4 - Additives in Polymers

Abstract

The role of additives in commodity and specialty polymeric artifacts is of key importance since pure polymers often show poor resistance to external factors (such as weathering, mechanical stress, etc.) during their processing or end-use application. This chapter provides a technical overview of the most important classes of polymer additives that can ensure protection against weathering agents (UV radiation, oxygen), resistance to heat or flames, and improvement of physical and mechanical properties, particularly plasticization and impact resistance. Compatibilization of polymer blends is also discussed due to its importance in recycling of plastic materials. Since esthetic appearance of finished products is of great concern, different coloring technologies are also reported herein, ranging from standard to “special effect” formulations. In the final section a remark on bio-based additives is provided, to account for the social and technological push toward biopolymers and all bio-based formulations. For a complete insight on this topic, for each class of polymer additives a wide range of commercially available products is provided together with their supplier names and main applications in polymer formulations.