Handbook of Industrial Polyethylene and Technology

This two-part handbook provides detailed and comprehensive coverage of the world's leading plastic material and will become the premier polyethylene text for the next decade. This handbook provides an exhaustive description of polyethylene. The 51 chapters are written by some of the most experienced and prominent authors in the field, providing a truly unique view of polyethylene. The book starts with a historical discussion on how low density polyethylene was discovered and how it provided unique opportunities in the early days. New catalysts are presented and show how they created an expansion in available products including linear low density polyethylene, high density polyethylene, copolymers, and polyethylene produced from metallocene catalysts. With these different catalysts systems a wide range of structures are possible with an equally wide range of physical properties. Numerous types of additives are presented that include additives for the protection of the resin from the environment and processing, fillers, processing aids, anti-fogging agents, pigments, and flame retardants. Common processing methods including extrusion, blown film, cast film, injection molding, and thermoforming are presented along with some of the more specialized processing techniques such as rotational molding, fiber processing, pipe extrusion, reactive extrusion, wire and cable, and foaming processes. The business of polyethylene including markets, world capacity, and future prospects are detailed. This handbook provides the most current and complete technology assessments and business practices for polyethylene resins. No other book on the market today brings all these elements together into a single resource in such a useful way. Resin producers, additive suppliers, equipment manufacturers, fabricators, and end-users alike will find this book invaluable for understanding this polymer technology. Barry Morris, Technical Fellow, DuPont AudienceThis handbook will be used extensively by engineers working in the polyethylene industry such as resin purchasers and suppliers, compounding houses, additive suppliers and equipment manufacturers for PE converters. On the academic side, chemical engineers, plastics technologists, industrial manufacturing engineers/researchers will find the handbook extremely useful.