Medical-grade Copolyester Offers Durability and Sterilization Solutions for Rigid Medical Packaging
Eastman Chemical Company announced the launch of Eastman Tritan copolyester MP100 at the Medical Design & Manufacturing West (MD&M West) trade show Feb. 9 to 11, 2010, in Anaheim, CA.
Eastman Tritan copolyester MP100, an enhanced-performance polymer for rigid medical packaging, maintains all the same properties that have made Eastar copolyester 6763 the industry standard for rigid medical packaging, including chemical resistance, clarity and toughness. In addition, it provides a balance of design, processing and performance advantages through higher heat resistance, greater inherent toughness and exceptional post-sterilization clarity compared with other polymers.
The high heat resistance of Eastman Tritan copolyester MP100 provides sterilization and durability advantages. Tritan allows higher sterilization chamber temperatures, allowing faster ethylene oxide (EtO) cycle times and a reduced risk of warping and sticking. The material’s heat resistance permits more rapid accelerated-aging protocols which result in faster validation and more reliable shelf-life qualifications, reducing time and labor. Plus, the higher heat resistance of Tritan reduces the impact of aging and increases a package’s shelf life compared with other materials.
The toughness and design flexibility of Eastman Tritan copolyester MP100 ensures the protection of sterilized contents against damage and breach of sterile barrier. Tritan offers the potential for package redesign such as light-weighting and down-gauging to reduce thickness. This requires less source material, resulting in reduced energy usage and shipping costs as well as less secondary packaging.
Eastman Tritan copolyester MP100 provides outstanding post-sterilization clarity and color. It quickly returns to glass-like transparency and original color after gamma sterilization to provide a high-quality appearance throughout a package’s life cycle.
Eastman Tritan copolyester MP100 offers extruding and processing properties that are similar to Eastar. It also can be thermoformed with less wasted material and time because the material does not stress-whiten or increase particulate or angel hair. This is in contrast to sheet made from acrylic, acrilonitrile or polyvinyl chloride polymers.