What Is Tyvek Paper?
Tyvek is the brand name for a thin, light plastic sheeting material manufactured by the Dupont Corporation. The material has found applications in a surprisingly wide variety of situations. Does this Spark an idea?
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History
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The story of Tyvek begins in a Dupont experimental lab In 1955, where a Dupont researcher named Jim White spotted puffs of white polyethylene fibers exiting a pipe. Dupont began experiments to find a use for these polyethylene fibers, eventually creating linear polyethylene yarn and a "flash-spinning" process to make continuous sheets of the substance. Tyvek was first commercially produced in 1967.
Manufacturing
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According to Dupont, Tyvek is made by spinning out extremely fine fibers of high density polyethylene into a web over a moving bed. The fibers are bonded into a sheet through heat and pressure. Tyvek is manufactured at Dupont facilities in Richmond, Virginia and Luxembourg, Germany.
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Benefits
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Tyvek is thin and light, but resistant to tears or punctures. It is far stronger than paper. In addition, it is moisture and water resistant and recyclable. It can even be printed on.
Applications
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Tyvek is used in home construction to wrap the structure as an air and moisture barrier. It is also used to make light, strong postal envelopes, bacteria-resistant medical packaging, vehicle covers, furniture covers, disposable work garments, weather-proof banners and other graphics. Some nations such as Costa Rica and Haiti have even made banknotes from Tyvek.
Recycling
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Tyvek is a plastic, and some Tyvek items are marked with the number "2" code of high density polyethylene. However, most recycling programs do not collect Tyvek discards along with plastic bottles, so Dupont operates a Tyvek collection service of its own.
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