May 29 2009
LyondellBasell has launched a new polypropylene resin based on its proprietary Catalloy technology to be used by customers in a wide range of blown film applications. The new grade, Adflex 7492 XCP, offers customers an outstanding combination of transparency and superior resistance to impact, puncture and tear propagation. With a film thickness of 30µm and 13 % haze value, the resin represents a new benchmark for highly-modified polypropylene grades.
LyondellBasell’s new grade, Adflex 7492 XCP, offers customers in blown film applications an outstanding combination of transparency and superior resistance to impact, puncture and tear propagation. With a film thickness of 30µm and 13 % haze value, the resin represents a new benchmark for highly-modified polypropylene grades.
Catalloy Process Resins
Produced using LyondellBasell's proprietary Catalloy process, Adflex 7492 XCP exhibits an exceptional balance of softness, film clarity and good processing performance. Until now, several polypropylene products offered customers a wide range of characteristics for blown film applications. But when customers required transparency, no resin on the market could address this need.
"Thanks to the efforts of our researchers, we have now a competitive alternative on the market that delivers exceptional transparency, while maintaining softness, mechanical properties, good bubble stability and throughput," explained Caroline Cathelin, LyondellBasell's Customer Project Manager for Europe, Africa, and Middle East. "After pilot plant development, and successful trials, it was clear that our experimental grade has set a new performance standard for polypropylene used in transparent film applications."
According to Cathelin, the application potential is wide, ranging from consumer and industrial packaging to film used in agricultural and industrial environments. "With the successful development of Adflex 7492 XCP, we intend to develop new applications and opportunities in blown film applications, where PP grades previously have fallen short of customer expectations."
Reducing raw material costs
Test results have demonstrated that the resin shows promise in co-extruded blown film applications, where the new Adflex grade was used in the core layer. The throughput that has been achieved is close to fractional MFR LDPE, and the finished product displayed excellent clarity when clarified PP skin layers were used. "If customers require superior mechanical properties of the final film, they may also consider the use of mLLDPE skin layers in combination with a core layer of Adflex 7492 XCP," said Cathelin.
With this perfect balance of stiffness, toughness and clarity, Adflex 7492 XCP also offers the potential to reduce raw materials costs. "The resin's property profile will enable customers to down gauge film thickness while maintaining the rigidity of newly designed blends and coex film structures," said Michael Möller, LyondellBasell's Catalloy Process Resins Marketing Manager for Flexible Packaging. This performance combination enables possible cost reductions through reduced material consumption."