Plastics that smell – this project is currently being put into practice in a development project at the GRAFE company, based in Blankenhain. The first result is a masterbatch for PP that is made to smell good by means of fragrance oil from an external supplier. “The principle is based on the migration of the fragrance to the surface, whereby the process is slowed down depending on the plastic, which prolongs the effect,” explains Lars Schulze, team leader for Material Science. Thus, the fragrance showed a good effect in polyolefins such as PP, PE and other soft polymers, such as TPU. In the gentle manufacturing process used by GRAFE, the masterbatch with the oil is exceptionally highly concentrated. Nevertheless, the masterbatch remains conveyable and can be processed normally at a dosage of between one and three percent.
Depending on the carrier polymer, transparency is maintained. “The length of the fragrance times depends on the type of application, the type of plastic, the ambient temperature and the supply of fresh air,” the expert says. He points to four-month-old samples in PP that still have a pleasant scent.
In the current project, a fragrance batch was created that smells like hygienically clean, freshly cleaned bathrooms and therefore bears the name “Fresh Air.” The range of possible applications is huge. Moreover, the topic of odor could be excellently combined with GRAFE’s core competence – the coloring of plastics. “A yellow that smells like fresh lemon or a green that gives off the scent of mint could be marketed excellently,” says Schulze, pointing to another advantage: “With our fragrance batches, bad odors are captured and superimposed. Thus, an end-customer product that exudes the typical plastic odor when untreated could become a real experience when unpacked!”
