Switzerland-based Clariant has developed new blow-moulding tools that enable customers to assess colour and additive masterbatches performance in real-world applications.
The new single-cavity tool can also be used on full-size production blow-moulding machines located in the company's technical centre in West Chicago, Illinois, US.
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Designed to reheat stretch blow-moulding of clear or colour polyethylene terephthalate (PET) polyester resins, the new tool can produce a 355ml round bottle with a long neck and curved sides.
The new tool can also be used to produce food and beverage containers, as well as assess performance-enhancing additives and barrier properties.
Clariant Masterbatches North America marketing head Peter Prusak said: "This new mould includes the details that customers told us they wanted in prototype tooling.
"The tooling we've had in the past produced flask-shaped bottles and the broad, flat panels were not as representative of the shapes that producers of liquor bottles and other beverage containers are looking for today."
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By GlobalDataPrusak also stated that the way plastic materials stretch to create a bottle's shape could change depending on the colour and other ingredients in the compound.
A mix of resin and masterbatch that work perfectly in one shape can create cosmetic flaws or unacceptable physical properties in another.
Therefore, the shapes of end-product containers need to be produced in a precise way.
