Petrochemical Products

Oxidized polyethylene wax is a low-molecular-weight polymer containing polar carbonyl and hydroxyl groups. Its core function in polymer processing is to simultaneously provide internal and external lubrication, disperse pigments and fillers, and serve as a coupling modifier, significantly improving the plasticization efficiency and surface quality of polar systems.‌‌ ‌Dual Lubrication‌: Polar groups provide strong‌ internal lubrication‌, while the long-chain alkane structure provides‌ external lubrication; ‌High Dispersion and Coupling‌: Polar functional groups adsorb onto filler/pigment particles, preventing agglomeration, enhancing dispersion uniformity, and improving interfacial bonding strength; ‌Thermal Stability Synergy‌: Some acidic groups help absorb HCl generated during degradation, extending the thermal stability of PVC and reducing efflorescence and blooming.‌‌

Oxidized polyethylene wax has various applications in the industrial field, mainly encompassing the following aspects: Coating and ink industry: Oxidized polyethylene wax is an important additive in coatings and inks. It provides good lubricity, helps to disperse pigments and dyes evenly, increases the gloss of coatings and inks, and improves their wear resistance and scratch resistance. It can also regulate the fluidity and viscosity of paints and inks, enhancing their printing performance. Plastics industry: In plastic processing, oxidized polyethylene wax is used as an internal and external lubricant, which can reduce the friction between plastic particles and equipment, improve the fluidity and processing performance of plastics, lower the processing temperature, and reduce energy consumption. At the same time, it can also enhance the surface glossiness and wear resistance of plastic products, and improve the molding and demolding performance of plastics.

Oxidized polyethylene wax is a polar wax with carbonyl and hydroxyl groups on its molecular chain. In hot melt adhesives, it primarily functions in two ways: Reduce melt viscosity and improve fluidity: OPE wax can penetrate between polymer molecular chains like a plasticizer, weakening the intermolecular interaction force, thereby reducing internal friction, decreasing melt viscosity, and increasing fluidity. This allows the hot melt adhesive to better wet the surface of the adherend during application. Providing lubricity: It can not only provide internal lubrication but also form an isolation layer between the molten polymer and the processing equipment, providing external lubrication and preventing adhesion.

The core advantage of oxidized polyethylene wax in PVC processing lies in its excellent compatibility brought by its molecular polar groups. It can balance internal and external lubrication, significantly promote plasticization, and enhance filler dispersion and product surface quality. ‌‌ Rigid PVC pipes/profiles: Leverage its plasticizing and balanced lubricating properties to enhance extrusion efficiency and dimensional stability. Highly filled PVC products: The higher the acid value, the stronger the internal lubrication, which accelerates plasticization and improves filler dispersion. Transparent/thin-walled products: Avoid precipitation haze to ensure transparency and mold release integrity. Foamed PVC: Regulate melt strength to enhance cell uniformity and surface flatness.

Micronized wax powder is used as a functional additive in shoe polish processing. Its core functions are to enhance abrasion resistance and anti- scratch properties, improve slip and feel, and assist in matting or gloss control. Anti-scratch and abrasion resistance: Regular spherical micronized wax migrates to the surface of the coating/wax film, forming hard micro- protrusions that reduce frictional damage and extend the duration of gloss retention on leather shoes. Feel modification: Provides a dry, smooth, and slippery tactile sensation while reducing dust attraction; specific particle sizes can produce a slight matting effect to avoid an overly glossy "plastic" shine. Anti-blocking and anti-settling: Improves the rheology of the paste, preventing wax-oil separation or caking at the bottom of the container during storage.

Micronized wax is a highly effective pigment dispersant in color masterbatch. Its core mechanism of action lies in the fact that its micron-level particle size is comparable to that of pigment particles, allowing it to effectively coat the surface of pigment particles, separate them from each other, and prevent agglomeration, thereby achieving excellent dispersion performance. Particle Size Match: The particle size of micronized wax is close to that of pigment particles, enabling it to uniformly fill the spaces between pigment particles and provide maximum wetting and coating effects. In contrast, conventional wax particles are much larger than pigments and cannot achieve this.

Main Functions and Principles Internal Lubrication: Micronized wax is compatible with the plastic melt at high temperatures, reducing internal friction between molecular chains and improving melt fluidity. This facilitates easier mold filling, especially for products with complex shapes or thin walls, and helps minimize defects such as short shots and weld lines caused by poor flow. External Lubrication: A portion of the micronized wax migrates to the melt surface, forming an extremely thin lubricating film. This reduces friction between the melt and the mold wall as well as the screw barrel, lowering equipment load and extending service life. Defect Elimination: Effectively eliminates surface defects such as flow marks and orange peel texture on finished products. Handfeel and Gloss: Imparts a delicate, smooth feel to the product surface and allows for adjustable gloss levels as required.

Micronized wax is a high-performance additive widely used in industrial applications. Simply put, adding it to products such as coatings, inks, or plastics can significantly enhance their surface properties—for example, making them more wear-resistant, smoother, or imparting a unique texture and appearance. Coatings and Paints Industry: This is the sector with the highest consumption of micronized wax. It encompasses wood and furniture finishes, automotive refinish and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) paints, industrial anti- corrosion coatings, interior and exterior architectural coatings, and powder coatings. Printing Ink Industry: In various types of inks—including gravure, flexographic, and screen printing inks—the primary function of micronized wax is to prevent back-side soiling and sticking during winding or stacking, while also improving the print’s scratch resistance and ensuring the smooth operation of high-speed printing processes.

Unlike traditional polishing waxes, which achieve a temporary high gloss by filling in surface imperfections, micronized polypropylene wax acts more as a performance enhancer. When added to paint or clear coat, the wax microparticles distribute evenly across the surface after the coating dries and cures: Exceptional polish resistance: With its high hardness and high melting point, micronized polypropylene wax forms a surface coating that resists physical polishing effects such as sanding and friction, ensuring the coating’s gloss remains long-lasting and is not easily restored or worn away by frequent wiping. Uniform Matte Finish and Silky-Smooth Feel: It provides a uniform, soft matte or satin finish and gives the coating a smooth, soft, silky-smooth feel. Scratch Resistance and Wear Resistance: It significantly improves the hardness and scratch resistance of the coating surface, protecting against wear and tear during daily use. Anti-Sticking: It reduces the surface coefficient of friction, preventing coated items from sticking to one another.

In the manufacture of color masterbatches, polyethylene micropowder wax primarily serves as a pigment dispersant, processing lubricant, and performance enhancer. Highly effective pigment dispersion and enhanced tinting strength: The particle size of polyethylene micropowder wax is similar to that of pigment particles, enabling it to effectively isolate pigment particles and prevent them from agglomerating. After melting during processing, the wax coats the pigment surface, further stabilizing the dispersion and thereby improving color intensity. Improves processing performance and increases production efficiency: During the extrusion and pelletization of color masterbatches, it provides both internal and external lubrication, reduces the viscosity of the resin melt, and ensures smoother material flow.

Main Applications ‌Plastics Processing (PVC/PE/PP/ABS, etc.)‌: Acts as an external lubricant to prevent melt adhesion to metal, and as an internal lubricant to promote molecular sliding; increases extrusion and injection molding speeds, improves demolding efficiency, and enhances surface smoothness. ‌Coatings and Inks‌: Migrates to the surface during film formation to provide‌ scratch resistance, wear resistance, anti-blocking properties, and matting/texture control, indirectly aiding subsequent processing, demolding, or interlayer separation. ‌Rubber and Masterbatches‌: Enhances filler dispersion, reduces mixing torque, and improves demolding ease and product appearance during calendering or compression molding.‌‌

In leather processing, micronized wax primarily serves as a functional finishing additive, imparting core properties to the leather such as scratch resistance, abrasion resistance, anti-adhesion, a smooth feel, and controllable luster.‌‌ ‌Scratch Resistance and Abrasion Resistance‌: Micropowder wax particles are dispersed in the finishing agent and concentrate on the surface after film formation, reducing the coefficient of friction. This causes external forces to produce slippage rather than scratches, significantly improving rub resistance and service life. ‌Anti-Sticking and Stain Resistance‌: Reduces adhesion between leather surfaces while forming a hydrophobic barrier, enhancing stain resistance. ‌Gloss Control‌: High-melting-point waxes enhance gloss and heat resistance; specific particle size distributions or polyamide waxes can achieve a matte or semi-matte finish.

Core Lubrication Mechanisms and Applications Plastics/Rubber Processing Lubricants‌: Used as internal and external lubricants in polymer compounding and molding to reduce melt viscosity, prevent mold sticking, and improve the surface finish of finished products; their heat resistance exceeds that of ordinary paraffin, making them suitable for high- temperature processing applications. ‌Surface Protection and Anti-Friction Coatings‌: Applied to the surfaces of steel cables, molds, or metal products to form a flexible protective film that reduces friction, prevents rust, and resists cracking; these coatings are often formulated in combination with polymeric adhesives.

As an adhesive, microcrystalline wax primarily leverages its high tackiness, strong flexibility, and excellent hot-melt bonding properties to provide structural shaping, increased tack, and resistance to brittle fracture in hot-melt adhesives and specialty coatings.‌‌ Core Mechanism of Action ‌Tack Enhancement and Form Stabilization‌: With long molecular chains and a high degree of branching, its viscosity after melting is significantly higher than that of paraffin wax. This enables it to firmly bond powders or fibers into shape, preventing loosening and shedding. ‌Flexibility and Crack Resistance‌: Its microcrystalline structure provides excellent ductility. After curing, the resulting coating or adhesive layer is resistant to brittle fracture and can withstand dynamic stresses such as bending and vibration, thereby enhancing the durability of the bond.