Characteristics and selection principles of polyethylene wax

As a fine chemical material, polyethylene wax is widely used in plastic, rubber processing and paint and ink production. The pe wax mentioned in this paper refers to the important raw material for solving the dispersion of pigment or filler in polyolefin color masterbatch, which is specially used in the processing of polyolefin color masterbatch.

Characteristics and selection reasons of polyethylene wax

Polyethylene wax is mainly used in polyolefin masterbatch, including polyethylene masterbatch, polypropylene masterbatch and EVA masterbatch. Polyethylene wax is used in polyolefin masterbatch as a pigment wetting and dispersing agent. Mainly reflected in: wetting, dispersion, mixing and stability after dispersion of pigment.

When polyethylene wax is used in color masterbatch, due to the large amount of pigments or fillers, and the small particle size of these pigments and fillers, it is easy to agglomerate in the range of 0.01-1.0 microns. By adding homopolymer polyethylene wax, polyethylene wax will melt within a certain temperature range to wet the surface of pigment or filler.

The so-called pigment wetting is to use molten polyethylene wax to capillary penetrate the pigment to replace the air and water on the surface of the pigment. The initial wetting of the pigment has irreplaceable significance for the result of pigment dispersion. Usually, this process is completed by some seemingly simple steps, so it is very easy to be ignored. The wetting agent must make sufficient capillary penetration between the micro-pores in the pigment particle aggregate. Due to the capillary penetration, the cohesion between the pigment particles is reduced, and it is easily crushed and refined under the action of shear force. Therefore, the wetting rate and the degree of capillary penetration of the pigment play a decisive role in the total dispersion rate and quality of the pigment particles. In this way, weak shearing can be used to disperse the pigment aggregates. Once the pigment aggregates are dispersed, the wax will cover the free surface of the pigment and stabilize the dispersion of the pigment, which is the principle of polyethylene wax used as a pigment dispersion wetting agent. 

According to the wetting theory described by the famous Washburn equation, the viscosity of wetting agent and the number of functional groups have a crucial relationship with the wetting and dispersion effect of pigments. The difference in the performance of polyethylene wax, the difference in molecular weight, the viscosity of the melt, and the degree of branching will affect the wetting and dispersion of the pigment, reflecting different results, which will be reflected in the application. The polarity or functional functional group of polyethylene wax itself affects the wetting of pigment, the influence of its viscosity on the viscosity of the system, and then affects the shear force transmission of the material itself in the extrusion process.

Therefore, the selection principle of polyethylene wax as wetting and dispersing agent is as follows:

Appropriate molecular weight - viscosity, narrow molecular weight distribution, good wetting ability and high heat resistance.

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