Polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG )

Polyethylene terephthalate glycol commonly known as PETG or PET-G is a rigid co-polyester thermoplastic material that provides significant chemical resistance, durability, and excellent formability for manufacturing. PETG is an amorphous plastic, which means that the molecular chains are not aligned or ordered in the material.

PETG is made from PET and glycol. PET supply the rigidity and glycol is used to lower the brittle effect of PET. PETG is produced in the same way as PVC and has properties somewhat similar to this one: its maximum temperature and its thermoformability in particular.

Properties

PETG offers excellent clarity, good impact strength, excellent thermoforming and fabrication characteristics, and excellent resistance to chemicals. It can be used whenever printability, toughness, and ease of fabrication and chemical resistance are required. The material is tougher than acrylic and impact-modified acrylic, providing fabricators with durable, long-lasting parts. PETG’s superior thermoforming characteristics allow it to be cold bend without showing any stress whitening, making it optimal for retail display cases and store fixtures among many other applications.

PETG can be sterilized and UV protected, easily vacuumed and pressure-formed as well as heat-bent thanks to its low forming temperatures. This makes it exceptionally popular for consumer and commercial applications that involve 3D printing, or other heat-forming manufacturing techniques. Additionally, PETG is well-suited for fabrication techniques like die cutting, routing, and bending.

PETG and PET is 100% recyclable and is more often used for thermoforming applications.

Benefits of PETG Plastic

PETG is strong and cost-effective when compared to either acrylic PMMA or polycarbonate PC. Its unique characteristics make it preferable for impact-resistant glazing and high strength display units. Suitable for digital printing, PETG lends itself to product materials, displays, and signage.

In general, PETG is a food-safe plastic that’s commonly used for food containers and bottles for liquid beverages.

PETG’s damage resistance is far higher than that of acrylic, to the point that it rivals the impact resistance of polycarbonate. However, PETG fabricates easily, making it an easy material for both practitioners and professional fabricators.

Benefits of processing PETG

• Dimensional heat stability
• Does not bleach when cold bent up to 2.5mm.
• Easily weldable, like PVC.
• Surface scratches are easily removed with a heat gun.
• Unlike Polycarbonate, it can be cut by laser.
• Items manufactured with this product should not be exposed to continuous use above 60ºC, depending on the applications.
• The same utensils used for diamond polishing of Methacrylate are also used to polish PETG plates.
• Although PETG is naturally clear, it takes colour easily during processing.
• It can be injection molded into a variety of shapes, or extruded into sheets.

Applications

Thanks to its easy thermoforming and chemical resistance PETG can be used in a wide variety of markets and in a number of different applications. It is commonly used in single use and reusable drinking bottles, cooking oil containers, and FDA-compliant food storage containers. However, PETG is also found across the medical field; its rigid structure allows it to survive harsh sterilization processes, making it a perfect material to be used in medical implants, as well as pharmaceutical and medical device packaging. PETG is used where a product free from chlorine and compatible with environmental requirements is sought.

PETG is an excellent material to use in modern 3D printers, and is quickly becoming a favourite among the community as it becomes more accessible. With the correct print settings, PETG filament prints easily, has excellent layer adhesion, and is odourless while it prints. It also has very low shrinkage properties, which enables larger prints than materials like PLA or ABS. This allows it to print objects that can sustain high temperature, food-safe applications, and exceptional impact.

Diving deeper, PETG plastic is often the material of choice for point-of-sale stands, for the visual merchandising, retail display and graphic arts markets. Since it’s easy to manufacture in a wide range of shapes and colours, architectural design often turn to PETG material for eye-catching signage that attracts customers for display units, architectural fixtures and accessories, and light fixtures 

The added benefit of easy printing helps for graphic arts – for all primary printing processes; works well for clear/translucent print projects

Difference between PET and PETG?

PET, or Polyethylene terephthalate, is a combination of two monomers. PETG is of the same hemical composition as PET but with the addition of glycol. With just this one addition, the chemical composition is completely changed, creating a whole new plastic.

The addition of glycol to create PETG removes the hazing effect seen during heating and also prevents an undesirable crystallization effect that causes standard PET to become brittle.

PETG is less brittle and more pliable than its PET counterpart, making it ideal for bottles. It also has better shock resistance and is better suited to higher temperatures.

Additionally, the inclusion of glycol in this plastic will transform the outer walls of a bottle into a softer and more pliable material, making it easier and more comfortable to grip. Despite these advantages, this softer outer wall is easier to scratch, more susceptible to damaging UV light, and cannot be autoclaved. All things considered, these drawbacks are relatively minor when compared to PETG’s superior heat handling, shock resistance, and comfortable grip.

Arpadis is one of the largest chemical distributor in Europe.

Arpadis is handling the storage, transport, export & import formalities of clear PETG sheets globally.

PMMA CAST

The highest quality PMMA sheets are produced by cell casting. The polymerization and molding steps occur concurrently.Liquid ingredients mix in glass molds to form Cast Acrylic. Casting is more labor intensive and more expensive. Casting yields a harder, sturdier, and more homogenous product. Casting lends greater chemical resistance over extrusion, making it the preferred material for uses involving fragrance, lotions, or other solvents. Available in a broad range of standard and custom colors for a variety of applications, cast acrylic is more pliable than extruded, less likely to bend, chip, or melt during milling.

Injection Molding

• Melt temperature : 200-250°C
• Mold temperature : 40-80°C
• High injection pressures are needed because of poor flow properties and it may be necessary to inject slowly to get the correct flow
• Internal stresses can be eliminated by heating at 80°C

 

PMMA XT – EXTRUDED

Extrusion is a continuous manufacturing production method where PMMA granular is first heated then fed through barrels where the physical process occurs. As a result, extruded acrylic is heterogeneous with properties that may vary depending upon the direction of extrusion.

Extruded acrylic costs less than CAST and is more dimensionally stable, meaning the thickness is more consistent across sheets. Softer, with a lower melting temperature than in its cast form, extruded acrylic is easier to laser cut, rout, and polishes more cost-effectively.

Extruded acrylic is less susceptible to dirt, lint, or particulate contamination in the production process. Additionally, because of its lower melting point, it is better suited to cementing and thermoforming.

Both Cast and extruded can be polished, it is more durable option for multiple applications.

Extrusion process

• Extrusion temperature : 180-250°C
• A degassing screw with an L/D ratio of 20-30 is recommended

 

Polymethylmethacrylate ( PMMA )- Granular

PMMA granular is a clear, colorless polymer available in pellets and small granules form, which are then formed with all thermoplastic methods (including injection molding, compression molding, and extrusion).The strength of the material is higher than molding grades owing to its extremely high molecular mass. Rubber toughening has been used to increase the toughness of PMMA owing to its brittle behavior in response to applied loads

Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)

Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) is a thermoplastic polymer, also known as acrylic or acrylic glass is a transparent and rigid thermoplastic often used in sheet form as a lightweight or shatter-resistant alternative to glass.

Production

Poly(methyl methacrylate) is produced by free‐radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate in mass (when it is in sheet form) or suspension polymerization.

PMMA (Acrylic) polymer has a Refractive Index of 1.49 and a density ranges between 1.17-1.20 g/cm³ which is half less than that of glass.

Our Arpadis PMMA is known on the market as Acryma XT, Acryma CAST and Acryma Granular.

PMMA, like many thermoplastics, is often technically classified as a type of glass (in that it is a non-crystalline vitreous substance) hence its occasional historic designation as acrylic glass. Chemically, it is the synthetic polymer of methyl methacrylate. The material was developed in 1928 in several different laboratories by many chemists.

PMMA is an economical alternative to polycarbonate (PC) when tensile strength, flexural strength, transparency, polishability, and UV tolerance are more important than impact strength, chemical resistance and heat resistance.

Additionally, PMMA is a “BPA-Free” substitute for PC and non-toxic in solid form.

Non-modified PMMA behaves in a brittle manner when under load, especially under an impact force, and is more prone to scratching than conventional inorganic glass, but modified PMMA is sometimes able to achieve high scratch and impact resistance.

PMMA is 100% recyclable, it can be formed into sheets that are used in construction for windows and doors, medical sector, advertising industry and more.

Pure PMMA sometimes does not exhibit the property standards to meet the demand from specific applications, co-monomers, additives or fillers are used to further enhance PMMA properties such as impact resistance, chemical resistance, flame retardancy, light diffusion, UV light filtering, or optical effects. For examples:

• Use of co-monomer methyl acrylate enhances the thermal stability by decreasing the tendency to depolymerize during heat processing
• Plasticizers are added to modify glass transition, impact strength
• Fillerscan be added to modify final material properties or improve cost effectiveness
• Dye can be added during polymerization for UV light protection or impart certain color

PMMA is suitable for processing by injection molding, extrusion XT, extrusion blow molding (impact modified acrylics only), thermoforming and casting CAST.
PMMA sheets are available from 1-25mm and size of 2.05*3.05m in clear, opal and coloured and in different forms and from different processes:

• PMMA granular
• PMMA extruded
• PMMA Cast

Uses

Acrylics sheets are a transparent thermoplastic homopolymer. The material is similar to polycarbonate and is suitable for use as an impact resistant alternative to glass (particularly when the high impact strength of PC is not required). It is generally considered one of the clearest plastics on the market.

Common uses include lenses, acrylic nails, paint, airplane windows, security barriers, medical devices, LCD screens, COVID 19 protection panels and furniture. Because of its clarity, it is also often used for windows, tanks, and enclosures around exhibits.

• Car windows, smartphone screens to aquariums.
• Shatterproof replacement for glass
• Glass roofing, façade design, advertising, automotive headlamps, etc.
• PMMA sheets are used for designing LED lights where it helps maximize light emitting potential
• Acrylic is also available as a filament for 3D printing (typically available as a transparent, white, or black filament).
• Due to its transparency and stiffness, PMMA is also used as 3D Printing material.
• PMMA sheets are used in automotive industry as car windows, motorcycle windshields, interior and exterior panels, fenders etc. Also colored acrylic sheets are used in car indicator light covers. It is also used for windows of a ship because of the salt resistance. 

Advantages of PMMA:

• Transparent polymer
• Better scratch resistant vs other clear plastics
• Clarity, Lighter alternative to glass – Excellent light transmission
• High resistance to UV light and weathering,
• Transparency
• Economic substitute for polycarbonate
• Can be cut using laser
• Available in a wide variety of colors
• PMMA can liquefy, which allows them to be easily injection molded and then subsequently recycled.
• Hardness
• Chemical resistance to detergents, cleaners, inorganic acids, alkalies.
• Does not contain or release Bisphenol A (BPA) during hydrolysis
• Low moisture and water absorbing capacity, due to which products made have good dimensional stability.

Arpadis is one of the largest chemical distributor in Europe.

Arpadis is handling the storage, transport, export & import formalities of clear and coloured acrylic PMMA sheets and granular globally.

Plastics

• PMMA sheets
• PC sheets
• PETG sheets