Plastic films offer advantages such as light weight, moisture resistance, high mechanical strength, good dimensional stability, excellent printability, and high transparency.
Light transmission is a key performance indicator for plastic films and requires measurement using specialized instruments, such as a plastic film light transmission tester. These instruments are widely used in sectors including packaging, agriculture, and optoelectronics.
The mechanical properties of plastic films serve as fundamental indicators for assessing how well packaging protects its contents during production, transportation, shelf display, and use. These properties generally include tensile strength and elongation, laminate peel strength, heat seal strength, puncture resistance, impact resistance, tear resistance, flex resistance, and compression resistance.
Plastic films exhibit varying barrier properties-such as resistance to oxygen and water vapor. Testing methods include the electric tester and the cup tester.
Surface properties, such as surface tension, depend on the molecular structure of the film material itself. Corona treatment is commonly used to increase surface wetting tension.
Common types of plastic films include polyethylene (PE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyester (PET), polypropylene (PP), and nylon; each possesses distinct properties. Polyethylene film is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, translucent, and non-toxic insulating material. Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) film is a clean, colorless, and transparent film that offers good light and aging resistance, as well as good tear resistance and gas permeability. Polyester (PET) film is colorless, transparent, moisture-resistant, and gas-impermeable; it is flexible, strong, resistant to acids, alkalis, oils, fats, and solvents, and withstands both high and low temperatures. Polypropylene (PP) film features high gloss and excellent transparency; it is resistant to heat, acids, alkalis, solvents, abrasion, and tearing, and is gas-permeable, though it cannot be heat-sealed at temperatures below 160°C. Nylon film offers higher strength than polyethylene film and is odorless, non-toxic, and impermeable to bacteria; it is resistant to oils, esters, boiling water, and most solvents.