In a chemistry book, we could find that "the masterbatch can be defined as a concentrate of coloring pigments plus aesthetic and functional additives for plastics." Or we might also read that "it is used in plastic processing to impart new characteristics to the original polymer." Complex explanations for those who don't speak science. But what if we show you that understanding the plastic world is as simple as baking bread?!

It can happen to anybody to follow a recipe that involves kneading water and flour. Perhaps, to share a pizza with friends; to celebrate a birthday with a cake; to bake fragrant cookies. It can sound strange, but explaining what a masterbatch is is possible precisely through these images. All these foods, in fact, have one thing in common: the mixing of ingredients of different natures.

The ingredients of a tasty masterbatch

A pigment or additive acts like flour, no one can eat it as it is! In fact, flour alone is not satisfying. It is dusty, dirty, and cannot be cooked or grilled. It is necessary to mix it with water to give it a solid appearance and to dissolve the lumps. In short to make it edible and allow it to get its nutritional function. Any bakery product is done this way, starting with a mixture of different elements.

The masterbatch is characterized with the same principle: water for us corresponds to the plastic, everything else (flour, salt, yeast) equals the mix of coloring pigments and additives that are used to make up our recipe. Different ingredients make it possible to bake different breads, but they all take shape from the same process, and so we can get white bread, focaccia, baguette, brioche bread, hamburger bread..

Masterbach: an essential element

Clearly, if you plan to make a pizza, but you end up with sponge cake, dinner will go to pot. However, this does not mean that it is a problem with what you baked, but that the recipe you decided to follow was not suitable for the dinner menu. Similarly, each masterbatch serves to achieve a specific goal, so it must be formulated starting from the result one expects: to fill a pizza, one needs to have pizza bread, just as to produce a technical plastic, you need a technical masterbatch. It happens that those who have to work on a plastic project put the MB in last place on their shopping list, considering it less essential This is a serious mistake because this concentrate, however small, is fundamental, as it acts as a structure for the processed plastic. In short, it is like carefully choosing condiments to make a sandwich first, but then preferring to buy breadsticks instead of bread.

Just like bread

The masterbatch is the essential component that allows a plastic project to be structured and stable. If you want to build an arch without putting the keystone, or you choose an unsuitable stone block, everything will collapse. The masterbatch is that supporting element that allows the project to stand together and have unique characteristics. It is like the flour that gives body to bread, the yeast that makes it grow, the salt that gives flavor. You just need to know how to dose the right ingredients well and rely on your trusted baker who always knows how to recommend the best pairing for your dinner... Just as a good masterbatcher knows how to choose the best color for your plastic!