Clariant Masterbatches, a provider of plastics performance solutions, has introduced new chrome colour for premium packaging applications. The new Clariant liquid-look chrome masterbatch’s slightly translucent feature allows the contents of the bottle to be visible.
Clariant said that the colour offers new opportunities for manufactures and designers of bottles and packaging. The new colour masterbatche has been developed by Clariant ColorWorks’ design and technology centres to meet the increasing demand for a metallic effect.
ColorWorks senior designer Judith van Vliet said: “You see it a lot in glass and that kind of transparency is also very trendy. Clariant’s new chrome masterbatch develops a look that is the closest I’ve seen to a true metallized effect.
“It does a very good job of bringing those bright qualities to plastics for use in bottles containing prestige products.”
Clariant liquid-look chrome masterbatch delivers increased reflectivity in plastics
Designed primarily for polyethylene terephthalate (PET) containers, the colour provides increased reflectivity in plastics and can be applied on slightly off-colour resins, including post-consumer recycled (PCR) PET.
ColorWorks center in West Chicago, Illinois manager Stephanie Dycha said: “You can create very subtle, elegant markings. “You get a three-dimensional look, even on very thin sections like those that are typical of injection-stretch blow molded PET.”
The new masterbatch forms part of ColorWorks’ NewAesthetix initiative, which aims to develop unique colour and effect that would appear differently in plastic materials, unlike general colours. Clariant noted that the effect is the result of the pigment particle-size distribution and its integration with the masterbatch.
Dycha added: “If there is one place that has a mission to try new things, it is ColorWorks. That’s because ColorWorks is global – we’re not in just one country or location — and we’re not just focused on a specific market segment.
“In fact, we experiment with almost any kind of pigments or effects, even those that may have not been developed originally for application in thermoplastic materials.”
Recently, Clariant Plastics & Coatings Healthcare Polymer Solutions has launched new Mevopur ProTect oxygen-scavenging additive masterbatch for pharmaceutical packaging and medical devices.