What Is Acrylic Material And Why It Has Been Widely Used In Cosmetic Packaging

To meet the needs of the cosmetic packaging market, companies or researchers will develop materials with different colors, strength and flexibility and other properties.

The variety of materials is certainly good for cosmetic packaging buyers. But many ordinary people are sometimes very confused, confused between them in the end what is the difference, in the end, is not the same material.

Many people have questions about the often-used acrylic. Looks like glass from distance, but looks like plastic when taking a close look. It is called acrylic, is it glass or plastic?

 

What is acrylic

Acrylic is the most common name for this material, also known as organic glass, the English name is Polymathy methacrylate. The abbreviation is PMMA, its full name is called polymathy methacrylate, its raw materials belong to acrylic chemicals.

Usually, we can hear the name of acrylic cotton, acrylic yarn, acrylic nylon and so on, in addition to the use of acrylic sheets. Acrylic sheets are made of acrylic particles and resin and other material syntheses, while other acrylic textiles are made of acrylic fibers, they do not belong to the same category.

Many times we feel that acrylic is a new material, but it has been invented for more than a hundred years. As early as 1872, this chemical polymer was discovered. Until 1920 the first acrylic sheet was synthesized only in the laboratory. The factory completed manufacturing of acrylic sheet in 1927. The first manufactured acrylic was only used in aircraft. At the end of the 20th century, with the improvement and maturity of the production process, acrylic began to be widely used in more industries. With the reflection of light, well-designed cosmetic acrylic jars shines like a diamond. 

Now, acrylic has become an important material for many industries, such as cosmetic packaging bottles & jars, instrumentation parts, automotive lights, optical lenses, transparent pipes and crafts, etc.

 

Characteristics of acrylic

Acrylic has high transparency, clear vision, can reach more than 92% light transmitance, the light transmitance of ordinary glass is only about 85%. It can reach the transparency of optical glass, even after dyeing which increases the aesthetic effect of acrylic. The transmitance of acrylic helps make many shiny cosmeitc acrylic bottles & jars.

Thanks to the special material properties, the strength of acrylic is more than a dozen times that of ordinary glass. Acrylic can be described with strong phrase compared to ordinary glass. Products made of acrylic products will be very durable. Transparent products are fragile for being scratched. Due to its high strength, acrylic is also one of the most wear-resistant transparent materials.

Acrylic begins to soften at 113 ℃, melting at 160 ℃. This temperature makes it highly plasticity, it can be made into any shape easily.

Acrylic is very resistant to changes in temperature, humidity, acid and alkline, making it very suitable for outdoor applications.

Although acrylic has so many advantages, but it still has some disadvantages. The first is price, acrylic is more expensive than glass, it is difficult to replace the glass completely. Secondly, because of its low ignition point, acrylic while directly exposed to flame will melt and eventually burn. Burning acrylic will release toxic fumes, so when it’s cut by electronic tools, it will be in hot temperature and easy to deform and bend.

 

Looks like glass but is more like plastic

Acrylic belongs to a polymerized polymer material, which is thermoplastic. Yes, you read that right, it is plastic.

Acrylic is made of monomeric methyl methacrylate polymerization, so what is the difference between acrylic and other plastics?

Due to the many similar characteristics of acrylic and glass, some advantages over glass, and some advantages can perfectly make up for the shortcomings of glass.

Transparent materials are one of the most commonly used materials in many industries, and designers and manufacturers often choose these transparent polymers as an alternative when traditional glass is too heavy or breaks too easily.

Acrylic happens to have these properties of glass or transparent materials, but it is not glass, so it is referred to as Plexiglass.

 

Acrylic production process

The production process of acrylic is similar to that of other plastics, except that the specific temperature and the catalyst added may vary.

 

Cast molding

Casting requires a mold, molten acrylic is poured into the mold and left for several hours until it becomes semi-solid and can be removed from the mold.

After the sheet leaves the mold, it is transferred to an autoclave, a special machine that functions similarly to a pressure cooker and an oven. The autoclave uses heat and pressure to squeeze air bubbles out of the plastic, giving it a higher clarity and greater strength, this process usually takes several hours.

After removing the molded acrylic from the autoclave, the surface and edges need to be polished several times, first with a small grain of sandpaper and then with a soft cloth wheel to ensure a smooth and clear acrylic surface.

 

Extrusion molding

The acrylic pellet raw material is added to the extrusion machine, which heats the raw material until it reaches about 150°C and allows it to become viscous.

Then it is fed between two roller presses, and the molten plastic is flattened by pressure into a uniform sheet, and then the sheet is cooled and made solid.

The sheet is cut to the desired size and is ready for use after grinding and polishing. Extrusion molding can only press out thinner sheets and does not create other shapes or thicker sheets.

 

Injection Molding

Like other plastic products of mold injection processes, acrylic injection molding also puts acrylic pellets into a plunger or screws injection molding machine, high temperature melts the raw material into a paste.

Then materials are injected into the abrasive cavity and shaped into a fixed shape after drying by hot air circulation, and then it is ready for use after grinding and polishing.

Today, the use of acrylic is increasing year by year. Although acrylic is one of the oldest plastics in use today, its optical transparency and resistance to outdoor environments make it still the first choice for many industrial applications like cosmetic packaging.