Milliken: Thermoforming polypropylene

Polychim aims to set a new benchmark in the performance of homopolymer polypropylene (PP) in packaging applications with the launch of a new thermoforming PP offering excellent aesthetics, high quality, and fast throughput to converters.

Polychim’s homopolymer PP grade HA31XTF draws on the benefits of Milliken’s nucleating innovation, Hyperform® HPN-600ei, to overcome the performance tradeoffs associated with conventional nucleated PP homopolymers in thermoforming applications.

Hyperform HPN-600ei stimulates an improvement in the aesthetics of final parts, achieving superior transparency and reduced yellowing for thermoformed goods compared to traditional nucleated homopolymers. As a result, new grade HA31XTF outperforms Polychim’s previous conventional nucleated homopolymer for thermoforming through better haze and less yellowing.

HA31XTF offers balanced physical properties, including favorable stiffness/impact balance and isotropic shrinkage behavior that avoids warpage. The combination of Polychim’s resin technology with the high crystallization temperature and isotropic shrinkage behavior provided by Milliken’s Hyperform HPN-600ei nucleator also gives the possibility for thermoformers to improve productivity by up to 10% and reduce costs.

For converters, the package of combined benefits means an exciting new opportunity to achieve desired quality benefits plus more cost-efficient production based on faster production cycles. The grade is aimed at clear PP & opaque thermoformed applications, such as food packaging.