Inert fillers

Filler Inert material that is added to a plastic to modify the finished product s strength, permanence and various other properties an extender. 

Filler, inert Flame retardant A filler having no reinforcing effect. An added substance that inhibits the initiation and/or spread of flame and/or amount of smoke generated during combustion. 

Fillers. Inert inorganic substances such as calcium carbonate, clay, silicates, and asbestos are often utilized in vinyl compositions where clarity is not a requirement. While the carbonates and clay are used ostensibly to reduce cost, beneficial results are forthcoming. The carbonates produce a dry, matte surface and are claimed, because of their alkaline nature, to benefit heat and light stability. Clay improves electrical insulation. Silicates enhance surface dryness. Asbestos fibers provide the reinforcement necessary for dimensional stability in floor tile. Antimony oxide, per se or as a surface coating on an inert carrier, provides flame retard-ance. Their only major adverse effects are to reduce tensile strength and elongation and require an increase in plasticizer level to compensate... 

Corn (Zea mays) cob meal Zirconium silicate filler, inert grinding wheels Dodecachloro dodecahydro dimethanodibenzo cyclooctene filler, inks... 

Filler Inert material added to resin as bulking agent to lower cost or to confer special property (e.g. improve physical properties). 

Verumeinigung, Kontamination inactive filler/inert filler (extender)... 

Moisture, plasticiser, residual solvent or other low-boiling (at 200°C or less) components Medium volatility materials degradable from 200 to 750 C (oil and polymer residues) Oxidisable material at 750 C (not volatile in unoxidised form) carbon Non-volatile residues in an oxidising atmosphere (metal components, fillers, inert reinforcing... 

Fillers and reinforcements are solid additives that differ from the plastic matrices with respect to their composition and structure. Modern fillers can take on many of the functions of reinforcements. Usually fibers and lamina structures are counted as reinforcements while the ball type additives are counted as fillers. Inert fillers or extender fillers increase the bulk, solve some processing problems, and lower the price no improvement is seen in mechanical or physical properties compared with unfilled polymer, though by increased thermal conductivity they improve production rates. 

Pigments are also used to fill space in paint films. This important function is often abused by adding excessive amoimts of filler, inert, or extender pigments to reduce the raw material cost of the paint. 

Physical Dilution. The flame retardant can also act as a thermal sink, increasing the heat capacity of the polymer or reducing the fuel content to a level below the lower limit of flammabiHty. Inert fillers such as glass fibers and microspheres and minerals such as talc act by this mechanism. 

LLDPE by itself does not present any health-related hazard on account of its chemical inertness and low toxicity. Consequently, film, containers, and container Hds made from LLDPE are used on a large scale in food and dmg packaging. Some LLDPE grades produced with unsupported metallocene catalysts have an especially high purity due to high catalyst productivity and a low contamination level of resins with catalyst residue. FDA approved the use of film manufactured from these resins for food contact and for various medical appHcations (80). However, if LLDPE articles contain fillers, processing aids, or colorants, thek health factors must then be judged separately. 

ASTM D883 defines a filler as "...a relatively inert material added to a plastic to modify its strength, permanence, working properties, or other quaHties or to lower costs." EiHers (qv) that modify the properties and characteristics of epoxies are employed in epoxy resins for a variety of reasons. Then principal functions are to control viscosity, reduce shrinkage and the coefficient of thermal expansion, effect a cost reduction, and color the epoxy resins. 

Other techniques include oxidative, steam atmosphere (33), and molten salt (34) pyrolyses. In a partial-air atmosphere, mbber pyrolysis is an exothermic reaction. The reaction rate and ratio of pyrolytic filler to ok products are controlled by the oxygen flow rate. Pyrolysis in a steam atmosphere gives a cleaner char with a greater surface area than char pyroly2ed in an inert atmosphere however, the physical properties of the cured compounded mbber are inferior. Because of the greater surface area, this pyrolytic filler could be used as activated carbon, but production costs are prohibitive. Molten salt baths produce pyroly2ed char and ok products from tine chips. The product characteristics and quantities depend on the salt used. Recovery of char from the molten salt is difficult. 

The mbber compound usually requires an inert inorganic filler and small particle sise carbon particle for reinforcement. The mbber polymers vary in inherent tensile strength from very high in the case of natural mbber to almost nonexistent for some synthetic polymers, eg, SBR. The fillers most commonly used for mbber compounds include carbon black, clay, calcium carbonate, siUca, talc (qv), and several other inorganic fillers. 

For shipping purposes, the ampul is placed in aluminum foil or polyethylene bags. The wrapped ampul is packed in a metal can and surrounded by an inert filler material such as vermiculite. These precautions are necessary in order to minimize the chances of ampul breakage during shipment. Most mbidium compounds, however, can be shipped as nonhazardous materials. These compounds are usually stored in glass or polyethylene botdes. 

Sealant Manufacturing. Most sealants use mineral-based fillers which may contain small amounts of crystalline siHca. If crystalline siHca is present, dust control is important to prevent inhalation of these particles. Crystalline siHca is a known cause of siHcosis, a debiHtating disease of the lung. Another common safety concern in sealant manufacturing is the use of flammable materials. Not all sealants use flammable ingredients, but for those that do, proper inerting and grounding are needed to prevent potential explosions. 

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