Carbon black is a highly engineered form of carbon widely used in plastics to achieve a spectrum ranging from gray to deep black. Over the time, the properties of carbon black pigment have been modified to achieve required properties in the final product, such as increased tinting strength, improved the level of jetness or blue undertone and conductivity. Explore the different carbon black production processes and the properties to consider while selecting the right carbon black for your formulations by reviewing: How Carbon Black is Produced? Key Properties of Carbon Black Carbon Black for Plastics Finding the Right Carbon Black Grade...

Most of the polymer resins and composites have low surface free energy and lack polar functional groups, hence, resulting in inherently poor adhesion properties. Therefore, in order to improve adhesion of polymers with other components, be it fillers or even other polymers, adhesion promoters are added. Adhesion promoters have reactive functional groups which help increase the adhesion/compatibility of two immiscible components. Few examples include silanes, organometallics, polymeric adhesion promoters, etc. Are you looking for strategies to narrow down your adhesion promoters search for your application? Learn how to optimize performance of your polymer by understanding adhesion promoters & their importance, mechanism...

Silanes are versatile! They function as coupling and dispersing agents for fillers in rubber & plastics formulations, as polymerization modifiers for polypropylene synthesis, and as crosslinking agents for polyethylene homopolymers & copolymers. Due to the unique properties of silanes, they are used to enhance performance and processes in the plastics and rubber industries. Learn more about the chemistry of silanes and which mode of mechanism & filler treatment do they follow based on their functionality. Also, check out the benefits of using silanes along with their applications.

Fillers play an important role in plastics industry to achieve desired strength, dimensional stability and other application requirements. The performance of reinforced polymers depends not only on the filler characteristics, but also on its dispersion and the interactions formed at the polymer-filler interface. Good filler dispersion in a polymer resin is crucial for achieving desired end application performance. For effective dispersion of filler, first, it is important to understand about Dispersing and Coupling Agents. Find out how these additives operate at filler/polymer surface and what are the several benefits offered to formulations for improved performance and cost.

Polymer degradation is a natural phenomenon that cannot be totally stopped. It tends to deteriorate the physical & mechanical like molecular weight, melt flow rate, appearance, processing and thermal stability properties of the polymer. To reduce such damages that occur during melt processing or under conditions of use, antioxidant stabilizers are developed. Explore, in detail, about the need for antioxidants, and how they impact the processing & long term thermal stability of polyolefins (PP, PE). Also, select the right combination of antioxidant stabilizers & explore formulation examples for your polymer applications.