Introduction to Polyethylene

Polyethylene (PE), also known as polyethene (IUPAC name) or polythene, is a major

group of thermoplastic polymers, produced by the polymerization of ethylene. Depending
on the polymerization process used, various types of polyethylene with differing
properties can be obtained. They are categorized based on their density, molecular
weight, and branching structure.

Members of the polyethylene group are heavily used in consumer products, and over 60
million tons of these materials are produced worldwide every year. For instance, high
density polyethylene (HDPE) is used for products such as milk jugs, detergent bottles,
margarine tubs, garbage containers, and water pipes. Ultra high molecular weight
polyethylene (UHMWPE) is used in can- and bottle-handling machine parts, bearings,
gears, joints, and butchers' chopping boards, and may even be found in bulletproof vests.
Low density polyethylene (LDPE) is used for the production of rigid containers and
plastic film.

A simpler way of representing the The repeating unit of polyethylene,

repeating unit. Note, however, that showing its stereochemistry
the CH bond angles are not 90 as
this diagram suggests, but are
approximately 110 each.

Nomenclature
Polyethylene is a polymer consisting of long chains of the monomer ethylene (IUPAC
name ethene). The recommended scientific name 'polyethene' is systematically derived
from the scientific name of the monomer.[1] In the United Kingdom, the polymer is
commonly called polythene.

Under certain circumstances, it is useful to use a structurebased nomenclature. In such

cases, the IUPAC recommends poly(methylene). The difference is due to the "opening
up" of the monomer's double bond upon polymerization.

In the polymer industry, the name is sometimes shortened to PE, analogous to the
contraction of polypropylene to PP and polystyrene to PS.
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Polyethylene (PE), light, versatile synthetic resin made from the polymerization of
ethylene. Polyethylene is a member of the important family of polyolefin resins. It is the
most widely used plastic in the world, being made into products ranging from clear food
wrap and shopping bags to detergent bottles and automobile fuel tanks. It can also be slit
or spun into synthetic fibres or modified to take on the elastic properties of a rubber.
https://global.britannica.com/science/polyethylene

Polyethylene (PE) Polyethylene is a simple example of a polymer, and is one of the most
common and widely used polymers.
H H H H H H H H H H H H -C - C -C - C- C -
C- C - C- C - C-C - C - H H H H H H H H H
H H H Polyethylene

Polyethylene has a number of different forms with different mechanical properties. The
properties of the different forms of polyethylene are governed by branching, crystallinity
and most of all molecular weight. The three main types of polyethylene are high density
polyethylene (HDPE), low density polyethylene (LDPE), and linear low density
polyethylene (LLDPE). These different types are based on the structure of the molecule
of the polyethylene, which in turn effects its density, hence the name. The molecules of
polyethylene are similar to long strands of spaghetti.

In LDPE some of the carbon atoms are attached to three carbon atoms instead of two, this
causes a branch on which other polyethylene chains are attached. These branches are
relatively long and intertwine and link with other polyethylene molecules. LDPE is like
one long piece of spaghetti, with lots of large pieces of spaghetti attached to it.

HDPE is a more linear molecule where there are very few side chains caused by
branching, and these side chains are usually very short compared to LDPE. HDPE is like
a normal piece of spaghetti with little bumps on it.

LLDPE as the name suggests is a more linear, low density polyethylene molecule. It still
has a large number of side branches, however these branches are shorter. The molecules
of LLDPE are like spaghetti with lots of very small pieces of spaghetti attached to it.
Making small changes to these molecules brings about the ability to make a huge range
of characteristics. The mechanical, chemical, electrical and thermal properties can be
varied in a huge range of possibilities, this usually done by changes during manufacture.
For all of the types of polyethylene they have the following properties:
Polyethylene is an insulator, which means that it does not conduct electricity. In
fact polyethylene is one of the best insulating materials available.
Polyethylenes are chemically stable and inert. This means that they do not readily
react with other chemicals.
Polyethylenes are strong and lightweight.
Due to the differences in structure, HDPE is stronger and has a higher melting
point than LDPE, with LLDPE generally between the two.
History of Polyethylene
On March 27, 1933, two organic chemists working for the Imperial Chemical Industries
Research Laboratory were testing various chemicals. To R.O Gibson and E.W. Fawcett's
surprise the white, waxy substance they were testing would become a revolutionary
substance that would change the world. Polyethylene was born!

The researchers set off a reaction between ethylene and benzaldehyde, in an autoclave. It
seems their testing container sprang a leak and all of the pressure escaped. There was the
white, waxy substance that greatly resembled plastic. Upon carefully repeating and
analyzing the experiment, the scientists discovered that the loss of pressure was only
partly due to a leak; the major reason was the polymerization process that had occurred
leaving behind polyethylene. The first patents for polythene were registered in 1936 by
Imperial Chemical Industries. A year later the first practical use for the material, as a
film, was discovered. In 1953 Karl Ziegler of the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute and Erhard
Holzkamp invented HDPE (High Density Polyethylene). From there, two years later, in
1955, HDPE was produced as pipe. Ziegler was awarded the 1963 Nobel Prize for
Chemistry.
Did you know that polyethylene played a key supporting role during World War II? It was
first used as an underwater cable coating and then as a critical insulating material for
vital military applications as radar insulation. This is because it was so light and thin that
it made placing radar onto airplanes possible thus vastly reducing the weigh. The
substance was a highly guarded secret.
After the war, polyethylene became a tremendous hit with consumers It became the first
plastic in the United States to sell more than a billion pounds a year. It is currently the
largest volume plastic in the world.
Today, Polyethylene has the advantages of excellent moisture-vapor, chemical, and
electrical resistance. It is widely used for making containers, wire cable insulation, pipe,
linings, coatings, and engineered films. It is used to power transmission, consumer goods,
packaging, electronics household good and more. Its principal disadvantage is poor
mechanical strength, unless it has a little help from scrim reinforcement! Developments
in technology continues to improve its functionality making it the most efficient use of
natural resources petroleum and natural gas. We applaud these scientists for creating
polyethylene that is used in a variety of plastic sheeting products today.
Polyethylene is the largest volume polymer produced globally, with over 90 million
metric tons per year!
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of-Polyethylene

Polyethylene is the largest volume polymer produced globally, with a total over 90
million metric tons per annum. Since its accidental discovery in 1933 it has evolved into
a material critical to modern life. The first product commercialized was low density
polyethylene (LDPE) based on free radical polymerization. Shortly thereafter new
polymerization chemistries based on chromium catalysis and Ziegler Natta catalysis
expanded the product space. Improved polymer performance based on new catalyst and
application technologies have made it possible to have the diversity of use we see today.
It is an essential material to power transmission, food packaging, consumer goods,
electronics, household goods, industrial storage, transportation industries. Developments
in technology continues to improve its functionality making polyethylene the most
efficient use of natural resources petroleum and natural gas.
http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/bk-2011-1080.ch009 (book)

Polyethylene (abbreviated PE) or polyethene (IUPAC name polyethene or

poly(methylene)) is the most common plastic. The annual global production is around 80
million tonnes.[3] Its primary use is in packaging (plastic bags, plastic films,
geomembranes, containers including bottles, etc.). Many kinds of polyethylene are
known, with most having the chemical formula (C2H4)n. PE is usually a mixture of
similar polymers of ethylene with various values of n.

Polyethylene was first synthesized by the German chemist Hans von Pechmann, who
prepared it by accident in 1898 while investigating diazomethane.[4][5] When his
colleagues Eugen Bamberger and Friedrich Tschirner characterized the white, waxy
substance that he had created, they recognized that it contained long CH2 chains and
termed it polymethylene.[6]

A pill box presented to a technician at ICI in 1936 made from the first pound of
polyethylene
The first industrially practical polyethylene synthesis (diazomethane is a notoriously
unstable substance that is generally avoided in industrial application) was discovered in
1933 by Eric Fawcett and Reginald Gibson, again by accident, at the Imperial Chemical
Industries (ICI) works in Northwich, England.[7] Upon applying extremely high pressure
(several hundred atmospheres) to a mixture of ethylene and benzaldehyde they again
produced a white, waxy material. Because the reaction had been initiated by trace oxygen
contamination in their apparatus, the experiment was, at first, difficult to reproduce. It
was not until 1935 that another ICI chemist, Michael Perrin, developed this accident into
a reproducible high-pressure synthesis for polyethylene that became the basis for
industrial LDPE production beginning in 1939. Because polyethylene was found to have
very low-loss properties at very high frequency radio waves, commercial distribution in
Britain was suspended on the outbreak of World War II, secrecy imposed, and the new
process was used to produce insulation for UHF and SHF coaxial cables of radar sets.
During World War II, further research was done on the ICI process and in 1944 Bakelite
Corporation at Sabine, Texas, and Du Pont at Charleston, West Virginia, began large-
scale commercial production under license from ICI.[8]
The breakthrough landmark in the commercial production of polyethylene began with the
development of catalyst that promote the polymerization at mild temperatures and
pressures. The first of these was a chromium trioxidebased catalyst discovered in 1951
by Robert Banks and J. Paul Hogan at Phillips Petroleum.[9] In 1953 the German chemist
Karl Ziegler developed a catalytic system based on titanium halides and
organoaluminium compounds that worked at even milder conditions than the Phillips
catalyst. The Phillips catalyst is less expensive and easier to work with, however, and
both methods are heavily used industrially. By the end of the 1950s both the Phillips- and
Ziegler-type catalysts were being used for HDPE production. In the 1970s, the Ziegler
system was improved by the incorporation of magnesium chloride. Catalytic systems
based on soluble catalysts, the metallocenes, were reported in 1976 by Walter Kaminsky
and Hansjrg Sinn. The Ziegler- and metallocene-based catalysts families have proven to
be very flexible at copolymerizing ethylene with other olefins and have become the basis
for the wide range of polyethylene resins available today, including very low density
polyethylene and linear low-density polyethylene. Such resins, in the form of UHMWPE
fibers, have (as of 2005) begun to replace aramids in many high-strength applications.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyethylene

Polyethylene was first synthesized by the German chemist Hans von Pechmann, who
prepared it accidentally in 1898, while heating diazomethane. When his colleagues Eugen
Bamberger and Friedrich Tschirner characterized the white, waxy substance he had
obtained, they recognized that it contained long -CH2- chains and called it
polymethylene.

The first industrially practical synthesis of polyethylene was discovered (again by

accident) in 1933, by Eric Fawcett and Reginald Gibson at the Imperial Chemical
Industries (ICI) works in Northwich, England.[2] Upon applying extremely high pressure
(several hundred atmospheres) to a mixture of ethylene and benzaldehyde, they too
produced a white waxy material. Because the reaction had been initiated by trace oxygen
contamination in their apparatus, the experiment was at first difficult to reproduce. It was
not until 1935, that another ICI chemist, Michael Perrin, developed this accident into a
reproducible, high-pressure synthesis for polyethylene. That process became the basis for
industrial production of LDPE, beginning in 1939.

Subsequent landmarks in polyethylene synthesis have revolved around the development

of several types of catalyst that promote ethylene polymerization at milder temperatures
and pressures. The first of these was a chromium trioxide based catalyst discovered in
1951, by Robert Banks and J. Paul Hogan at Phillips Petroleum. In 1953, German
chemist Karl Ziegler developed a catalytic system based on titanium halides and
organoaluminum compounds that worked at even milder conditions than the Phillips
catalyst. The Phillips catalyst is less expensive and easier to work with, however, and
both methods are used in industrial practice.

By the end of the 1950s, both the Phillips and Ziegler type catalysts were being used for
the production of HDPE. Phillips' initially had difficulties producing a HDPE product of
uniform quality, and filled warehouses with off-specification plastic. However, financial
ruin was unexpectedly averted in 1957, when the hula hoop, a toy consisting of a circular
polyethylene tube, became a fad among youth in the United States.

A third type of catalytic system, one based on metallocenes, was discovered in 1976, in
Germany, by Walter Kaminsky and Hansjrg Sinn. The Ziegler and metallocene catalyst
families have since proven to be very flexible at co-polymerizing ethylene with other
olefins and have become the basis for the wide range of polyethylene resins available
today, including very low density polyethylene and linear low density polyethylene. Such
resins, in the form of fibers like Dyneema, have (as of 2005) begun to replace aramids in
many high-strength applications.

Until recently, the metallocenes were the most active single-site catalysts for ethylene
polymerization known. (New catalysts are typically compared to zirconocene dichloride.)
Much effort is currently being exerted on developing new single-site ("post-
metallocene") catalysts, which may allow greater tuning of the polymer structure than is
possible with metallocenes. Recently, work by Fujita at the Mitsui corporation (among
others) has demonstrated that certain salicylaldimine complexes of Group 4 metals show
substantially higher activity than the metallocenes.
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History of Polyethylene Polymers

Ethylene has been used in chemical reactions for as long as it has been in existence. It is a
very useful and reactive substance due to its double bond. It was not until 1898 however
that the first experiments to create long chain molecules with ethylene had commenced.
These first reactions however had several problems. First, solid polyethylene had not
been able to be produced. That is all the products of these early reactions had been waxes
and greases. These non-solid polyethylene polymers had little use at the time.

It wasn't until 1933 when the first solid polyethylene polymer had been produced. Two
scientists working for the Imperial Chemical Company had made this discovery. These
scientists, E. W. Fawcett and R. O. Gibson, had produced this solid polymer while
experimenting with pure ethylene gas at extremely high pressure and temperature. The
ICI didn't wait long before obtaining a patent for this new material and began to market
it.

The first applications of this early polyethylene polymer were for use as coatings. The
primary coating that the ICI marketed polyethylene for was as insulation on electrical
wires. The Telegraph Construction Maintenance Company had invested a lot in order to
coat their submarine cables with this new polymer. It was about this time when the
British Military had begun to use this polymer in the coating of their high frequency
cabling and wires. This allowed the British to make great technological strides in the
radar field. History has stated that it was because of the polyethylene polymer used here
that the British had possessed the best radar capabilities in the world.
It was these military advancements by the British that interested many of the world
powers at the time. Included among these powers was the U.S. government. The U.S.
government was then able to persuaded two American based companies (Dupont Corp.
and Union Carbide Corp.) to seek licenses from the ICI so that the production of
polyethylene could begin stateside. Before the end of the Second World War the
production of U.S. polyethylene had surpassed that made by Britain.

It was not until after WWII when extensive chemical studies began to be performed on
the polyethylene polymer. The manufacturers of the polymer quickly marketed these new
properties. New methods for processing polyethylene had been discovered during these
physical tests. Film extrusion and injection molding were two of the new processing
techniques used on polyethylene after WWII.

Another important discovery concerning polyethylene polymers came at about the 1940's.
It was about this time when the IR spectroscopy technology had begun to develop.
Substances including polymers were often subjected to this test to discover the
compound's structure. An important discovery that was made when polyethylene was
subjected to this test had shown that there were more than two methyl groups present in a
single polyethylene chain. This lead to the natural conclusion the polyethylene polymer
was not a straight chain polymer as previously thought, for this spectroscopic result to
occur the polyethylene polymer must contain branches along its carbon backbone.

It was also about this time when work commenced on discovering ways of lowering the
reaction conditions to produce polyethylene polymers. A polyethylene polymerization
mechanism were the reaction conditions were lowered was accomplished in 1951 by Karl
Ziegler. Ziegler was able to produce the solid polyethylene polymer at low pressures and
temperatures by employing a catalyst. Testing on Ziegler's polyethylene polymer had
shown that it had a larger density then the original high-pressure polyethylene process. It
was after this discovery that characterization of polyethylene polymers were made on
their density.
Shortly after Ziegler had discovered HDPE (High Density Polyethylene) another group of
researchers working at the Phillips Petroleum Inc. had discovered other catalysts that
produced the same results as Ziegler's process. These HDPE polymers were characterized
as having fewer branches than those early high-pressure polyethylene polymers (LDPE -
Low Density Polyethylene).

In 1977 researchers working at Union Carbide Corporation discovered a method to

produce a new polyethylene. This new polyethylene was made from monomers other than
ethylene gases, and as a result contained few short branches. Because of this property
they were termed as LLDPE (Linear Low-Density Polyethylene) Polymers.

New Polyethylene polymers are still being developed today. This polymer contains a rich
history rooted back more than a century ago. We will now present the individual
polyethylene polymers giving summaries of the reaction chemistry and
physical/mechanical properties of each type of polyethylene polymer.
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1873 The first study of the polymerization carried away by the creator of the theory of
chemical structure of organic compounds - Alexander Butlerov, the founder of Butlerov
School of organic chemistry.

1873. Alexander Butlerov. The first study of the polymerization

1884 Russian scientist Gabriel Gustavsson in his experiments with ethylene bromide
aluminum compound used as a chemical catalyst in the polymerization process. The
resulting polymer compound is a liquid substance with low molecular formula.

1884. Gabriel Gustavsson. Attempting polymerization of ethylene

1898 German chemist Hans Von Pechmann noted a precipitate while working with a
form of methane in ether. He prepared it by accident while heating diazomethane. In
1900, German chemists Eugen Bamberger and Friedrich Tschirner identified this
compound as polymethylene, a very close cousin to polyethylene.

1898. Hans Von Pechmann. The first production of polyethylene

1933 The polymer was produced again by accident by Reginald Gibson and Eric
Fawcett At the time working at the British industrial giant Imperial Chemical Industries
(ICI). The pair where experimenting by applying extremely high pressure to a mixture of
ethylene and benzaldehyde. However they had been a leak in their testing apparatus and
trace oxygen contamination initiated a reaction which produced a white waxy material.
As they were unaware of the containination they found the experiment difficult to
reproduce.
1935 Another ICI chemist, Michael Perrin, developed this accident into a reproducible
high-pressure synthesis for polyethylene that became the basis for industrial LDPE
production. Further evolutions have evolved around developing several types of catalyst
that promote ethylene polymerization at more mild temperatures and pressures. These
also have implications for the properties of the polymer that is produced by the different
catalyst.

1939 The first factory for the production of polyethylene was built. During World War
II, the British extensively used polyethylene as the insulation of electrical wiring in their
bomber planes. Elias in his popular scientific book about polymer chemistry
Macromolecules noted that according to most historians the British soldiers won the
Battle of Britain. But the real success of the battle was truly possible only because of the
wonderful insulator polyethylene. The material has become essential for the invented
powerful radars, without which there could be early signals of an air-raid and successful
defense of the enemy from the air. The German researchers, who have studied the
remains of the downed aircraft of Britain, have discovered a new remedy for isolation.
They have continued its investigation and has used as an insulating material for its
submarines. But none of the countries of the world community, which had a genuine
interest in such insulating means, have been unable to find their own solution to the
industrial production of PE.

1944-1959 During this period the company Badische Anilin- & Soda-Fabrik (BASF)
has managed to get the first license from ICI for polyethylene and began to establish
commercial production of PE.

1954 Hoechst (now Plant Basell) has become the largest manufacturer of PE materials
and chemical catalysts its production process. For the first time in the history of the world
we have received and tested polyethylene pipes of high density polyethylene. At the same
time, the search begins cross the molecular bonds of the material.
1960-1969 BASF had discovered that the use of highly active radiation could cause
the crosslinking but the method was extremely expensive and dangerous. Professor Engel
pursued more safe and less costly methods, focusing on numerous attempts using high
compression and heat in the presence of a peroxide catalyst. Like many great inventions,
Engel struggled to find anyone who could image using the plastic product until a
neighborhood chicken farmer asked him if pipes could be made from the material. So
Engel made his first application of plastic pipes warming the floors of the chicken coop.

1965-1967 Engel patented his method and sold license options to a number of
companies including among Mitsubishi, REHAU, Continenta. Most with the exception of
Wirsbo and Rehau, did not believe Engels method could actually produce a
commercially viable pipe.

1965. Tomas Engel. The invention is a method of production of XLPE-pipes

1970 In the pursuit of production efficiency GOLAN concern in Israel bought the
Engels patent. Initially the plant created production for the domestic market only.

1984 A group of engineers under the direction of Thomas Lenman was first published
indicators of quality standard crosslinked polyethylene pipes PEX. The basis of research
works became the corrosion 1980s.

1990 The Israeli producer has sovereignly mastered the industrial market from
crosslinked pipes PES in United States, Canada, and Germany.

2000 The first pipes made from crosslinked PE was appeared in Russian Federation.
2015 The Aksalut Plant was launched with unique production technologies which has
no analogues in the world.
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Classification of Polyethylene
Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE, UHMW) is a subset of the
thermoplastic polyethylene. Also known as high-modulus polyethylene, (HMPE), or
high-performance polyethylene (HPPE), it has extremely long chains, with a molecular
mass usually between 3.5 and 7.5 million[1]amu. The longer chain serves to transfer load
more effectively to the polymer backbone by strengthening intermolecular interactions.
This results in a very tough material, with the highest impact strength of any
thermoplastic presently made.[2]

UHMWPE is odorless, tasteless, and nontoxic.[3] It embodies all the characteristics of

high-density polyethylene (HDPE) with the added traits of being resistant to concentrated
acids and alkalis as well as numerous organic solvents.[4] It is highly resistant to
corrosive chemicals except oxidizing acids; has extremely low moisture absorption and a
very low coefficient of friction; is self-lubricating (see boundary lubrication); and is
highly resistant to abrasion, in some forms being 15 times more resistant to abrasion than
carbon steel. Its coefficient of friction is significantly lower than that of nylon and acetal,
and is comparable to that of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE, Teflon), but UHMWPE has
better abrasion resistance than PTFE.[5][6]

VLDPE is defined by a density range of 0.8800.915 g/cm3. VLDPE is a substantially

linear polymer with high levels of short-chain branches, commonly made by
copolymerization of ethylene with short-chain alpha-olefins (for example, 1-butene, 1-
hexene and 1-octene). VLDPE is most commonly produced using metallocene catalysts
due to the greater co-monomer incorporation exhibited by these catalysts. VLDPEs are
used for hose and tubing, ice and frozen food bags, food packaging and stretch wrap as
well as impact modifiers when blended with other polymers.

Recently, much research activity has focused on the nature and distribution of long chain
branches in polyethylene. In HDPE, a relatively small number of these branches, perhaps
one in 100 or 1,000 branches per backbone carbon, can significantly affect the
rheological properties of the polymer.

High-density polyethylene (HDPE) or polyethylene high-density (PEHD) is a

polyethylene thermoplastic made from petroleum. It is sometimes called "alkathene" or
"polythene" when used for pipes.[1] With a high strength-to-density ratio, HDPE is used
in the production of plastic bottles, corrosion-resistant piping, geomembranes, and plastic
lumber. HDPE is commonly recycled, and has the number "2" as its resin identification
code.

Cross-linked polyethylene, commonly abbreviated PEX or XLPE, is a form of

polyethylene with cross-links. It is formed into tubing, and is used predominantly in
building services pipework systems, hydronic radiant heating and cooling systems,
domestic water piping, and insulation for high tension (high voltage) electrical cables. It
is also used for natural gas and offshore oil applications, chemical transportation, and
transportation of sewage and slurries. PEX is an alternative to polyvinyl chloride (PVC),
chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) or copper tubing for use as residential water
pipes.

Medium-density polyethylene (MDPE) is a type of polyethylene defined by a density

range of 0.9260.940 g/cm3.[1] It is less dense than HDPE, which is more common.

MDPE can be produced by chromium/silica catalysts, Ziegler-Natta catalysts or

metallocene catalysts. MDPE has good shock and drop resistance properties. It also is
less notch sensitive than HDPE. Stress cracking resistance is better than that of HDPE.
MDPE is typically used in gas pipes and fittings, sacks, shrink film, packaging film,
carrier bags, and screw closures.[2]
In the United Kingdom, black (or blue) MDPE is often used for water and waste water
plumbing, and may also be referred to as 'black alkathene.'

Linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) is a substantially linear polymer

(polyethylene), with significant numbers of short branches, commonly made by
copolymerization of ethylene with longer-chain olefins. Linear low-density polyethylene
differs structurally from conventional low-density polyethylene (LDPE) because of the
absence of long chain branching. The linearity of LLDPE results from the different
manufacturing processes of LLDPE and LDPE. In general, LLDPE is produced at lower
temperatures and pressures by copolymerization of ethylene and such higher alpha-
olefins as butene, hexene, or octene. The copolymerization process produces an LLDPE
polymer that has a narrower molecular weight distribution than conventional LDPE and
in combination with the linear structure, significantly different rheological properties.

Low-density polyethylene (LDPE) is a thermoplastic made from the monomer ethylene.

It was the first grade of polyethylene, produced in 1933 by Imperial Chemical Industries
(ICI) using a high pressure process via free radical polymerization.[1] Its manufacture
employs the same method today. The EPA estimates 5.7% of LDPE (recycling number 4)
is recycled.[2] Despite competition from more modern polymers, LDPE continues to be
an important plastic grade. In 2013 the worldwide LDPE market reached a volume of
about US$33 billion.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyethylene

LDPE was the first solid polyethylene polymer produced. It was first produced in 1933 in
the research laboratories of the ICI in England. The two scientists accredited for the
development of this new polymer were E. W. Fawcett and R. O. Gibson. These two
scientists were able to produce this polyethylene polymer only at extremely high pressure
and temperature using pure ethylene gas. Unfortunately, ethylene gas doesn't react on its
own at high temperature or high pressure. These two scientists needed to inject a small
amount of oxygen gas into the reaction vessel in order to cause a reaction. The reaction
they discovered was very rapid and also quite exothermic.
http://wwwcourses.sens.buffalo.edu/ce435/Polyethylene/ce435_intro.html

Low-density polyethylene (LDPE) has a density ranging from 0.91 to 0.93 g/cm3 (0.60 to
0.61 oz/cu in). The molecules of LDPE have a carbon backbone with side groups of four
to six carbon atoms attached randomly along the main backbone. LDPE is the most
widely used of all plastics, because it is inexpensive, flexible, extremely tough, and
chemical-resistant. LDPE is molded into bottles, garment bags, frozen food packages,
and plastic toys.

High-density polyethylene (HDPE) has a density that ranges from 0.94 to 0.97 g/cm3
(0.62 to 0.64 oz/cu in). Its molecules have an extremely long carbon backbone with no
side groups. As a result, these molecules align into more compact arrangements,
accounting for the higher density of HDPE. HDPE is stiffer, stronger, and less translucent
than low-density polyethylene. HDPE is formed into grocery bags, car fuel tanks,
packaging, and, of course, piping.
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