An image showcasing the glowing effect of a cup made with yellow-green injection-molding glow-in-the-dark powder, featuring a lid and a straw.

Glow In The Dark Powder Mixed With Plastic

Glow in the dark powder can be mixed with various transparent or semi-transparent plastic materials such as PP, PE, PET, PVC, ABS, PLA, PS, AS, and Surlyn resin to create a range of luminous plastic products. Examples include glowing cups and tableware, glowing toys and sports equipment, luminous parts or accessories, glow masterbatches, and wires. Glow powder is non-toxic, environmentally friendly, and radiation-free. Products made with it can pass various safety tests.

Applicable Processes

Glow plastic products can be effectively produced using the following mature processes:

Injection Molding
Extrusion Molding
Blow Molding

How to Choose

Glow powder comes in different colors and particle sizes. To recommend the best option, we need to understand your specific product requirements and process conditions. Please contact us to discuss your needs so we can provide tailored recommendations.

Common Issues

When ordinary glow powder is mixed with plastic for processing, a common issue is blackening. This occurs because the high hardness of glow powder particles causes significant friction with the equipment during production, resulting in metal impurities mixing into the plastic products and causing blackening. Our company has developed a special glow powder for plastics, which significantly reduces blackening and improves production efficiency.

INJECTION MOLDING

A special glow powder for injection molding has been developed. Compared to ordinary glow powder, it is less likely to turn black during use.
The mixing speed should be as low as possible. Manual mixing is best. If using a mixing machine, the speed should be reduced and it should not be run continuously, only in short bursts.
It is recommended to use an injection molding machine with a small hopper. If the hopper is too large, the glow powder can easily settle at the bottom, making it hard to mix evenly.
If using glow masterbatch, the plastic raw material should preferably be in granular form. If using glow powder, the plastic raw material should preferably be in powder form. When both are of similar shapes, they mix more easily, and the dispersion of the glow powder in the final product will be better.

EXTRUSION MOLDING

It is best to use a small-diameter extruder to minimize residence time. Extruders with large inner wall areas or complex screw shapes often cause the final product to darken.
Glow pigments come in different particle sizes. When using glow pigments in the extrusion process, the particle size should be chosen based on the size of the extruder nozzle.
Various glowing plastic products can be made through extrusion molding, such as glow-in-the-dark 3D filaments, glow masterbatch, and other tubes and films.

BLOW MOLDING

When using the blow molding process to produce thin-walled products such as straws and cups, it is recommended to use ultra-fine luminescent powder to ensure transparency and aesthetic appeal. Ultra-fine luminescent powder has smaller particle sizes, which can disperse evenly in the plastic, avoiding particle aggregation and thus maintaining the product’s transparency.
The ratio of luminescent powder added to the plastic should be controlled within 15%. Exceeding this ratio can cause the product to darken and affect its appearance. It is recommended to conduct small-scale tests during production to determine the optimal addition ratio, ensuring the product has both good luminescent effects and aesthetic appeal.
Choosing luminescent powder certified for food safety is crucial. GlowUp® brand luminescent powder can pass food safety tests in end products, ensuring they are safe for human use.

Tips (Precautions for using glow powder):

Glow pigments are hard crystals. Prolonged stirring when added to the machine may wear down the container’s inner walls, causing metal particles to mix with the glow powder, which can reduce glow performance and cause blackening.
Generally, a final product containing 10-15% glow powder is less likely to blacken (the appropriate addition ratio can only be determined through experimentation). Customers are advised to adjust the proportion according to their specific situation.
The raw materials and pigments should be kept dry before starting the extrusion process.
If using glow masterbatch, the plastic raw material should preferably be in granular form. If using glow powder, the plastic raw material should preferably be in powder form. When both are of similar shapes, they mix more easily, and the dispersion of the glow powder in the final product will be better.

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