Plastics research, developments take the stage at Antec

St. Louis — PFAS, recycling and design innovations were among the research projects highlighted at SPE Antec 2024, an industry conference hosted by the Society of Plastics Engineers, March 4-7 in St. Louis.

Ingenia Polymers of Houston is developing new grades of PFAS-free polymer processing aids for films, according to research engineer Jason Yang. That development is in response to concerns about the use of PFAS, which is being banned in food packaging, including plastics. Bans are in place or are being considered in five U.S. states and in the European Union.

"A PFAS ban is eminent, so suppliers need to come up with substitutes," Yang said. Polymer processing aids (PPAs) are used to allow film producers to run extrusion lines at low temperatures and high speeds. They also allow producers to prevent surface roughness such as the "sharkskin" effect.

Ingenia first commercialized PFAS-free PPAs in 2022 for blown film applications. The firm added another grade in August 2023 and now is running trials for an additional grade, Yang said.

At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, research assistant John Estela has done work in analyzing the quality of recycled polypropylene. He chose PP for his research because the material is used in high volume, is relatively inexpensive and is easily available.

"Uses of post-consumer recyclate are growing, but there are concerns about quality for automotive and other applications, Estela said. He added that higher prices for recycled material have been a challenge, as well as differences in processing at various recycling centers. "Recycling facilities in Ohio and Wisconsin might not do exactly the same thing," Estela said.

Demand for advanced recycling using various chemical processes also is growing. For his research, Estela extruded and pelletized virgin PP resin six times, measuring molecular weight and mechanical property stability.

Estela also tested the material at different temperatures to measure material degradation over time. He also looked at thermal stability and processing temperatures and conditions.

"The goal is to maximize recovery of usable material while retaining quality and improving part quality," Estela said.

Amani Russell, a graduate researcher at the University of Akron in Ohio, has tested uses of waste PET in filter material for surgical masks.

Russell used an electrospinning process on PET from used carbonated soft drink bottles. He then used organic salt to improve filtration of the material.

Results showed the reprocessed material had better filtration performance than material used in standard N95 masks, Russell said. He added the material was able to inhibit growth of bacteria.

Danny Allen, senior manufacturing engineer for GE Appliances in Louisville, Ky., stressed the importance of understanding how design interacts with assembly in injection molded part design.

"You need a good foundation in design and material selection and in mold builds and construction," Allen said. He added that 80 percent of simulations at GE Appliances are done before mold trials, with the remaining 20 percent done after those trials.

Some injection molded parts are used by GE Appliances for six to 10 years, while others are redesigned after only two years, Allen said. GE Appliances was a unit of General Electric Co. for many years before being acquired by manufacturing firm Haier in 2016. Haier still uses the GE Appliances brand name.