Why Is Plastic So Popular and How to Test Its Properties?

 Testing: To test the quality of plastics is very easy. It does not require very high-end machinery and does not require very complicated test process. However, precision is required while performing the test. In fact, from testing granules in Melt Flow Index Tester to testing the tensile strength of the sample, all test processes are described in the testing standards.

 

 

Cost effectiveness: This is the prime reason behind the popularity of the polymer in the packaging industry. In comparison to glass and metal, the polymer is preferred for solid, liquids, semi-solids and other forms like powder etc. Bottle, jars, flexible packings, rigid canister are some common forms.

High durability: Although metal is more durable than plastic, but fails in certain environmental conditions. This is why, metal is less preferred for packing of liquids and other items in semi solid forms like oil and lubricants. Plastic is very durable in different conditions, against physical stress, transportation, handling and stacking load.

  

Barrier: It acts as a strong barrier against moisture, air, water, bacteria and light (if designed in a certain way). In very less cost, the content can be protected against many external factors that might affect the properties of the packaged item. 

 

Flexible: Due to flexible nature, the plastic can be moulded into any shape. From a disposable spoon to HDPE barrels, they are all broadly categorised as plastic items. With different extrusion process, any desired shape and size can be achieved. 

 

 

It is very simple to operate, a high precision testing machine used to evaluate the flow rate of the granulated plastic. It works on the principle of melting the plastic and weighing the molten plastic flown in 10 minutes. However, it is not as easy as it sounds. The granulated plastic is charged in the barrel. As the machine is turned on, the barrel started to heat up. It has a die of predefined circumference and height, also called orifice. The plastic starts to come out from this orifice after a certain pressure is applied by dead weights through the piston. The test will run for 10 minutes. The molten plastic comes out from an orifice in 10 minutes and weighed. This weight is called the MFI of the granulated sample. 

Melt Flow Index Tester comes with many accessories to perform the test accurately to get precise readings. For more information about it, contact our experts.