Repairs & DIY with PlasticWe receive lots of enquiries about using plastic to repair, fix, mend and replace many different types of broken items as well as tackling improvement projects. There seem to be quite a few people out there with broken picture / photograph frames, fridge shelves, cat and dog flaps, windows and greenhouses to name a few so we'll dedicate this space to writing about how yo...

The Differences Between Acrylic and PolycarbonateAcrylic vs PolycarbonateAcrylic and polycarbonate are two of the most popular clear plastics. They provide different benefits (and drawbacks). In summary the benefits are: acrylic is stiffer, shinier, more scratch resistant and cheaper than polycarbonate which is bendier and virtually unbreakable. Their drawbacks are: acrylic can crack/shatter under...

Where Do You Buy Your Plastic Stock Shapes?The art and science of distribution is often discussed in day-to-day business in just about every market, but some may feel that they do not see it in practice often enough in the market place. Today, as markets become more competitive than ever, it has become an everyday occurrence to see the channel partners in the supply chain reposition themselves fro...

Fear and Insanity in the World of Plastics MachiningWe have all heard the old saying: “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” Sometimes, we secretly can hope for things to be different. Fear can get in the way of making that hope a reality. We all know that fear can either motivate great change or cause great paralysis. Sometimes, ...

What Makes a Plastic Food Grade?It’s amazing today how many things are made using some sort of plastic material. Every day items from electronics to security products to health and wellness products, they all benefit in some way from plastic materials. Sometimes the benefits are cost related, other benefits might be design or physical properties related. For whatever the reason, there seems to be ...

What is Casting?Casting involves introducing a liquefied plastic into a mold and allowing it to solidify. In contrast to molding and extrusion, casting relies on atmospheric pressure to fill the mold rather than using significant force to push the plastic into the mold cavity. Some polymers have a viscosity similar to bread dough even when they are at elevated temperature so they are not candidate...

Why can’t I get that color in plastic?One of the cool things about plastics over traditional materials is the variety of colors it can be made in. Everyone can relate to something that was made out of a plastic in some sort of cool color that made their product standout. In the graphics or decorative world of plastics, colors are somewhat easy to come by and are readily available. In the engineeri...

Metal Detectable or X-Ray Detectable: Which is the Better Plastic for the Job?As the speed increases for the way food is harvested, processed and packaged in the market place, there is an ever-increasing need to make sure all of these processes are happening in a containment free environment to ensure the quality and safety of the food we consume. We often hear of countless stories of how a compan...

What is Injection Molding?Injection molding is by far the primary process for converting plastics into useful plastic widgets. Just about all of us touch an injection molded widget every hour of every day. All thermoplastics can be injection molded with a few exceptions like polyimides and PTFE to name a few. Injection molding takes pelletized materials and heats them up to the point where they ca...

What is Compression Molding?Compression molding is a common process used for both thermoplastic and thermoset stock shape materials. Compression molding is accomplished by placing the plastic material (can be a granular or pelletized form) in a mold cavity to be formed by heat and pressure. The process is someone similar to making waffles. The heat and pressure force the materials into all areas o...

What is laminating?Lamination occurs when two or more layers of material are put together by either cohesion or adhesion. Plastic laminates are usually various layers of material held together by some sort polymer or plastic material. Laminates and reinforced plastics can be difficult to distinguish from reinforced plastics because the layers often provide strength and reinforcement as well to the...

Finding the Sweet Spot in Plastic Cutting ToolsThere are a number of factors to consider when setting up to machine plastics. Most importantly, plastic has a higher thermal expansion rate than most other materials, such as metal or wood products. Thermal expansion is the tendency of the material to change volume in response to the heat introduced during the formation of chips created during the ...

What are the ingredients in plastics?Plastic materials offer a wide variety of properties and design flexibility that have made them the material of choice for making many different products. From injection molded toys to machined bearings or bushings, plastics are allowing for creative ideas to become realities in a more affordable way to solve difficult problems. There are times when a plastic m...

How does PVC help to conserve natural resources and combat climate change?Because PVC is intrinsically a low-carbon material which consumes less primary energy than many other materials and is easy to recycle. Also, most PVC products are very long lasting and require a minimum of maintenance and repair. For instance, the service life of PVC water and sewage piping is more than 100 years. And moder...

How does PVC contribute to a safer world?There are many reasons why PVC and safety are inseparable. Due to unsurpassed technical properties, PVC is the most used material for life-saving, disposable, medical devices. For instance, medical tubing of PVC does not kink or break and is easy to sterilise. Because of inherent fire resistance, wire and cables sheathed with PVC prevent potentially fatal e...

What is Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)?This lesson is going to define PVC. You'll learn what kind of plastic it is, what it's derived from, how it's made, its structure, as well as its uses in engineering and construction.A Common DenominatorWhat could the following have in common?1. A credit card in your wallet.2. A pipe in your home.3. A floor you walk on.4. A toy a child plays with.Well, they might ...

How is PVC made?Polyvinyl Chloride is made from one of three emulsion processes: 1.Suspension polymerization 2.Emulsion polymerization 3.Bulk polymerizationPolyvinyl Chloride for Prototype Development on CNC Machines, 3D Printers, & Injection Molding Machines: There are two main issues working with PVC that make it fairly problematic and not generally recommended for use by no...

What are the Characteristics of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)?Some of the most significant properties of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) are: 1.Density: PVC is very dense compared to most plastics (specific gravity around 1.4) 2.Economics: PVC is readily available and cheap. 3.Hardness: Rigid PVC is very hard. 4.Strength: Rigid PVC has extremely good tensile strength.Polyvinyl Chloride is a “thermo...

What is Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC), and What is it Used For?Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) is one of the most commonly used thermoplastic polymers in the world (next to only a few more widely used plastics like PET and PP). It is a naturally white and very brittle (prior to the additions of plasticizers) plastic. PVC has been around longer than most plastics having been first synthesized in 1872 and comme...

How is PVC used?Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is one of the most used plastics in the world. Global polyvinyl chloride use exceeds 35 million tonnes per year, and the demand is growing. At a global level, PVC use grows by an average of 5% per year, with higher growth rates in developing countries.In EU-28, about 8 million tonnes of PVC products are manufactured every year. Annual European consumption o...

Differences Between PETG and APETBetween all of the different substrates with PET in the name, keeping them straight can get complicated. The differences between various types of PET packaging are critically important, though, and, at times, names can be misleading.For example, APET is a type of PET packaging, and the similarly named PETG is in the same polyester family with PET. This is because P...

PE Film Pelletizing MachinePE Film Pelletizing Machine Description:PE Film Pelletizing Machine host is an extruder. PE Film Pelletizing machine which consists of extrusion system, drive system and heating and cooling system. Plastic Pelletizer is suitable for PVC, PP and PE pelletizing. PE film pelletizing machine features in advanced technology, widely used, uniformed pellets, high production cap...

What is PVC?Plastics are also called synthetic resins and are broadly classified into two categories: thermosetting resins and thermoplastic resins.The thermosetting resins include phenolic resin and melamine resin, which are thermally hardened and never become soft again. Thermoplastic resins include PVC, polyethylene (PE), polystyrene (PS) and polypropylene (PP), which can be re-softened by heat...

Why Is Polycarbonate The Best Choice For Your Alfresco?More and more residential and commercial areas are coming up with their choice of polycarbonates for constructing their spaces. This is the reason more and more manufacturers are coming up with developing polycarbonate sheets. And, there are also a variety of polycarbonate sheets available. For example, Tuflite Polymers is into manufacturing a...

EXTRUSION OF PLASTICSMaterials such as polystyrene, nylon, polypropylene and polythene can be used in a process called extrusion. These are thermoplastics - this means when they are heated and then pressured in a mould they can be formed into different shapes and sectionsA machine used to extrude materials is very similar to the injection moulding machine. A motor turns a thread which feeds granul...

FIVE STEPS TO PLASTIC EXTRUSIONPlastic products take many different forms - known as plastic profiles to us - but they all start as raw material called resin. In plastic extrusion, resin beads are melted down, filtered for uniform consistency, pushed through a die cut for the final product shape, and then cooled. It's a complicated process that takes many forms, but here's a quick breakdown of how...

How to Clean Polycarbonate SheetsManufacturer-Approved Cleaning Procedures for Multi-WallPolycarbonate, Acrylic & APETThe UV-resistant surface treatment on one side of the polycarbonate sheet significantly improves long-term weatherability. Periodic cleaning using proper procedures and compatible cleaners is recommended to prolong the service life. For general cleaning, it is recommended that the ...

How to Clean Polycarbonate SheetTo ensure that a polycarbonate sheet remains in good condition for a long period of time, you must use the recommended cleaners and procedures. In fact, a regular cleaning procedure will enhance all their desired functional properties.Ideally, there are a number of factors which determine the frequency of the cleaning process and these may include: the geographical ...

What Is a PVC Conveyor Belt?Conveyor systems are used to transport goods or materials from one fixed point to another within a space. The specific function of the conveyor system can vary significantly depending on the machine's design, but many systems use a rubber belt to transport goods. As an alternative, a PVC conveyor belt can be used. PVC is a type of thermoplastic polymer that is flexible ...

Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol (PETG) – what is it?!Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol (PETG) is a water clear material and designed to be very ‘easy to use’ in a range of applications. It’s a thermoplastic polymer created through the copolymerisation of PET and ethylene glycol.PropertiesBeing a copolymer, Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol’s chemical formula is (C10H8O4)n and its properties incl...

What Happens When You Put a Plastic Vapor Barrier in Your Wall?A lot of people have heard advice about vapor barriers and vapor retarders. Many of them have walked away confused. A big part of the problem, I think, is that they've been told what to do—"Put it on the warm-in-winter side," or "Never use one"—but they haven't had the physics of what happens explained to them.In this article, I'm not ...

What is PVC Pipe?Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipe is made from a plastic and vinyl combination material. The pipes are durable, hard to damage, and long lasting. They do not rust, rot, or wear over time. For that reason, PVC piping is most commonly used in water systems, underground wiring, and sewer lines.PVC was first developed in 1925 when a BF Goodrich employee, Dr. Waldo Semon, attempted to inve...

What are Polycarbonate Glasses?Polycarbonate is a moldable, durable, inexpensive form of plastic that is used in a wide variety of consumer products. Frequently used to make eyeglass lenses, compact disks (CDs), house wares, drinking glasses, water and baby bottles as well as numerous industrial products. Polycarbonate is valued for its impact resistance, optical clarity and temperature tolerance....

How to Choose Proper Plastic Film for Your ApplicationIt’s important to use the correct plastic packaging solution for your specific application. Whether you’re in an industry that requires color coded packaging like the medical industry or you need extremely durable, flexible bags for industrial packaging, finding the right plastic bag is not always easy. We offer a wide array of plastic film and...

How to Choose a Clear Plastic Protective FilmIf you are looking for a clear plastic protective film, you will undoubtedly find a ton of products during a Google search. There are tons of manufacturers that make and distribute protective film. When dealing with an industry as flooded as the protective film industry, you must be careful, take your time, and do your research. There are plenty of c...

Differences Between PETG and APETBetween all of the different substrates with PET in the name, keeping them straight can get complicated. The differences between various types of PET packaging are critically important, though, and, at times, names can be misleading.For example, APET is a type of PET packaging, and the similarly named PETG is in the same polyester family with PET. This is because P...

Which Winder’s for You?A lot of science goes into winding. So-called TNT (tension, winding, torque) winding principles are well established and have been proven and modeled at the Web Handling Research Center at Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Okla.Yet determining which of these principles, or the proportional amount of each, to use for proper winding of different types of materials under s...

What Does an Extruder Operator Do?An extruder operator is a person who operates and maintains machinery used in the extrusion process. Extrusion involves drawing materials such as metals and thermoplastics to create specific shapes and products, such as wires, tubes, hoses, and bars. No set level of education is necessary to become an extruder operator, but many employers will require that the ope...

What is a Polyethylene Sheet?A polyethylene sheet is a plastic film made from one of the most commonly used plastics. Like all plastics, polyethylene is a petroleum product. It is a very strong plastic that can be found in items ranging from shopping bags to bulletproof vests. When made thin, with a thickness of about 0.01 to 0.4 inches (about 0.3 to 10 millimeters), this material is more properly...