LyondellBasell Launches Purell PE 3420F

LyondellBasell Industries has launched Purell PE 3420F, a new low density polyethylene (LDPE) grade for use in pharmaceutical packaging. With a density of 0.933g/cm3, this product sets a new performance benchmark for commercial LDPE production. Purell PE 3420F resins process easily and have a wide range of best-in-class mechanical properties. Compared to standard LDPE, the grade has higher sterilisation temperature resistance and provides significant wall-thickness reduction potential, which offers various cost-saving capabilities for customers using blow-fill-seal (BFS) technology to produce applications such as infusion bottles.

Additional benefits offered by Purell PE 3420F resin’s high density and excellent melt strength include the potential for wall thickness reduction while maintaining a high water vapor barrier. Shelf life can be extended while maintaining wall thickness at previous levels. The high melt flow leads to excellent processing and design versatility. Converters report improved embossing with Purell PE3420F resins. The new grade has the potential to be well suited for intravenous bottle production due to its intrinsically high purity; it is produced without additives and thus has a very low leachables/extractables profile.

Thomas Maurer, operations manager of Purell resins plant at LyondellBasell, said: “With the Purell 3420F grade, we are truly expanding the operational envelope of our production facilities, as we are achieving densities not classically associated with LDPE.”