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www.hipf.edu.sa
Yo u r L i n k t o t h e P l a s t i c s W o r l d
HIPF S e n d s I ts F i r s t G r a d uat e s to t h e P l a s t i c Fac to r i e s The, first batch of trainees from HIPF have graduated and will be soon entering the Plastic Factories. This is the first time in the history of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that trainees have graduated in Plastic Diploma Course. The feedback from ‘On Job Training’ at the factories have been excellent and encouraging. HIPF congratulates all its Trainees, Instructors and Management on this momentous occasion. Our Trainees would be a part of the factories of Al-Watania, Al-Rowad, Al-Obaikan, Bin Salman, FIPCO, Savola, SAPPCO, Arnon, Al-Zamel, Al-Othman and Al-Watani Plast. HIPF Trainees at their machines.
We wish them all the best in their future careers and hope that they will remain an asset to the Saudi Plastic Industry.
I m p r o v i n g S h e l f -L if e The
most widely used material for making high barrier bottles is PET. Their high clarity and long shelf life have made it very popular. To improve this, in terms of shelf life, barrier property and material cost saving is always a challenge for plastic industries. With respect to this the Actis range of machines introduced by Sidel is noteworthy. Actis has incorporated on inside wall of PET bottle a layer of carbon based material to provide increased gas impermeability. This layer consists of hydrogenated amorphous carbon. The coating has high atomic density and is optically transparent which suits the PET bottle surface. The thickness can be varied from 40 nm for juices to 150nm for high value beverages.
QUARTERLY
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PET B ot t l e s
Acetylene is used as a process gas since it provides higher barrier properties and faster deposition rate as compared to other hydrocarbon gases like methane and ethylene. It also has the highest barrier improvement factor of 20 as compared to the other tested gases. The carbon dioxide loss and oxygen permeation rate is reduced, which extend the shelf life of drinks from 10 weeks to 30 weeks for the coating of 50 nm and up to 45 weeks for the coating of 100 nm . These barrier properties lead to a considerable material saving of 15-20% as the bottle weight can be reduced while maintaining the same barrier properties and shelf life.
S pecial P oints of I nterest:
I n T his issue :
HIGHER INSTITUTE
• Recent Path Breaking Innovations in the field of Plastics.
FOR PLASTICS
• Selected International Plastics centered events and exhibitions.
FABRICATION
• Graduation of the first batch of HIPF Students
• • • • • •
ISSUED BY THE
PLASTIC LINK VOL # 2.indd 1
Aseptic Clear 200S used for Nautix
Improving Shelf-Life of PET Bottles MicroLayer in Films and Sheets Nano in Food Packaging Flexline for Ultralight Bottles Polymer Blending, a Fascinating Phenomenon International Plastics Events
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M icro L ayer T echnology in F ilms and S heets Layer Multiplier Flat Die Systems make Films with Standard Thickness but with many Microlayers for improving barrier and physical properties
Extrusion Dies Industries have introduced the MicroLayer Technology originally designed by Dow at NPE2009.
This innovation in flat extrusion die systems multiplies key functional layers in cast film and sheet, substantially improving properties without increase in overall thickness or raw material content. The new “microlayer” technology enables extrusion processors and converters to achieve increases in impact strength, elongation, oxygen and moisture barrier, and other properties. Potential applications range from industrial wraps to rigid and flexible barrier packaging. The key to the improvements is special tooling called “layer multiplier,” the flat die system changes a typical sandwich structure from a standard coextrusion feedblock into a structure in which
one or more of the layers has been subdivided into multiple microlayers. The overall thickness of the resulting film is same as the thickness without the intervention of the layer multiplier. It is possible to economize on costly high-performance resins while achieving target properties. Higher number of layer-to-layer interfaces increases chances for defects to be encapsulated and rendered harmless, leading to lesser pinholes and lesser breakages. It is also possible to produce films that are more flexible, without reducing the overall amount of a rigid polymer used as one of the raw materials. Tests have shown more than 20% increase in Tensile Strength, Elongation at Break, Tear Resistance and Impact Resistance in Polyethylene Films using this technology in addition to more than 50% increase in barrier properties.
N ano in F ood Packaging The retention of freshness in food is a major
consumer demand which depends on the packaging material. A hybrid system of plastic enriched with nanoparticles is the solution to this which keeps food fresh with longer shelf life as compared to normal plastic materials. The nanoparticles embedded in plastic act like a barrier which make difficult for gases like oxygen to pass through the packaging.
Nano additives improve barrier properties , UV protection, etc.
The nanoparticles increase the distance the gas molecules have to travel due to zigzag path around the nanoparticle plates and slows down the progress of gas through the matrix resin. This has been utilized by Bayer to produce Durethan® KU 2-2601film with embedded nanoparticles in Polyamide film. The presence of nanoparticles has lowered the permeability by half. Additionally the nanoparticles have enhanced the gloss of the film. The high barrier property leads to improved shelf life. Nanoparticle filled films also can have improved UV protection. It is also possible to have anti-tamper and anti counterfeit films that help in brand protection and product security. Titanium or Silver nanoparticles provide anti-microbial property due to their photo catalytic nature. The research done in the past years regarding nanoparticles have lead to a number of commercially attractive additives and products being introduced to the market for us to take advantage in our industries.
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PLASTICS
LINK P olymer B lending , a fascinating P henomenon
F lexline , for U ltralight PET B ot tles The increasing usage of PET in the beverage packing industry has brought renewed focus on reducing the material consumption. Achieving lower material consumption leads to material cost savings and lower transportation costs. Till now lowering the weight of the PET bottle lead to lower strength and lower barrier properties. With increasing popularity of single serve containers (less than 750ml), packaging manufacturers are already looking for ways to reduce bottle weight. NoBottle™, a new ultralight, high-end PET bottle from Sidel is an achievement in bottle lightweighting and eco-design. It combines aesthetic design and record-breaking weight reduction – 9.9g for a 500ml bottle – in a container that can be manufactured and distributed on an industrial scale. At 9.9g, it reduces bottle weight by 25% to 40%, resulting in less plastic material to be recycled. They have achieved this result by Flexline Technology developing a new technology called Flex produces award that reduces bottle weight by means of combining flexibility and shape memory. winning PET bottles Flexibility is important because it eliminates weighing less than 10 the need for ribs, giving designers total gm for 500 ml bottle freedom to create all sorts of shapes even on very lightweight bottles. Flexibility also leading to cost savings makes bottles easy to grip and as a result in production and of shape memory, bottles are better able transport to withstand conveying, packing, transport and handling. Shape memory enables bottles to better withstand the rigors of conveying, packaging and transport. The technology is already being used by mineral water giants like Nestlé Waters in the U.S. for its Eco-shape™ bottle.
The research and development activities in the field of polymer science and technology have gained a new momentum over the years with the dedicated efforts to modify the already existing polymeric materials than to synthesize completely new polymers. One of the easiest methods to develop the required composition and properties is the physical blending of two or more polymers. The blend can offer a set of properties that are not possible with either of the polymers alone comprising the blend. Polyaniline can be blended with PET by mechanical mixing to prepare processable conducting materials for large-scale utilization. Mixing of polyaniline (5%) doped with p-toluene–sulphonic acid produces a hard material with conductivity of 10−7 S cm−1. Materials with conductivity in this range can be used for the production of plastic parts which are able to dissipate electrostatic electricity. PC/ABS is the fastest growing alloy today. In this alloy, PC contributes impact and heat distortion resistance, while the ABS contributes processability, chemical stress resistance, and cost reduction. PC/ ABS can be used for appearance housings, and structural parts which need stiffness, gloss, impact and heat resistance. Others applications of this combination include painted exterior automotive parts, laptop computer cases, monitors, keyboards, phones etc.
FlexLine is the first bottling line specially designed to package still water in the ultralight PET bottles. The line is able to blow mold, fill, cap, label, pack and palletize a bottle weighing less than 10 g at a rate of 43,200 bottles per hour. This line combines blow molding, filling and capping, thus eliminating challenges posed by air conveying empty bottles making it particularly wellsuited to producing ultralight bottles. All steps in the production process have been found to provide reliable production at a lower cost. The TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) is 20% less than the TCO for a traditional line producing 500 ml bottles weighing 16 g. It also uses less energy than conventional production lines and 40% of the air can be reused. Preforms containing recycled PET can be also be used on the FlexLine.
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PLASTICS
LINK
I n t e r n at i o n a l P l a s t i c E v e n t s EXHIBITIONS: Pasay ( Philippines ) > SMX Exhibition and Convention Center
07.10 - 10.10 2009
FAKUMA International Trade Fair for Plastic Processing
Friedrichshafen ( Germany ) > Messegelände Friedrichshafen
13.10 - 17.10 2009
PEPP - POLYETHYLENE - POLYPROPYLENE CHAIN World Congress Business Forum dedicated to Polyethylene & Polypropylene. Products, Developments, Technologies, Markets
Zurich ( Switzerland ) > Swissôtel Zurich
13.10 - 15.10 2009
SAUDI PPPP 2009
International Plastics Technology Show
Riyadh ( Saudi Arabia ) > Riyadh Exhibition Centre
18.10 - 21.10 2009
PRO-PLAS AFRICA EXPO Plastic Machinery & Materials Exhibition
Johannesburg ( South Africa ) > Expo Centre, Nasrec
20.10 - 23.10 2009
PLASTEX UKRAINE International Specialized Exhibition of Plastic and Polymeric Materials Producing
Kiev ( Ukraine ) > Kiev International Exhibition Center
27.10 - 30.10 2009
CHEMPLAST ASIA Central Asian International Industrial Exhibition of Chemistry, Plastics & Rubber
Tashkent ( Uzbekistan ) > Uzexpocentre
03.11 - 06.11 2009
M-PLAS ASIA International Plastic and Rubber Trade Fair for Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur ( Malaysia ) > Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre
04.11 - 07.11 2009
PLAST PACK MOROCCO International Plastic, Packaging & Rubber Industry Trade Show
Casablanca ( Morocco ) > Casablanca
12.11 - 14.11 2009
APPLAS Asian-Pacific International Plastics & Rubber Industry Exhibition
Shanghai ( China ) > Shanghai New International Expo Centre
25.11 - 27.11 2009
PLASTICS & RUBBER INDONESIA International Plastics and Rubber Machinery, Processing and Materials Exhibition
Jakarta ( Indonesia ) > Jakarta International Expo
02.12 - 05.12 2009
PLASTIC PIPES FITTINGS AND JOINTS International Conference on Joining Plastic Pipes
Cologne ( Germany ) > Maritim Hotel
07.12 - 09.12 2009
POLYESTER CHAIN World Congress dedicated to the Global Polyester Chain
Zurich ( Switzerland ) > Swissôtel Zurich
14.12 - 17.12 2009
www.hipf.edu.sa
PLASTICS AND PACKAGING PHILIPPINES International Plastics and Rubber, Packaging and Processing Machinery, Technology and Materials Exhibition
PLASTIC LINK VOL # 2.indd 4
Higher Institute For Plastic Fabrication
7945 AlKharj Road, New City Industry, Unit #1, P.O. Box 4073 Riyadh 14332 - 4073 Tel.: +966 1 498 9600, +966 1 498 9678 Fax: +966 50 107 9961 Contact Details: Tel.: +966 1 498 9678 Fax: +966 1 498 9650 e-mail: info@hipf.edu.sa www.hipf.edu.sa
PLASTIC LINK Your Link to the World of Plastics The establishment of HIPF aims to prepare Saudi youth to participate as skilled technicians in the booming plastics industry of the Kingdom and to develop the technical knowledge and skills of Saudi workforce towards localization of plastics fabrcation technology. The Editorial board of the Newsletter would like to remind the reader that the articles in this newsletter are collated from the various sources of information. HIPF does its best to verify the sources and confirm the authenticity of the articles published in the newsletter. The HIPF will not assume any legal liability for the content, quality, accuracy or completeness of said information and materials. The sources of the articles and the ‘terms and conditions’ of the newsletter ‘Plastic Link’ are available with the board of Editors and are available on request.s
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