Coinjection-blow system for barrier PC bottles.Multilayer injection-blow molding technology has taken a leap forward with the commercialization of a barrier polycarbonate bottle for medical use. A new coinjection system from Kortec Inc., Ipswich, Mass., produces a three-layer diagnostic bottle with nylon as the barrier core material. Kortec, a specialist in PET preform coinjection systems for stretch-blown containers, worked on this project with Uniloy Milacron Inc., Tecumseh, Mich., and GE Plastics, Pittsfield, Mass. While PC alone lacks the gas-barrier properties for medical containers, multilayer medical and pharmaceutical bottles of PC, PP, or HDPE HDPE abbr. high-density polyethylene with barrier materials are now viewed as a growth area and viable replacements for glass. The clear PC barrier bottle withstands autoclaving and steam sterilization at up to 122 C (252 F). Wall thickness of the 80-cc and 100-cc diagnostic containers is 1.8 mm. A 0.6-mm barrier layer of modified MXD MXD Mixed MXD Mixed Mail (US Postal Service) MXD Mixed Cell Count (blood) MXD Multiple XML Documents (file) MXD Maximum Diadic 6 nylon from Ems-Grivory America, Sumter, S.C., is surrounded by 0.6-mm inner and outer layers of GE's Lexan 144R PC. John Kermet, Kortec's v.p. of sales and marketing, says his firm found that Grivory G21 was the only nylon that maintained its clarity in this application. The first Kortec coinjection system was sold to GE's Polymer Processing Development Center in Pittsfield. It utilizes a special 85-ton Uniloy IBS IBS Irritable bowel syndrome, see there 85 injection-blow unit outfitted with a second injection unit. The four-cavity machine has a 12-sec cycle and produces 1200 bottles/hr. The system can be scaled up to 12 cavities to produce 20 to 25 million bottles/yr. Kortec also sold a coinjection system in Europe for cosmetic containers. The three-layer structure has outer layers of modified Grivory MXD6 nylon and PET in the center. It reportedly provides chemical barrier at lower cost than monolayer mon·o·lay·er n. 1. A film or layer one molecule thick formed at the interface between water and either oil or air by a substance such as a partially esterified fatty acid that contains both hydrophobic and hydrophilic groups in the same nylon or glass. Kortec is also working on three-layer containers of clarified PP and EVOH EVOH Ethylene Vinyl Alcohol Polymer (chemical industry) for pharmaceutical and cosmetics containers up to 50 cc. Meanwhile, Kortec is investigating three-layer cosmetics bottles of PET and Topas cyclic olefin copolymer Cyclic Olefin Copolymer (COC) is an amorphous polymer made by several polymer manufacturers. COC is a relatively new class of polymers when compared to polypropylene and polyethylene. (COC See chip on chip. ) from Topas Advanced Polymers, Inc., Florence, Ky. Kortec: (978) 238-7167/www.kortec. com * Uniloy: (517) 424-8756/www.uniloy. com * GE: (800) 845-0600/www.geplastics. com * Topas: (859) 746-6447/www.topas.com [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] |
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