Cover Image, Volume 140, Issue 5

Improved balance between dimensional stability, mechanical properties and processability of linear low density polyethylene for rotational molding

“…Rotational molding (RM) have drawn tremendous attention in a wide variety of domestic and engineering applications such as water or chemical storage tanks, automotive fuel tanks, kayaks, toys, and so forth, because it allows us to fabricate hollow, seamless, and uniform wall thickness of the thermoplastic product with complex shapes and without waste and internal stress through relatively low investment costs 1–5 . The vast majority of materials utilized in RM is polyethylene, linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) has been considered as a preferred polymeric matrix due to its excellent impact resistance, strong chemical resistance, good insulation properties, easy processing, and reasonable cost 6–11 . As a well‐known fact, materials expand or contract when subjected to changes in temperature due to change in the free volume between the particles that constitute the materials.…”

“…[1][2][3][4][5] The vast majority of materials utilized in RM is polyethylene, linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) has been considered as a preferred polymeric matrix due to its excellent impact resistance, strong chemical resistance, good insulation properties, easy processing, and reasonable cost. [6][7][8][9][10][11] As a well-known fact, materials expand or contract when subjected to changes in temperature due to change in the free volume between the particles that constitute the materials. For LLDPE with relatively high coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), expansion upon heating, and contraction upon cooling are particularly significant.…”