PE or PA).
Masterbatches are easy to handle and provide a better process reliability than powder additives.
There are additive masterbatches (e.g. flamability or UV-stabilization), color masterbatches (to dye) and combination masterbatches (dyes and additives).
A small percentage of the masterbatch is enough for an intensive dyeing.
Oct 21, 2019
It is important in the plastic industry to reduce the residual moisture of the plastic granulate.
Therefore most of the plastics need a material drying before processing.
In the hot air or vacuum dryer the residual moisture is reduced.
It should be noticed, that each plastic needs different temperatures and times for the drying to reach a minimal residual moisture, while the material is not going brittle.
Plastics: The hot air dryer “Arburg Thermolift” helps to dry the material before processing it.
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This glossary of plastic industry is provided by PLEXPERT Canada Inc.
Feb 8, 2019
Information about handling, safety, health and environmental protection of a plastic material is given by the material safety data sheet (MSDS).
The input of the safety data sheet is fixed by REACH-Regulation (EG) NR. 1907/2006.
There are 16 sections with the following subjects: Identification and Manufacturer, Hazards, Compositions, First-Aid-Measures, Fire-Fighting Measures, Accidental Release Measures, Handling and Storage, Protection, Physical and Chemical Properties, Stability and Reactivity, Tocicological Information, Ecological Information, Disposal, Transport, Regulatory and Other Information.
Jan 25, 2019
There are different reasons to eject the material from the injection cylinder in front of the mold.
This is done during the start of a machine, after a long residence time in the cylinder or if a change of the material is needed.
If purging compound is used, it will not go into the mold but is collected right after the machine nozzle.
A cylindrical strand of melt emerges from the machine nozzle. The melt accumulates in any form in front of the nozzle.
This form is called the melt ejection.
After the melt is cooled down the melt ejection will be removed from the machine.
Due to it’s irregular shape and it’s weight the melt ejection will not be recycled but thrown away.
Image 1: Plastic: Melt ejection in front of the machine nozzle.
Image 2: Plastic: Melt ejection after it is removed from the machine.
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Degeneration
This glossary of plastic industry is provided by PLEXPERT Canada Inc.
Jan 8, 2019
It is easier to use a single value to compare different polymers with each other.
Therefore, for the viscosity commonly the MFI (melt flow index) is used.
This value describes how much mass of a polymer is flowing during 10 minutes at a specific temperature and pressure (mostly 2,16 kg or 5 kg) through a given capillary.
That means the higher the MFI, the smaller the viscosity of the polymer.
The used unit is g/ 10 min.
