Polystyrene is found as packing material in an assortment of shapes and sizes across supermarkets and households. Being a lightweight material, polystyrene is also used as cushioning substance in packaging of kitchen appliances as well as electronic items. Polystyrene is also leak proof and stays in shape while packing food and keeps edible items fresh.
Cushioning is with polystyrene foam fills. Polystyrene packaging is conveniently used in fast food restaurants and take-away shops where food items can be packed safely so that they stay fresh for a longer time. From highly fragile and expensive crystal ware can be packed and shipped easily by using foam fills and packaging.
Materials used for Packaging
• Polystyrene is formed from styrene, an aromatic monomer obtained from petroleum. At normal room temperature, polystyrene is in the solid state but can be heated and liquidized to an extent for molding purpose in the packaging industry. Polystyrene is thus, an aromatic solid polymer.
• This polymer was discovered by chance during the distillation of storax. The resulting substance was name styrol and the heating of this substance triggered a chain reaction of sorts to produce bigger molecules and these then thickened to form the polymer now called polystyrene. Polystyrene is nothing but a substance made of particular complex molecules.
• Commercially, the substance is used as expandable polystyrene EPS. It is an extremely sturdy substance and convenient for day-to-day usage. Not only that, polystyrene as a packaging material is very economical and effective. There is no danger of toxic chemicals if used normally; polystyrene is completely hygienic. It is a good insulator and keeps equipments safe from moisture and offers total protection and is hence, excellent packing material.
Machineries and Technologies Employed
• Hot-wire foam cutters are the simple machines employed to cut out expanded polystyrene into the desired shape. This cutter is made of heated and stretched nichrome wire. It is used to vaporize foam at selected spots so as to give specific shape.
• Tiny spherical polymer beads are expanded to about 40 times their initial size using a small amount of pentane. These then undergo maturing process and are reheated to get the final substance.
• For large-scale industrial productions, huge machines are employed. Manual cutters are a lot cheaper than the bigger and more complicated cutters. There are special 3 and 5 axis routers as well. Also, there are customized machineries available for polystyrene packaging.
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