polyethylene
Sign in to savethumb|140px|The repeating unit within polyethylene in the most stable staggered conformation
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Polyethylene is a plastic made from repeating units of a simple hydrocarbon molecule linked together in a chain. It's one of the most widely used plastics in the world because it's cheap to produce, flexible, and durable, making it useful for everything from bags and bottles to packaging materials.
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Article
34 sectionsContents
- History
- Properties
- Electrical
- Optical
- Manufacturing process
- Monomer
- Polymerization
- Joining
- Classification
- Ultra-high-molecular-weight (UHMWPE)
- High-density (HDPE)
- Cross-linked (PEX or XLPE)
- Medium-density (MDPE)
- Linear low-density (LLDPE)
- Low-density (LDPE)
- Very-low-density (VLDPE)
- Types of polyethylenes
- Chain branches
- Copolymers
- Non-polar copolymers
- Polyethylene with multimodal molecular weight distribution
- Polar ethylene copolymers
- Reactions of polyethylene
- Crosslinking
- Chlorination and sulfochlorination
- Bio-based polyethylene
- Environmental issues
- Biodegradability
- Bacteria and insect case studies
- Nomenclature and general description of the process
- Footnotes
- References
- Bibliography
- External links
thumb|140px|The repeating unit within polyethylene in the most stable staggered conformation
Polyethylene or polythene (abbreviated PE; IUPAC name polyethene or poly(methylene)) is the most commonly produced plastic. It is a polymer, primarily used for packaging (plastic bags, plastic films, geomembranes and containers including bottles, cups, jars, folders, etc.). , over 100 million tonnes of polyethylene resins are being produced annually, accounting for 34% of the total plastics market.