Additives to design and improve the performance of packaging. When it comes to packaging, the biggest concern of polyolefin films is blocking.
But it can easily be solved by anti-blocking additives.
General overview of additives purposes
Additive products are known for:
- Optimise material cost
- Enhance final product quality and minimize side effects
- Enhance fabrication efficiency and speed
- Decrease energy consumption and defects
- Enhance working environment with better hygiene and reduce health risks to end-users
- Reduce interaction with other additives
Optimizing cost is one of the most important concerns. By enabling customers doing so, let customers lower the dose level or design a new multiple function additive are both great options.
To approach the second goal, multipacks reduce customers’ inventory costs, simplify metering and facilitate the addition of the additives to the base polymer.
Besides, additives boost particles that adhere to melt quicker, meaning saving energy and reducing heat damage to the plastics.
Generally manufacturers are always striving to supply their products in convenient and hygienic format, e.g., liquids, pastes, pastilles, flakes or pellets.
In recent years there has been an emphasis on no-dust or low-dust blends.
Anti blocking Agents
The primary demand for anti blocks constantly to be thin-gauge thermoforming packaging film.
Packaging applications
A loss of clarity, haze and gloss happens when anti blocks are added.
The agricultural film does not require ultra-high clarity, but it needs to be clear enough to allow visual inspection of the plants. The same principle applies to the packaging of goods on retail display.
However, films for agriculture do not require extremely high clarity. Enough to see visual inspection of the plants is fine. It is also the requirement of retail packaging display.
EuP has therefore invested a lot of time and effort to achieve the optimized balance of yellowness, haze and coefficient of friction. The main idea is both antiblocking and slip additives minimize the negative effects of oxygen, water vapour and carbon dioxide on the life cycle of the film.
2 well-known trends have created a difficult conditions to achieve a good balance of properties:
(i) Extremely clear polyolefin film is in high demand for packaging.
(ii) The newer metallocene LLDPEs require a high antiblock dose level, and the adverse effects on haze and other properties increase with an increase in the antiblock dose level.
Furthermore, some main markets in Asian and Middle Eastern countries prefer using a water-quenched process for the conversion of PP tubular film.
Mostly, they require good optical properties.
The film tube has to be opened up by hand immediately after conversion, and this requires good antiblocking properties to prevent delays through sticking.
EuP has created (mã hàng) which gives great optical properties. EuP gives anti-blocking and thermal barrier properties to polyolefin agricultural and greenhouse film, permitting them to be profoundly transparent and not having very many surface errors.
Antiblock sometimes are added in food contact packaging film. Approved by regulatory authorities and minimize taint, color and optimize color stability are all must for the additives.
Companies who sell food contact packaging film have to own an antiblocking agent approved by high authority for food contact applications with polyethylene.
Medical applications
Apart from packaging applications, antiblocking agents are used in medical gloves.
YBM Minerals Inc. provides uncoated and coated calcium powder for high clarity polyethylene film.
There can be a degree of antagonism between the effects of antiblocking agents and those of slip agents used to control the coefficient of friction. It is therefore difficult to get low blocking and low friction at the same time.
EuP believes that a combination of behenamide and erucamide slip agents gives a considerable improvement in antiblocking performance, as well as having good antislip character, although a mineral additive is still needed to roughen the surface.
A well-chosen amide slip agent can reduce the amount of antiblock needed, which lessens the adverse effect on the film’s mechanical and optical properties.