Plastic is any material made of polymeric organic compounds and additives that can be shaped by flow. This is the most common material used to make high quality and highly significant films.

Plastic films are high performance materials, which play an essential part in modern life. They are mostly used in packaging applications along with some applications in agricultural, medical and engineering fields. Plastic films are perfectly stable, easy to work with and can be lighter than tissue.

They do not have voids in the surface that allow an ink or coating to penetrate into it. Certain plastics can be attacked or swelled by specific UV raw materials. These can be matched up with the type of substrate and allow the ink to penetrate the film.

History
Plastics got their start with celluloid and the development of a replacement for ivory in billiard balls. In 1868 John Hyatt mixed celluloid with camphor and alcohol to find a substitute of billiard balls. Then came celluloid collars, cuffs, etc. After the turn of the century, cellophane was invented. The major growth for cellophane and all plastic films started during the late 1930s and after World War II when self-service shopping came into vogue. Many packages required transparency because people wanted to see what they were buying. Since then, many plastic films were added to the list of packaging films.

Types
There are many material types used in films from single layer polymers to multilayer polymers with tie layers and copolymers. A number of plastics are used in applications such as nylon, polypropylene, cellophane, etc.

Polypropylene Films- These are heat sealable films for flexible packing and have high tensile strength. The film can contain colorants, stabilizers, or other additives, and can be coated for the improvement of performance properties.

Polyester Films- Polyester film features superior performance in printing, metalizing and cold seal applications. The film shows excellent scuff resistance, machinability and temperature characteristics. The adhesive can be clear or pigmented for ease of identification.

Cellophane Films- Cellophane film is made by the viscose process, a physical process for making regenerated rayon by treating cellulose with caustic soda, and with carbon disulfide to form cellulose xanthate, which can then be spun into fibers and reconverted to cellulose by an acid treatment.

Nylon Films- Nylon film is a transparent, non-heat stabilized plastic film. They absorb water. The higher the moisture content the more flexible they become. They offer excellent thermal and chemical resistance, with high tensile strength, flexibility and tear resistance.

Plastic films application

• Plastics are considered to be one of the most valuable and versatile family of materials ever developed. New uses are developed for plastic films almost everyday. Plastic film offers a number of significant benefits:
• Plastic food wrappings prevent spoilage.
• Plastic wrappings reduce food waste.
• Plastic vapour and air barriers prevent moisture damage which in turn helps in supporting energy-conservation efforts in home construction.
• Plastic stretch wrap and shrink wrap reduce packaging weight and bulk. This helps in reducing transportation and storage costs.
• Agricultural plastic film helps in reducing weeds, keeping seedlings moist, wrap silage and increase crop yields. From the time these films are produced, to their use and reuse, and to their final recycling, or disposal, plastic films provide environmental benefits.
• Plastic film can be coloured or clear, printed or plain, or laminated to aluminum, paper and other materials.

Plastic films and packaging
Plastic film offers several packaging options. The films can be used to produce:

• Single-resin, single-layer packages, like the produce bags which are used to carry fruits or vegetables.
• Multi-resin, multi-layer packages. They are like the boil-in bags.
• Multi-material packages: They represent blister packs.

Market applications for plastic film can be divided into the following categories: Plastic film offers several packaging options. The films can be used to produce:

• Food packaging: Plastic films for packaging are available in the the form of packaging pouch, packaging bags, packaging rolls, sheets, foils etc. Food packaging includes bags for bread and rolls, in-store bags for produce and bulk foods, candy wrap and bags, bag-in-a-box, carton liners for cereal and cake mixes, wrappers for fresh food, wrappers for prepared red meat, poultry and fish, milk bags, grocery bags.
• Non-food packaging: This include industrial liners which can be used for everything from tote boxes to large drums to bubble packaging, shipping sacs, mailing envelopes, dry cleaning bags, diaper overwrap, stretch wrap and more.
• Non-packaging application: This includes variety of stuff like trash bags, leaf and yard waste bags, agricultural films, can liners, construction materials, medical applications (e.g. sterile wraps, IV bags, biomedical waste bags) and other consumer products, like household plastic wrap, diaper liners.