Disclosed are preforms which incorporate improvements in the region of the neck and upper segment of the body to allow the production of lightweight containers, such as bottles suitable for containing water or other beverages. In accordance with certain embodiments, the improvements include a thinner neck finish area than conventional bottles, where the thinner area is extended into the upper segment of the body portion below the support ring. Reducing the thickness in these areas of the bottle allows for less resin to be used in forming the preform and bottle.

A method includes injection molding a preform using a two phase injection system having a first phase in which a material is injected into the preform and a second phase in which the material is injected into the preform. The preform is disposed in a mold. The preform is blow molded into an intermediate article. The intermediate article is trimmed to form a finished container. The first phase includes injecting a material into the preform to form a single layer of the preform and the second phase includes injecting the material to form inner and outer layers and an intermediate layer between the inner and outer layers. The inner and outer layers include the material and the intermediate layer includes at least one additive. Finished containers are disclosed.

A blow moulding machine for blow moulding a container having an integrally formed handle; said container blow moulded from a previously injection moulded preform; said preform comprising a body portion and said integrally formed handle; said machine including a preform loading station at which said preform is oriented by a preform orienting apparatus.

Disclosed are preforms which incorporate improvements in the region of the neck and upper segment of the body to allow the production of lightweight containers, such as bottles suitable for containing water or other beverages. In accordance with certain embodiments, the improvements include a thinner neck finish area than conventional bottles, where the thinner area is extended into the upper segment of the body portion below the support ring. Reducing the thickness in these areas of the bottle allows for less resin to be used in forming the preform and bottle.

A blow mold system including a mold body and a base portion. The mold body includes a central bore extending from a first end of the mold body to a second end of the mold body along a longitudinal axis. The first end is configured to receive a mold preform. The base portion includes a recess, and the base portion is arranged at the second end of the mold body such that the central bore and recess define a blow mold cavity in which a container may be formed from the mold preform. In embodiments, the blow mold system has at least two interchangeable base portions that allow for containers with differently-sized or differently-shaped necks to be formed.

A preform configured to form a container when the preform is seated in a cavity of a mold and the preform is expanded within the cavity of the mold by introducing an incompressible fluid under a blow pressure into the preform to stretch the preform to assume a shape of the surrounding cavity. The preform includes a high-density polyethylene (HDPE) resin having: a melt flow index of between 0.3 and 10.0 grams per 10 minutes at a temperature of 190° C. under 2.16 kilograms of load through a test fixture of ASTM D1238; a polydispersity index of 4-24; and a density of between 0.943 and 0.965 grams per cubic centimeter.

A high-density polyethylene (HDPE) resin configured to be molded into a preform that can be biaxially expanded within a cavity of a container mold by introducing an incompressible fluid under pressure into the preform to stretch the preform to assume a shape of a surrounding mold cavity of the container mold. The HDPE resin has: a melt flow index of between 0.3 and 10.0 grams per 10 minutes at a temperature of 190° C. under 2.16 kilograms of load; a polydispersity index of 4-24; and a density of 0.943-0.965 grams per cubic centimeter.

A method includes injection molding a preform using a two phase injection system having a first phase in which a material is injected into the preform and a second phase in which the material is injected into the preform. The preform is disposed in a mold. The preform is blow molded into an intermediate article. The intermediate article is trimmed to form a finished container. The first phase includes injecting a material into the preform to form a single layer of the preform and the second phase includes injecting the material to form inner and outer layers and an intermediate layer between the inner and outer layers. The inner and outer layers include the material and the intermediate layer includes at least one additive. Finished containers are disclosed.

A method of manufacturing a pressure vessel that includes heating a preform formed of a thermoplastic polymer, inserting a blow pin assembly that includes a bung portion and a plunger portion into an opening of the heated preform, clamping the heated preform between the bung portion and sections of a blow mold, extending the plunger portion into an interior of the heated preform to stretch the heated preform in the blow mold, and blowing air into the stretched preform under pressure to form the pressure vessel such that: (a) the pressure vessel includes a tank having a neck portion, a cylindrical body portion having a diameter of at least about 200 mm, and a bottom portion, (b) at least the thermoplastic polymer in the cylindrical body portion is biaxially oriented, and (c) threads are formed in the neck portion. Also a pressure vessel formed in accordance with the method.

A system for direct injection of selected thermal-infrared (IR) wavelength radiation or energy into articles for a wide range of processing purposes is provided. These purposes may include heating, raising or maintaining the temperature of articles, or stimulating a target item in a range of different industrial, medical, consumer, or commercial circumstances. The system is especially applicable to operations that require or benefit from the ability to irradiate at specifically selected wavelengths or to pulse or inject the radiation. The system is particularly advantageous when functioning at higher speeds and in a non-contact environment with the target.