IMPACT MODIFIERS | ADDITIVES Making a big impact
The impact performance of many plastics can suffer at low
temperatures.Peter Mapleston looks at some recent developments in impact modifiers
There are many applications where thermoplastic compounds can benefit from improved impact resistance and there is quite a range of additive technologies available to do just that. Impact modifiers can prevent PP containers from cracking when they fall from the freezer, they can help motorists avoid costly repairs to bumpers when they are involved in minor shunts (and at the same time make it easier to create lighter parts), can improve the low-temperature performance of PA compounds, and can increase the recyclability of PET packaging. The latest development from Milliken is a new additive — NX UltraClear MaxImpact — that the company claims “opens new doors” for the use of PP by improving impact performance at very low temperatures. Anyone that has dropped a PP container onto the kitchen floor when taking it out of the freezer will know that at temperatures of around -20°C, the resin will very easily crack or break. This low temperature impact resistance has limited the use of PP in certain key applications, according to Milliken. “With e-commerce booming, high-impact, cold-temperature-resistant plastics are in strong demand as a packaging solution but have been limited by issues with container breakage during transport and use – until now.” NX UltraClear MaxImpact is said to improve
www.compoundingworld.com
impact resistance in clear, cold-temperature PP applications. Milliken says it provides a very good balance of impact resistance, clarity and stiffness. The company says this can be used both to improve existing PP applications and to broaden the potential use of PP to include products that are currently made instead with polymers such as PS, PET, and PETG. Using the ASTM Gardner Impact test, research- ers have verified the improved impact performance of PP modified with MaxImpact, the company says. Tested samples have demonstrated a four-fold improvement in failure height at -20°C while also maintaining excellent clarity and stiffness. “This vast improvement in performance makes
polypropylene highly suitable for a variety of potential applications, including food storage, food packaging, housewares, sports bottles and house- hold industrial chemical containers,” Milliken claims. The company says the additive may be blended at the machine used to make finished parts, or via tumble blending prior to processing. Earlier this year Netherlands-based The Com-
pound Company acquired the German production site (CMP Cologne), product portfolio and custom- er base for ExxonMobil’s Exxelor polymers. This is the latest step in ExxonMobil’s plans to divest
April 2022 | COMPOUNDING WORLD 43
Main image: Impact
modifiers can help polymers such as PP and PA maintain performance at sub-zero temperatures
IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
