Commodity plastics

Commodity plastics or commodity polymers are plastics produced in high volumes for applications such as packaging, food containers, and household products, including both disposable products and durable goods. In contrast to engineering plastics, commodity plastics tend to be inexpensive to produce and exhibit relatively weak mechanical properties. Widely used commodity plastics include polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Products made from commodity plastics include disposable plates, disposable cups, photographic and magnetic tape, clothing, reusable bags, medical trays, and seeding trays.^[2]

Demand for plastic resins in Europe during 2017 as a percentage of total plastic demand.^[1]

A comparison of standard plastics, engineering plastics, and high-performance plastics

Further reading

• Engineering plastics
• High performance plastics
• Haugan, Harold W. Fantastic Plastics—Welcome Aboard (Exposition Press Books, 1974)