High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE)

High impact strength

Low temperature toughness,

Excellent resistance to chemicals,

Good electrical insulating properties, and

Poor ultraviolet resistance.

Acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS)

ABS is a hard, tough material;

Good impact resistance;

Good electrical insulation properties; and

Versatile additive, filler, and reinforcing agents acceptance;

Polycarbonate (PC)

Excellent resistance to heat,

Hard, tough material,

Good impact resistance, and

Excellent transparency.

Polypropylene (PP)

Good impact strength (poor at cold temperatures),

Good chemical resistance,

High abrasion resistance,

High melt strength.

Polyphenylene Oxide (PPO)

Good flame retardancy,

Good chemical resistance,

Good impact resistance, and

Retains mechanical properties in high heat environments.

Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET)

Used in injection blow molding, produces clear amorphous preforms. Since there is less orientation, the impact strength is reduced.

Blow molding markets (overall)

Blow molding is a multibillion dollar business. In the late 1980s annual worldwide consumption of plastic resin by blow molding processes was about ten billion pounds. Packaging is the primary application for this resin and was used to produce approximately seventy billion bottles, drums, tanks, and other containers.

Blow molding grade high-density polyethylene (HDPE) comprises about 69 percent of all materials that are blow molded. The use of polyethylene terephthelate (PET) has increased rapidly in recent years and in 1990 claims about 21 percent of the blow molding market.

About 25 percent of the total blow molding poundage goes into mild bottles. That is a tremendous market, but consumption for household chemical containers (bleach bottles, detergent bottles, etc.) is even larger: 33 percent. About 76 percent of the total resin usage goes into bottles, and the other 24 percent is in industrial items- gas tanks, bulk- goods drums, seats, toys, and other large items.

Blow Molding Applications

Milk bottles

Pharmaceutical bottles

Antifreeze bottles

Polypropylene bottles

Coliseum seats

One-piece chair

Ice chests and coolers

Double-wall player case

Garbage cans

Drums

Fuel tanks