On the outside, blow molds are provided with support surfaces to prevent damage to the cutting edges, especially in set-up mode, i.e. when closing the mold without plastic. The mold support also serves to transfer excess clamping force.
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Biodegradable vs. Recyclable Plastics
March 14, 2022
What Are Biodegradable Plastics?
Biodegradable plastics undergo digestion by microbes to form natural bi-products and what is known as humus (a sludge that makes an excellent plant fertiliser). It also produces gas which is officially known as biogas. Biozone’s landfill-biodegradable plastics have proprietary additives that help them biodegrade naturally in landfills. Once the biodegradable packing ends up in a landfill, it attracts the necessary microbes that break down the plastic into its natural components.
Fuels Generated During The Biodegradation Process Of Landfill-Biodegradable Plastics
In the deepest areas of a landfill, there is little oxygen available, so the microbes that are there live on hydrogen instead of oxygen. The biogas they give off there is methane CH4 (otherwise known as a ‘natural gas’ in layman’s terms). This is a good fuel and if harnessed and can be used to generate electricity or drive gas-powered vehicles etc. If the biodegradation occurs near the top of the landfill or in a managed compost pile where there is plenty of oxygen, then the biogas is CO2 – i.e. carbon dioxide.
Both CH4 and CO2 are vented to the atmosphere unless the landfill operator actively collects the CH4 to be sold. Most modern landfills capture CH4 these days as it is worth money. CO2 emissions are not worth anything and are just vented. Unfortunately, if CH4 is vented to the atmosphere it is a much worse greenhouse gas than CO2 – about 20 times worse. However, it has a short life of about 7 years in the atmosphere until it gets broken down to CO2. Hence why it’s so important to capture CO2.
How To Know If a Product Is Biodegradable
For a biodegradable claim to be accurately made on a product, it should state where it has to be disposed of in order to biodegrade. This is why at Biogone, the products we offer are always labelled as Landfill-biodegradable.
What are Recyclable Plastics?
The term ‘recyclable’ refers to where the used items are sent to a facility where they are processed into a raw media form that a manufacturer can then use to make more products.
Taking the example of plastic bottles, if recycled, they are sent to a regrind facility that grinds them up to chips or powder. Then a bottling maker company may buy those to make more bottles.
Why Most Plastics Can’t be Recycled
However, plastic is not like metal. Aluminium can be recycled to make more aluminium cans a million times. The technical reason for this is metal is formed by atoms of the metal bonding together. So, when you melt a metal then cool it again the metal atoms just bond to their adjacent atoms again quite happily.
Plastic on the other hand is made of molecules that bond together in long chains of atoms. Generally, chains of Carbon with hydrogen atoms along the sides. When plastic is remelted some of this structure gets irrevocably damaged and the plastic molecule loses some of its strength (and other) properties. This can only be done 2-3 times before the molecules are so badly damaged that the new plastic product does not have the desired properties anymore.
So, recycling plastic sounds good but the reality is it is only delaying the inevitable to be thrown out. The plastics industry is spending a fortune on marketing recycling, recycling to make people think if they are buying plastic items or packaging that it can be recycled, and all is good. But the industry well knows it does not work and they will keep selling virgin plastic media all the time.
Biodegradable vs. Recyclable Plastics: What’s Better for the Environment?
in Blow Molding Materials
In creating an environmentally sustainable plastic product, you’ll encounter different kinds of eco-friendly resins. Here’s an introduction to the advantages and disadvantages of biodegradables and recyclables in plastic moulding.
Biodegradable Plastics
Biodegradable plastics are made from traditional petrochemicals treated with biodegradable additives. Under the right conditions, these additives attract microbes that do the hard work of breaking the plastic down more quickly than traditional plastics.
Biodegradable plastic is ideal for items that are meant to be disposable, such as:
- single-use food containers
- Packaging dunnage, and
- plastic utensils that don’t have to stand up to repeat use.
Choosing biodegradable resins
Not all biodegradable resins are equally biodegradable. Some don’t degrade well in landfills — they’re better off in an industrial composting facility. Also, because of the chemical treatment that makes them biodegradable, most can’t be recycled alongside traditional plastics.
If you’re considering biodegradable plastics in your blow moulding project, it’s crucial that you pick the rights ones:
- Make sure the resins your supplier uses meet American Society of the International Association for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standards for biodegradability.
- Consider biodegradable plastics that perform well in anaerobic environments like landfills.
- Stay informed about current eco-plastic trends.
Bioplastics vs. biodegradable plastics
Biodegradable plastics are often confused with bioplastics, but the two are very different.
- Biodegradable refers to plastics made from treated petrochemicals.
- Bioplastic refers to plastics made from renewable feedstocks, such as wood, corn, soy, sugar cane, and grasses
Bioplastics are often compostable. Composting takes biodegradability a step further by breaking down rapidly into matter that can be used to support plant life. Bioplastics are best suited for products that are often thrown away with food and other organic materials:
- Straws and party cups
- Disposable plates and bowls
- Single-use utensils
Cost is currently the main drawback of bioplastics, especially when crude oil and natural gas prices are so reasonable. According to John Standish, the technical director of the Association of Plastic Recyclers, “Making polymers directly from traditional petroleum sources is by far more economical, so as appealing as this strategy is, it’s not economically practised very much today.”
For larger products and other items that are more likely to be reused, you may want to consider recycled resins.
Plastics made from recycled resins
Recycled plastics are made from resin processed from post-consumer and post-industrial virgin plastics. Going with recycled resin is ideal for blow moulding products that are not meant to be thrown away. Many common blow moulding items can be made from recycled materials:
- Large items with a long lifecycle, such as furniture, play structures, and sporting goods
- Industry-specific parts, such as medical equipment, auto parts, and device shells
- Plastic utensils, flatware, and cups that are durable enough for repeated reuse
- Products that consumers are used to recycling, such as food containers, water and juice bottles, and other common packaging materials
Americans recycle over 3 billion pounds of plastic bottles alone each year. In 2014, the total annual pounds of plastic bottles collected increased by 97 million pounds. Recycling plastics saves non-renewable resources, offsets the amount of waste that would end up in landfills, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
Saving resources
Conserving valuable non-renewable resources is paramount for sustainability efforts. As plastics recycling levels increase, so does the amount of PET, HDPE, and PP resins recovered. This, in turn, saves fossil fuels: recycling one ton of plastic saves 16.3 barrels of oil.
That means that each year, more than 24 million barrels of oil are saved in the United States just from recycling blow moulded plastic bottles.
Freeing up space in landfills
Keeping recycling out of landfills and incinerators is also a boon for the environment. Landfills take up space, leach harmful chemicals into the ground, and emit greenhouse gases.
The amount of waste that goes to landfills in the United States has dropped from a high in 1990 of 145.3 million tons each year to 134.3 million tons in 2013. Recycling efforts are a big part of this reduction. In 2013, 65 million tons of waste were recycled.
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions
Reducing greenhouse gases is key in the fight against climate change.
The process of extracting, mining, and producing new resources emits carbon dioxide, a harmful greenhouse gas. Every ton of plastic that’s recycled saves about a ton of CO2 from entering the atmosphere. Further, making recycled plastic resins generate only half the greenhouse gases of making virgin resin.
With many people heading to the beach for their last hurrah of the season and red tide alerts along with parts of Florida’s coast and seemingly, everywhere you turn, marine pollution is on the mind of late. While we can’t get the images of hundreds of dead fish out of your mind, we can at least offer hope for our oceans and waterways with the latest innovations and technologies to help improve the situations we are seeing on the news today.
Some companies like Disney, Starbucks and McDonald’s are working on alternatives to plastic straws and cups, for example, and moving to biobased plastics, but others are looking at the basic building blocks of bioplastics and finding ways to make them even better. While we covered many of these key players recently in “Plastics Proliferation Transitioning to Bioplastics Boost,” there is even more news of late, especially related to marine life.
Marine biodegradable plastic
One marine pollution solution was recently announced by Idaho-based BioLogiQ, Inc., a bioplastic resin manufacturing company, which developed its NuPlastiQ MB BioPolymer, produced by blending NuPlastiQ GP with PBAT (polybutylene adipate terephthalate).
The new plastic compound is BioLogiQ’s NuPlastiQ GP General Purpose BioPolymer which is a 100% natural, renewably-resourced, a plant-based resin that has been certified by TUV Austria to marine biodegrade in 28 days. When PBAT is mixed with NuPlastiQ GP, it will also biodegrade in marine environments.
Test results showed the new bioplastic is marine biodegradable with a 97% biodegradation rate in ocean water within a one-year period, according to ASTMD6691 standards for marine biodegradability.
Brad LaPray, President and Founder of BioLogiQ, said, “Our ability to produce a marine biodegradable film using a material that was previously not marine biodegradable is a huge technical accomplishment that can significantly reduce both plastic marine debris and the negative effects this debris can have in our oceans.”
How’s that for hope?
He added that “Given the current concern regarding plastics and ocean pollution, we are working on NuPlastiQ MB marine biodegradable formulations of NuPlastiQ GP with polyethene and polypropylene. Our target applications are drink cups, straws, lids, and grocery sacks.”
When asked about certifying the new resin, LaPray said that “The ability for plastics to biodegrade in a marine environment is so new and unusual that acceptable certification standards do not exist. We plan to work with industry and governments to develop new standards.”
BioLogiQ has come a long way from its 2011 roots of using excess starch from potato processing for bioplastics. According to BioLogiQ’s press release, their “goal is to help build a world free of pollution caused by fossil fuel-based plastics.”
In other good news as reported by the Digest in April, scientists at the Australian Institute of Marine Biology, successfully tested a biodegradable, super-thin “shield” that could be used to prevent coral bleaching at the Great Barrier Reef. The shield is made out of calcium carbonate—the same material found in coral skeletons—and is 50,000 times thinner than human hair.
Ok, not ok
Not everyone thinks bioplastics are okey-dokey, hunky-dory and the answer to ocean waste problems. Take Greenpeace for example, which is concerned that bioplastics will contribute to the problem of marine waste and insists that the only solution is to reduce the use of plastics altogether.
“Over periods of days, weeks or even months, a bioplastic item could present just as much threat to marine life as a conventional plastic item,” Fiona Nicholls of Greenpeace tells The Hindu. Reducing the use of plastics is the only real solution, she adds.
Science estimates that 8 million metric tons end up in the ocean annually. A number of initiatives—ranging from government bans on straws and plastic bags to fast food packaging swaps based on bioplastics—have been introduced to address the issue.
Several experts, however, insist consumer behaviour changes and not bioplastics are the solution. “People think that biodegradable means nothing is dumped in nature. But that’s not the case at all,” said engineer Virginie Le Ravalec of the French Environment and Energy Management Agency. Separate collection systems for bioplastics would be required.
Another example of things not being all hunky-dory with bioplastics is, as reported by the Digest in November 2017, 150 organizations in the United Kingdom that are calling for a ban on oxo-degradable plastic packaging because it falls short of protecting marine life from microplastics.
“The available evidence overwhelmingly suggests oxo-degradable plastics do not achieve what their producers claim and instead contribute to microplastic pollution,” Rob Opsomer of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation told Triple Pundit. “In addition, these materials are not suited for effective long-term reuse, recycling at scale or composting, meaning they cannot be part of a circular economy.”
The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind…
So what’s the solution to the marine pollution problem? Bioplastics? Overall plastic reduction? Both? As Bob Dylan so aptly said in one of his famous songs, “The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind.”
What exactly does that mean? Where is this answer that is blowing in the wind? How do we get it?
Bob Dylan had this insight to offer, “Too many of these hip people are telling me where the answer is but oh I won’t believe that. I still say it’s in the wind and just like a restless piece of paper it’s got to come down some …But the only trouble is that no one picks up the answer when it comes down so not too many people get to see and know . . . and then it flies away. I still say that some of the biggest criminals are those that turn their heads away when they see wrong and know it’s wrong.”
The good news is companies like BioLogiQ see the answer blowin’ in the wind and are grabbing it and doing something about it. We hope to see more companies like that making a difference to bring about marine pollution solutions.
CMP is constantly innovating machines that can run as much as recycled plastics so that it can contribute to saving the planet earth
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DESIGN GUIDELINES FOR BLOW MOULDING MOULD
Guide pins and guide bushings from common standard parts suppliers are usually used as blow mold guides. The guide length should not exceed 1 * D. This is particularly important for mold movement machines to avoid damaging the parallel guidance of the clamping unit and the blow mold guide. The bore for the bushing must be drilled towards the rear of the mold or be cleared laterally to be able to easily remove pressed in material and ensure a clean closing of the blow mold.
HOW TO SELECT TOOLING IN BLOW MOULDING MACHINE :
With a basic understanding of the differences in the types of head tooling
available, we can now look at calculations that will help make our tooling
choices. It is important to keep these points in mind:
Parison diameter is dependent on head tool size, resin characteristics,
regrind content, temperature, and punch-out speed.
Head tooling diameter is determined by part shape and size.
ROLE OF AIR IN BLOW MOULDING
In a blow molding machine, air has multiple purposes: pre-blow and inflation air expands the parison until it contacts the mold wall to reproduce the shape of the blow mold. The inflation air presses the material against the mold wall to reproduce surface details such as lettering, surface textures, etc. Furthermore, the inflation pressure promotes good and permanent contact between the mold wall and the polymer, since the polymer starts to shrink during the cooling period. In addition to these functions required directly with the actual blow molding process, air is required for pneumatically activated functions in the machine, such as the insertion of a blow needle to move molded parts (core pulls) or doors in the machine’s safety guard.
PLC in EBM
Until the late 1970s to early 1980s blow molding machines were primarily delivered with contractor control. This type of control offered the advantage that the electrical components could be checked by appropriately trained maintenance personnel and easily replaced in the event of a fault. Changes in the machine control system could be made with the help of simple auxiliary devices. However, the disadvantages were the susceptibility to faults and short service life due to wear of mechanically moving parts, the large number of components (up to 150 contactors, 12 temperature controllers, etc.), the size of the components, and how these elements were connected. This type of control was called “hard-wired programmed logic controller”.
CLAMPING UNITS IN EXTRUSION BLOW MOULDING
In all extrusion blow molding processes, a blow mold consisting of two halves closes around the parison once it has reached its full length. These two halves of the mold are mounted on the so-called mold mounting platens, which from part of the clamping unit (or closing unit).
RADIAL WALL THICKNESS DISTRIBUTION IN BLOW MOULDING
In blow moulding, the wall thickness distribution of the finished article is essentially determined by the wall thickness distribution of the parison, its position in relation to the blow mould cavities, and the local stretching paths.
SWELLING BEHAVIOUR OF THE PARISON
The visco – elastic behavior of the thermoplastics (here the memory effects) in conjunction with the flow channel geometry in the head causes the diameter of the parison to change after leaving the die. The wall thickness also changes and thus the length of the parison. This phenomenon is called ‘; die swell’’.
MANDREL HEADS IN EBM
In mandrel heads (also referred to as ‘’heart – shaped – curve heads’’, or cardio did heads) the solid core part is massively integrated into the basic structure of the head. These heads are also called side-fed heads.
SPIDER HEADS IN EBM
The main task of parison heads (blow heads or even just heads) is to divert the compact melt flow as supplied by the extruder into a vertical downwards flow movement and to form melt tube with a uniform circumferential wall thickness distribution.
EXTRUDER WITH GROOVED FEED ZONE
Blow moulding machines with grooved barrel extruders are universal machines for all types of polyolefin; the grooved barrel system is,however, indispensable for high molecular weight, high viscosity raw materials. In these extruders, the cylinder wall in the feed section features tapered longitudinal grooves.
SMOOTH BORE EXTRUDER
Blow molding machines with smooth – bore extruders are more or less limited to the processing of low to medium molecular weight polyolefin types. Smooth bore extruders are less expensive than those with a grooved feed zone and show less screw wear.
Is a Blow Molding Machine Used to Make Anything Other than Plastic Bottles?
For manufacturing plastic bottles, experts rely on a state-of-the-art blow molding machine. With this particular process, a manufacturer produces a broad range of finished products in varying sizes and shapes. Because of that, multiple industries depend on a professional company to make a specific type of plastic bottle needed.
What Are the Future Trends of Plastic Molding Machines?
Although the plastic molding industry took a hit this year due to the instability within the automotive industry, it’s still on target for breaking records. After all, the plastic molding machine is something that a broad range of industries rely on for both internal operations and the making of consumer goods. As demand increases, you can expect to see some exciting changes for plastic molding machines.
Can Extrusion Blow Molding Produce Complicated Shapes
When it comes to extrusion blow molding capability, most people think of standard plastic bottles, tight-head containers, jars, and larger water containers. However, the extrusion blow molding process can do much more. In fact, when using a technologically advanced extrusion blow molding machine, it can produce finished products with complicated shapes, and in varying sizes.
Rotational Molding: Advantages and Disadvantages
Rotational moulding offers a number of benefits, but it’s not the best production process for every part. So how do you decide if it’s a fit for you? Understanding the advantages and disadvantages of the process is the first step toward making a decision with confidence.
Importance of Extrusion Blow Moulding Machine in the Pharma Industry
Nowadays plastic is the reliable and most effective form of packaging for different industries and pharmaceutical domains. In the pharmaceutical sector, two types of polymers are used, thermoplastics and thermosets.
HOW TO START A TOY-MAKING BUSINESS WITH EBM IN INDIA?
Before starting the toys making business, it is important to do market research. It is important to collect as much information as possible about this business so that you get the knowledge of exactly what kind of toys are in demand in the market.
WHY INDIAN GOVT. ENCOURAGES TOY MAKING BUSINESSES MAKING BUSINESS
Indian government motivates and urges the Indian startups in the toy sector to maximize manufacturing and increase the reach of Indian made toys to the world. After holding a meeting with senior officials and ministers, the Prime Minister make a statement and urge the start-ups and young blood to innovate in the toy sector. Also, PM has given the suggestion to the educational institutions to arrange competitions in toy technology and design.
The Future of the Extrusion Blow Molding Machine
Everywhere you look, competition among different industries has exploded. Thanks to a thriving market, companies that once struggled now see incredible success. Just as businesses need ways to stay ahead of the competition, so do extrusion blow moulding machine manufacturers. Because of that, they continually push to come up with more innovative solutions.
Why CMP Machines are the BEST?
Innovation is at the heart of any successful company. Innovation keeps an organization at the top of their game, allowing them to flex their competitive muscles and take pride in the work they do.
What is Multilayer Extrusion Blow Moulding Machine?
Nowadays literally all humankind use plastic products 24/7 all over the world. It is super easy to get access to all kinds of plastic products. You might have come across bottles that have a shiny layer on the outer side, or different colours on the outer and a different one in the inner. So, what it is? It is a multilayer extrusion product. Well, let me explain to you how what it is exactly.
Exterior Surface (Mold Cavity) Design
The inner and outer walls of the part are formed simultaneously and integrally, but interior and exterior designs are essentially independent so we review them separately. As the design develops, the designer should begin thinking about the interaction of the plastic and the mould that will produce the part. The visual exterior of many products is formed in one half of the mould called a cavity. Following are some of the features of mould cavities the designer will want to consider.
Interior Surface (Mold Core) Design
The inner and outer walls of the part are formed simultaneously and integrally, but interior and exterior designs are essentially independent so we review them separately. As the design develops, the designer should begin thinking about the interaction of the plastic and the mould that will produce the part. The interior surface of double-wall blow moulded parts is normally formed by a mould core. Since the mould core must fit inside the cavity, there should be no question it meets the same core blow ratio = W>2D overall size requirement as the cavity.
About Parison and Parison Control
Parison blow moulding of intricate plastic bottles and other plastic parts requires air pressure control that is precise, repeatable and rapid responding. Proportion-Air offers electronic closed-loop pressure and flow control used to improve processes in the plastics blow moulding industry.
Why CMP Blow Moulding Machine?
Multiple industries and outside manufacturing companies depend on advanced extrusion blow moulding machinery. Without the right machine, there would be no way to produce superior quality products and we, at CMP, provide quality over quantity. Let us go through the advantages you will get for using CMP’s machine.
Information about the series of Extrusion Blow Moulding Machines in CMP
Have you ever seen a person at the fair or the mall during the holidays, blowing glass to create beautiful, artistic designs? It’s mesmerizing how a random piece of coloured glass can be manipulated by precisely placed hot air and become such a masterpiece. This art form inspired the current method of manipulating plastics to form many of the items we use every day, from water bottles to toys and so many things in between. This artful method is called Extrusion Blow Molding and it’s a common and inventive way of mass-producing hollow, lightweight products that are also durable and waterproof
How to select a Blow Moulding Machine?
The reputation of the blow moulding machine manufacturer you do business with has a lot to do with the quality of the equipment it sells. The right company takes great pride in offering its customers top-of-the-line products at a competitive price. Buying a blow moulding machine can be a nerve-racking experience for fresh entrepreneurs.
Types of products manufactured in Extrusion Blow Moulding Machine
Blow moulding is a manufacturing process for forming and joining together hollow plastic parts. In general, there are three main types of blow moulding: extrusion blow moulding, injection blow moulding (one stage), and injection stretch blow moulding (two stages). In the extrusion blow moulding process (EBM), plastic is melted and extruded into a hollow tube (a plastic parison). This plastic parison is then captured by closing it into a cooled metal mould. Air is then blown into the parison, inflating it into the shape of the hollow bottle, container, or part. After the plastic has cooled sufficiently, the mould is opened and the part is ejected. It is designed to manufacture high volume hollow plastic products.
Types of material used in Extrusion Blow Moulding Machine
When choosing a material for blow moulding; cost, density, flexibility, strength, and other factors should be considered into what resin is best for your part. If the elastomeric properties of the material are exceeded, a hole will tear through the material resulting in a defective part. Other relevant properties are largely based on your application and might include mechanical, physical, chemical resistance, heat, electrical, flammability or UV resistance.
Extrusion Blow Moulding Machine VS Injection Blow Moulding Machine
If you operate a business that requires specially formed plastic bottles or containers, such as juice and water bottles or liquid soaps and shampoos, it’s to your benefit to understand the various manufacturing processes for making those bottles and containers.
What are the 2 types of Extrusion Blow Moulding Machines?
Blow moulding is a manufacturing process used for the production of plastic bottles, containers, and custom shapes. At Central Machinery and Plastic Products, we use extrusion blow moulding (EBM). EBM bottles are easily identifiable by their pinch line across the base of the bottle. This line is created as the mould cavity closes on the parison and the tail is trimmed off.
The process of Extrusion Blow Moulding Machine
Extrusion Blow Molding is the simplest type of blow moulding. A hot tube of plastic material, called a parison, is dropped from an extruder and captured in a water-cooled mould. Once the moulds are closed, the air blown through the top of the neck of the container. When the hot plastic material is blown up and touches the walls of the mould, the material freezes, the container now maintains its rigid shape.
What is Extrusion Blow Moulding Machine?
Blow moulding is an umbrella term for forming hollow plastic parts by inflating a molten plastic tube or parison until it fills a mould and forms the desired shape. Think of it as inflating a balloon inside of a water bottle. The blow moulding process begins with melting down the plastic and forming it into a parison. The parison is a tube-like piece of plastic with a hole in one end through which compressed air can pass. Water channels are carved into the mould to assist in cooling.