applications of plastic film in agriculture nowadays

There are a lot of advantages in using plastic films to keep stable economic efficiency for farmers . Its costs much less than making a glass frame as well. Plastic film will maintain the temperature and humidity for plants. Depending on the type of plastic they use, you still can plant many types of products even when the weather is so terrible.

Kinds of plastics using to make plastic film in agriculture

According to farmers’ demand and crops, manufacturers will design, combine and create layers, length, width and different features. There are two kinds of plastics usually used to make plastic films are PE and EVA. For the effects of each type, please check below:

PE plastic film:

PE is also known as Polyethylene. This is one of the most popular kinds of plastic because of the simple production process and low cost. With different contents of PE, manufacturers can supply specific products. For examples, PE plastic film for mulching, covering the ground or small tunnels will have low content of PE. Meanwhile, producing containers or in irrigation and drainage, they have to use high density PE. People can utilize PE for large industrial applications and personal utility use.

PE plastic film for young plants

In Vietnam, farmers usually use plastic films with silver gray upper surface and its lower surface is black. They put the silver gray surface upward to increase the amount of reflected light, aim to limit pest. The black surface will be facing downward in order to limit weeds. In fact, there is another way to create “black” except using pigment for black plastic film. It is using black masterbatch. Manufacturers will mix it with primary plastic – PE (for example) and product PE film. From high-quality carbon black, so black masterbatch of Abbey is suitable for in protective films.

EVA plastic film

Being used as a copolymer of ethylene and vinyl acetate, EVA is a very elastic, tough resin. It also has a gloss surface and low odor. As compared to rubber, EVA is light, clear and non-toxic. Manufacturers always do not use EVA alone but combine with other resins, such as LDPE or LLDPE. In these mixtures, the percentage of EVA usually takes from 2% to 25%. It means EVA plastic will improve the clarity more. If they use higher density of EVA, it will reduce the melting point.

EVA plastic film for greenhouse

Besides, plastic films made from EVA have a good capability of puncture resistance as well. In addition, the hardness and expansion of EVA are not the same, so it is possible to produce many different types of EVA sheets. These factors explain reasons why manufacturers use EVA for producing greenhouse covers or walk-in tunnels. Of course, these applications can be different from height or complex structures. Nevertheless, they also really need the endurable feature and ability to cope with extreme weather conditions from EVA. The price of EVA plastic films is more expensive than PE films, because its lifetime may be over 5 years before being brittle and breaking.