Carbon black or coal black is one of the components that make up black plastic pellets. Therefore, the indicators of their characteristics and properties can directly affect the quality of black plastic pellets. Currently, N220, N330, S550 or S660 are popular types of carbon black on the market. In this article, Green Chemicals will discuss the role, important indicators, impact on products as well as the application of carbon black to black plastic pellets. Don’t miss it!
1. The role of carbon black in black plastic pellets
Due to its excellent quality, carbon black is an excellent material that can be purchased and used in the production of black plastic pellets. Carbon black has 4 core roles, specifically as follows:
- Carbon black increases the adhesion as well as the stability of additives and virgin plastic to create black plastic pellets. It is the adhesion of the raw materials that creates the mechanical durability of black plastic particles. Therefore, they are used in the production of electronic equipment and auto parts.
- Black plastic particles can be combined with many different superior additives because carbon black has the ability to mix and dissolve easily with most raw materials. Therefore, the basic properties of black plastic particles such as: UV resistance, anti-oxidation, etc. are also significantly improved.
- In addition, carbon black plays an important role in saving production costs. Because carbon black is a popular raw material on the market and the production process of black plastic particles or color masterbatch is not too complicated. Therefore, manufacturers can save quite a lot of costs when producing in large quantities.
- In addition, the stable electrical conductivity of carbon black will also directly support black plastic particles. That is why they become suitable raw materials for manufacturing electronic devices as well as ensuring safety during use.
- Carbon black is outstanding in its ability to create black color for plastic materials or final products. The addition of carbon black to colored masterbatch helps to give a good black color to plastic products, so it is an essential ingredient for many applications such as automobiles, insulation products and many other industrial applications.
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2. Important indicators of carbon black
Carbon black is a combination of 4 letters and numbers with the first character being: “N” or “S. Both represent the curing speed of a raw material mixture when not combined with carbon black. Specifically as follows:
- “N”: Is Normal, meaning normal curing speed, is a typical carbon black code of furnace technology (International name: Furnace Black).
- “S”: Is Slow, meaning slow curing speed. Their typical carbon black code belongs to soot coal produced by furnace technology.
- After the characters “N” and “S” will come the second digit. They represent the average surface area of carbon black. Manufacturers use N2 (Nito) surface technology with ASTM 4820 test method to determine the surface area.
- The 3rd & 4th characters will be decided by the manufacturer to mark the details of the suppliers together. In particular, they will have a value of 10 times the number in the 2nd position.
Besides those characters, the size of carbon black is also an important index to pay attention to. The size of the particles has a direct impact on the performance & quality of black plastic particles. In the plastic industry, particle sizes from 14nm to 90nm are commonly used.
Carbon black has a number of different applications due to particle size. Therefore, knowing the structure, porosity, physical shape and particle size is very important because these characteristics affect the performance of the product.
The properties and roles of carbon black are specifically expressed through meaningful indicators displayed on the packaging. Manufacturers and customers need to understand their detailed meanings to make the most suitable choice:
3. The influence of the indexes on product quality
The quality of black plastic granules depends not only on the indexes but also on many other important factors, specifically as follows:
- The size index will affect the dispersion of carbon black during the combination with virgin plastic. This will affect the color quality of black plastic granules and related products.
- The surface area parameter of carbon black affects the hardness of the surface of black plastic granules. Manufacturers can add additional plastic additives to strongly promote this advantage.
- The curing speed index will also be determines the quality of products from black masterbatch. Because carbon black reduces the induction time for vulcanization and slows down the vulcanization rate when the amount of surface acid groups on carbon black increases. The mechanism seems to be one of the competitive reactions between rubber and fillers to activate zinc oxide.
- The temperature tolerance of black masterbatch ranges from 160 – 280 degrees Celsius. Therefore, products from black masterbatch are applied in a variety of fields such as: Plastic pipes, automobile parts, electronic equipment, … The quality and life of the product are also significantly increased. Especially for products that are frequently exposed to heat or UV rays.
4. Applications of carbon black
- Carbon black is used in the production of black masterbatch. This is a variable raw material in the electronics industry. Basically, carbon black has the ability to resist & conduct electricity stably. Therefore, they can ensure safety during long-term use. In particular, black plastic particles minimize the problem of leakage or short circuit of electronic systems
- The surface area index makes carbon black a suitable filler in the production of car tires as well as other rubber products. Thanks to the ability to absorb heat and reduce thermal energy, black plastic particles increase the durability and stability of tires when rubbing against the road surface for a long time.
- The small and uniform size of carbon black makes it easy to dissolve into virgin plastic materials. Therefore, the color of black plastic particles is significantly improved. Black packaging products are a typical example. The color and quality of black packaging are largely determined by the uniform solubility of carbon black.
- Black plastic is often used in construction materials such as plastic pipes, insulation materials, roofing membranes. HDPE black plastic pipes are highly appreciated for their durability and resistance to chemical corrosion, making them suitable for water supply and drainage pipes. Black plastic sheets are also used for moisture resistance and as vapor barriers in walls and foundations.
- In addition, the stable durability and small particle size indices help carbon black to disperse well with raw material mixtures. Therefore, they are considered one of the perfect colorants. In addition, carbon black also contributes certain values to the current printing industry thanks to the above properties.
5. Conclusion
Green Chemicals has explained in detail the meaning of carbon black indexes in black plastic pellets. Customers also have the opportunity to learn more about Green Chemicals’ black plastic pellet products as well as their practical applications.
