Adroit Market Research - Industry Insights

Polypropylene is one of the most widely used injection molding resins owing to its properties like extremely versatile and huge number of applications across various industries. Moreover, various parameters of polypropylene injection molding such as easy lending, melt temperature & viscosity, as well as cost efficient production, the product is increase in demand across the globe. As per the research, the recent demand for the polypropylene material across the globe produces an annual industry of near around 45 ML metric tons and it is expected that there is increase in the demand for this materia

Polypropylene is one of the most widely used injection molding resins owing to its properties like extremely versatile and huge number of applications across various industries. Moreover, various parameters of polypropylene injection molding such as easy lending, melt temperature & viscosity, as well as cost efficient production, the product is increase in demand across the globe. As per the research, the recent demand for the polypropylene material across the globe produces an annual industry of near around 45 ML metric tons and it is expected that there is increase in the demand for this material to approximately 62 ML metric tons in the year 2020. On the other hand, packaging industry is one of the major end users of the polypropylene that consumes near around 30%, specifically followed by the equipment and electrical manufacturing that uses around 13% each. In addition to this, automotive industries and household appliances both consumers around 10% each as well as construction materials consumers about 5% of the total market.

Polypropylene material is that it can be molded into a living hinge is one of the major benefits of this material. Thus, living hinge are the thin plastic parts which can bend according to any shape. They are not specifically useful for structural applications but are extremely useful for various non-load-bearing applications. Polypropylene material is majorly adopt for various living hinges due to it does not break even if repeatedly bent. Polypropylene material can be effortlessly copolymerized with other type of polymers resins such as polyethylene. Furthermore, copolymerization changes the product properties substantially, enabling for more reliable engineering applications. Likewise, injection molding is one of the significant processing technology in the plastic sector and also it has a special significance for the material in particular. Thus, the relatively fast process is used in the production of huge range of identical products like disposable products to extremely complex precision elements.

Why Polypropylene?

Polypropylene is utilized in both industrial as well as household applications. Its typical properties and high capability to adopt several fabrication procedures makes it reliable material for huge range of applications. Another significant property of polypropylene is its ability to function as a fiber and as a plastic material. Polypropylenes’ special capability to be designed by using various approaches and with several applications can be one of the major challenges for the other materials such as packing, fiber, as well as injection molding industries. The growth of the polypropylene has been sustained since the past few years and it remains one of the major players across the plastic industry around the world.

Types of Polypropylene

Polypropylene comes with two different types such as copolymers and homopolymers. However, the copolymers are further classified into random copolymers as well as block copolymers. Every category fits huge number of applications better as compared to others. In addition, polypropylene is also referred as “steel” across the plastic industry owing to the several methods in which it can be customized or adapted to best serve for a precise purpose. Thus, it is basically gained by presenting various superior additives to it and by making it in an extremely specific method. Likewise, homopolymer polypropylene is a type of common purpose status.

Important Properties of Polypropylene

• Toughness & Elasticity

Polypropylene will act with elasticity with certain amount of refraction, however it will also experience plastic deformation in its initial stage on in the deformation procedure, hence it is usually known as a “tough” material. Thus, toughness is an engineering-based concept which is defined according to the ability of materials to bend without breaking.

• Insulation

Polypropylene material has an extremely high resistance to electricity as well as it is useful for various electronic components.

• Fatigue Resistance

This material maintains its actual shape even after huge spin, flexing, and blending. This property is mainly important for creating living hinges.

• Chemical Resistance

Thinned acids and bases don’t react quickly with polypropylene that makes it a better selection for liquids containers such as first-aid as well as cleaning agent products.

• Transmissivity

Polypropylene can be used for various applications in which light transmission is vital. It high transmissivity is expected then plastics such as Polycarbonate or acrylic are best choices.

Advantages of Polypropylene

• Polypropylene is relatively inexpensive and readily available
• It has a relatively slippery surface
• It has better chemical resistance over huge range of acids and bases.
• It is extremely resistant to fascinating moisture.
• Polypropylene has better impact strength.
• It possesses better fatigue resistance.

How does the polypropylene Cost can be vary comparing to other resins?

As mentioned above, the polypropylene material is relatively inexpensive on the basis of raw material. However, resin costs varies depending on the demand and supply, this material will almost be a most reasonable option offered that it fulfills consumer’s requirements about the product. In addition, some of the secondary cost benefits about polypropylene comprise:

• Easy Injection Molding

With the liquid form properties that are beneficial for injection molding, this material is well-suited to offer reliable and consistent results- meaning less part and defects rejections, shorter production times, and faster cycle times.

• Thermoplastics Nature

As a thermoplastic, the polypropylene will degenerate to liquid form at very high temperature. It means, very less material cost and waste, owing to defective parts and additional material could be re-incorporated and melted with the base resin.

• Low Density

With a lower-density polypropylene, the material can provide high strength at reduced weights as compared to other materials or resins.

Regional expansion of polypropylene can split into North America, Asia Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East and Africa. In between these, the Asia Pacific is one of the largest market for this material due to the huge demand from increasing end-use industries. However, owing to the increase in demand in Brazil and China, the Asia Pacific region will grow at a significant pace. This growth is also attributed to the huge demand for food containers across the region.

In addition to this, demand in Europe is also anticipated to increase as manufacturers of this economy are gradually adopting polypropylene as compared to the traditional materials such as metal and glass.