Sintered porous polypropylene medium and its applications

Abstract

The present invention relates to a composition comprising a sintered porous ultrahigh molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight exceeding 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%. The present invention also relates to a device and method comprising such a composition.

Description

Technical Field

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[0003]

[0001] This application was filed on June 13, 2023, and claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 472,658, entitled "Sintered Porous Polypropylene Media and Its Uses". The entire content of the above application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

[0002] Embodiments of the present invention belong to the field of polymer processing and its applications. In particular, it relates to incorporating sintered porous thermoplastic media into various applications.

Background Art

[0003] Sintered porous polymer materials are applied in many fields and play an important role. Sintered porous polymer materials have been widely used in filtration, absorption, adsorption, ventilation, and fluid barrier applications. Currently, there are limited sintered porous polymer materials with a wide range of pore sizes and porosities that meet the requirements of filtration, absorption, adsorption, ventilation, coating, moisture absorption, and liquid barriers. As a result, parts made of sintered porous polymer materials are usually assembled with or incorporated into product components made of different polymer materials to meet the general application requirements of the product. However, products incorporating parts and components of different polymer materials make recycling difficult and costly. Therefore, it is desirable to use the same polymer material in assembled parts, products, or devices for sintered porous polymer components and non-porous components. <00><000013>

Summary of the Invention

[0005] The present invention provides a composition comprising a sintered porous polymer material. This provides a composition having porosity and average pore size suitable for use as a filtration, absorption, adsorption, coating, moisture absorption, permeability, and fluid barrier medium in various products. The present invention also provides an apparatus comprising such a composition.

[0006] In one embodiment, a composition is provided. An example of a composition in this embodiment includes a sintered porous ultrahigh molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

[0007] In another embodiment, a pipette tip is provided. An exemplary pipette tip comprises a tubular tip defining a reservoir (or storage section) for receiving a sample, the tubular tip comprising polypropylene, and a porous thermoplastic plug attached to the tubular tip, the porous thermoplastic plug comprising a sintered porous ultrahigh molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

[0008] In another embodiment, a solid-phase extraction column is provided. An example of a solid-phase extraction column includes a barrel defining a sample reservoir, the barrel being made of polypropylene, and including a plurality of frits disposed within the barrel, the plurality of frits being made of a sintered porous ultrahigh molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

[0009] In another embodiment, a multiwell (or multi-hole) device is provided. An exemplary multiwell device comprises a housing containing a plurality of wells, the housing and the plurality of wells comprising polypropylene, and a plurality of filters disposed within the housing, the plurality of filters comprising a sintered porous ultrahigh molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

[0010] In another embodiment, a writing instrument is provided. An exemplary writing instrument includes a barrel for containing a solution, the barrel being made of polypropylene, and a pen tip connected to the barrel, the pen tip being made of a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

[0011] In another embodiment, a liquid applicator (or liquid dispenser) is provided. An exemplary liquid applicator includes a housing for containing a solution, the housing comprising polypropylene, and a filter disposed within the housing, the filter comprising a sintered porous ultrahigh molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

[0012] In another embodiment, a liquid dispensing device is provided. An exemplary liquid dispensing device includes a housing for containing a solution, the housing comprising polypropylene, and a core material (or wick) disposed within the housing and in fluid communication with the solution, the core material comprising a sintered porous ultrahigh molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%. In some examples, the solution comprises a fragrance or an insecticide.

[0013] In another embodiment, devices comprising the above-described composition are provided. Exemplary devices include a liquid recovery device comprising a polypropylene housing and a filter comprising the composition described herein, and a diagnostic device comprising a polypropylene housing and a component comprising the composition described herein.

[0014] In another embodiment, an example of a recycling method is provided. This example of a method includes a step of reprocessing a device by melting the device components without separating them, wherein the device components (or parts) include a housing containing polypropylene, and functional parts containing a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

[0015] In another embodiment, a recycling method is provided. An example of a recycling method includes the steps of: placing a recyclable article in a recycling chamber; heating the recycling chamber to depolymerize the recyclable article to obtain a plurality of subunit molecules; purifying the plurality of subunit molecules to obtain a plurality of purified subunit molecules; and repolymerizing the plurality of purified subunit molecules to form a regenerated polymer, wherein the recyclable article is a thermoplastic resin, and the recyclable article comprises components including a porous sintered polymer material, and each component of the recyclable article contains the same repeating subunit molecule. In some examples, the sintered polymer material has a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%, the sintered polymer material is polypropylene, and the sintered polymer material has a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000 or 1,000,000.

[0016] While not intended to be bound by any particular theory, this specification may discuss beliefs or understandings regarding the fundamental principles relating to the invention. Regardless of the ultimate correctness of any mechanistic explanation or hypothesis, it is recognized that the embodiments of the invention are nevertheless operable and useful. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0017] [Figure 1] Several examples of sintering methods for ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene are shown. [Figure 2] A schematic diagram of a pipette tip containing a porous plastic plug made of sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material, according to several embodiments, is shown. [Figure 3] A schematic diagram of a writing instrument including a sintered porous polymer material pen tip having a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material is shown, according to several embodiments. [Figure 4] A simplified schematic diagram of the tip portion of a writing instrument equipped with a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene pen tip, according to several embodiments, is shown. [Figure 5]A schematic diagram of a liquid discharge device equipped with a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene core material, according to several embodiments, is shown. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0018] Currently available sintered porous polymer materials are limited to polyethylene, particularly ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene ("UHMWPE"), for use as filtration, absorption, adsorption, coating, moisture absorption, aeration, and fluid barrier media. However, most polymer devices, including filtration and fluid barrier media, use polypropylene housings. Since polypropylene and polyethylene (especially UHMWPE) are incompatible materials, they cannot be reprocessed as a whole. Furthermore, the cost of separating components made from different materials (polypropylene, polyethylene, UHMWPE, etc.) is usually too high for practical use. As mentioned above, many polymer devices (e.g., pipette tips, solid-phase extraction columns, multi-well devices, writing instruments, liquid dispensers, etc.) consist of a polypropylene housing and polyethylene filtration and fluid barrier media. To avoid the high cost of separating components such as housings and barrier media made from different materials, these polymer devices (e.g., pipette tips, solid-phase extraction columns, multi-well devices, writing instruments, liquid dispensing devices, liquid dispensers, etc.) are typically disposed of in landfills, raising environmental concerns. In these polypropylene-based devices, if the sintered porous filtration, absorption, adsorption, coating, moisture absorption, permeability, and fluid barrier media are manufactured from ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene, the entire device can be remelted and reprocessed into a new product without separating the device components. As a result, the devices are not disposed of in landfills and do not cause environmental problems.

[0019] The properties and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention can be better understood by referring to the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.

[0020] Figure 1 shows a sintering method for ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene according to several embodiments. Similar to the sintering methods for polyethylene and / or ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), the sintering method in these embodiments involves compressing and shaping a solid mass of porous material by heating a sintering particle mixture without completely melting it. That is, the sintering particles are heated to soften without melting. In the inventions disclosed herein, the sintering particle mixture comprises a plurality of ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene ("UHMWPP") particles 112. In an initial step 110, the mixture of sintering particles (e.g., a plurality of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene particles 112) is placed in a mold 115 that holds the sintering particle mixture in a desired shape or geometric structure of the final product. The plurality of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene particles 112 may be in any desired form. In some examples, the plurality of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene particles 112 may be in powder form. In some examples, the plurality of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene particles 112 in powder form may be characterized by the average particle size. In some examples, multiple ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene particles 112 in powder form may have an average particle size in the range of 10 μm to 300 μm. For example, the average particle diameter may be in the range of 10 to 50 μm, 50 to 100 μm, 100 to 150 μm, 150 to 200 μm, 200 to 250 μm, and / or 250 to 300 μm. In some examples, the ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene (UHMWPP) may have a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000. For example, the viscosity-average molecular weight may be in the range of 500,000-600,000, 600,000-700,000, 700,000-800,000, 800,000-900,000, 900,000-1,000,000, 1,000,000-1,100,000, or 1,100,000-1,200,000 or more.

[0021] In some embodiments, the sintered particle mixture may optionally contain a plurality of additive particles 113 that are intentionally added to the sintered particle mixture to control the development of microstructure and dimensions during sintering. In some embodiments, the plurality of additive particles 113 may modify the hydrophilicity, hydrophobicity, absorbency, adsorption, recyclability, and / or color change properties of the material obtained from the sintered particle mixture or sintering method. In some examples, the additives may be filters or catalysts that absorb unwanted gases. In some examples, the additives may promote the maintenance of porosity during the sintering method. In some examples, the additives may include absorbents that inhibit or prevent the passage of liquids. In some examples, the absorbents include carboxymethylcellulose ("CMC"), cellulose gum, hydrolyzed acrylonitrile graft copolymer, neutralized starch-acrylic acid graft copolymer, acrylamide copolymer, modified crosslinked polyvinyl alcohol, neutralized self-crosslinked polyacrylic acid, crosslinked polyacrylate salt, or neutralized crosslinked isobutylene-maleic anhydride copolymer, or salts or mixtures thereof. In some examples, the additives may include color indicators containing colorants. The colorants include inorganic dyes or organic dyes (including, but not limited to, food dyes, azo compounds, or azo dyes). In some examples, the additives may include pigments. Details relating to porous barrier media containing a color-changing indicator are illustrated in U.S. Patent No. 8,187,534 of Co-assignee Mao et al., titled “Porous Barrier Media Containing a Color-Changing Indicator,” which is incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes herein. The additives may be in any form. In some embodiments, the additives may be in powder form. In some embodiments, a plurality of additive particles 113 may include activated carbon particles.

[0022] In the first intermediate stage 120, the sintered particle mixture containing a plurality of ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene particles 112 is heated to a sintering temperature at which the plurality of ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene particles 112 soften but do not melt. As described above, the sintered particle mixture may optionally contain a plurality of additive particles 113. In the process of the softened ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene particles 112 fusing into a dense mass, a plurality of pores 116 are formed. The heating of the sintered particle mixture is continued until a sintered mass having desired properties (e.g., porosity, pore diameter) is obtained. In other examples, the properties may be any material properties including, but not limited to, composition, density, melting point, strength, electrical conductivity, translucency, thermal conductivity, uniformity of pore size, etc.

[0023] In the second intermediate stage 130, the sintered mass is separated from the mold 115. As shown in FIG. 1, the sintered mass may optionally contain a plurality of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene particles 112 and a plurality of pores 116. Optionally, the sintered mass may also contain a plurality of additive particles 113.

[0024] In the final stage 140, the sintered mass is optionally prepared by any means or method as necessary to be suitable for any downstream processing. The sintered mass in the final stage 140 is sometimes referred to as the “final sintered mass”. In some examples, the porosity of the final sintered mass may be in the range of 20% to 60%. For example, the porosity may be in the range of 20% to 25%, 25% to 30%, 30% to 35%, 35% to 40%, 40% to 45%, 45% to 50%, 50% to 55%, or 55% to 60%. In some examples, the average pore size of the final sintered mass may be in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm. In some examples, the bulk density of the final sintered mass may be in the range of 0.2 to 0.3 g / mL, 0.3 to 0.4 g / mL, and / or 0.4 to 0.5 g / mL. In some examples, the melting point of the final sintered mass may be at least 150°C. In other examples, the final sintered ingot may have a higher softening temperature or melting point than the polyethylene product in order to maintain the desired sterilization conditions. In some examples, the sintered ingot has a very small melt flow index at a load of 21.6 kg, a loading time of 10 minutes, and a temperature of 230°C. In some examples, the sintered ingot has flow indices in the range of 0-1, 1-2, 2-3, 3-4, 4-5, and 5-6 kg / 230°C under a load of 21.6 kg and a loading time of 10 minutes. In some examples, the sintered ingot may not contain polyethylene. In some examples, the sintered ingot may include flexible and rigid regions.

[0025] The final sintered mass or composition described in relation to FIG. 1 may be incorporated into various devices as necessary. The final sintered mass or composition may be a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPP) material having a viscosity average molecular weight exceeding 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%. Exemplary devices include, but are not limited to, a multi-well device comprising a polypropylene housing, a plurality of polypropylene wells disposed within the housing, and a plurality of filters comprising a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene (UHMWPP) material; a liquid applicator comprising a polypropylene housing and a nib comprising a sintered porous UHMWPP material; a liquid recovery device comprising a polypropylene housing and a filter comprising a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material; or a diagnostic device comprising a polypropylene housing and components comprising a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material.

[0026] FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of a pipette tip with a porous plastic plug having a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material according to some embodiments. The pipette device 200 includes a pipette tip 210 to which a porous plastic plug 220 is attached. In some embodiments, the pipette tip 210 may include a tubular tip 230 that defines a reservoir for receiving a sample. In some embodiments, the pipette tip 210 and the tubular tip 230 may comprise polypropylene. In some embodiments, the porous plastic plug 220 may comprise a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity average molecular weight exceeding 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%. The pipette tip 210 may function as a liquid barrier and / or an aerosol barrier.

[0027] In addition to what is described herein, further details of the pipette device are described in U.S. Patent No. 5,364,595 of Co-assignee Smith, entitled “PIPETTE DEVICE CONSTRUCTED TO PREVENT CONTAMINATION BY AEROSOLS OR OVERPIPETTING,” which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

[0028] Figure 3 shows a schematic diagram of a writing instrument equipped with a sintered porous polymer material pen tip having a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material, according to several embodiments. The use of the term “pen” in this invention is used to refer to a device that is holdable like a pen and used as a sample collection device, rather than a device that applies ink to its surface as a writing instrument. The term “pen” may be used interchangeably with the term “writing instrument.” As shown in Figure 3, the writing instrument 300 may include a barrel (or body) 310 for containing a solution and a pen tip 320 connected to the barrel 310. In some embodiments, the barrel 310 may contain or be formed from a first polymer material. The pen tip 320 is formed from a second polymer material, which may be a sintered porous polymer material. In some embodiments, the sintered porous polymer material contained in the pen tip 320 is formed by heating polypropylene particles with a particle size of less than 300 μm. In some embodiments, the first polymer material is formed by heating polypropylene particles with a particle size of less than 300 μm. In some examples, the first and second polymer materials contain the same repeating subunit molecules (e.g., propylene). The nib 320 (for sampling in some examples) is housed within the barrel 310 and may be attached or fixed at one or both ends. The nib 320 may be friction-fitted to the barrel 310 so that it can be pressed into the opening at the end of the writing instrument 300 and remain securely connected. In some examples, the nib 320 may be fixed to (or integrally formed with) a nib stem, which may be friction-fitted to the barrel 310. For example, the nib and / or nib stem may have a geometric shape that conforms to the internal shape of the barrel 310 and the shape of the writing instrument 300, thereby ensuring that the nib 320 and / or nib stem are securely connected within the barrel 310. The cross-sectional shape of the nib stem may generally be circular, square, flat or rectangular, star-shaped, or other appropriate shape.In this embodiment and other embodiments, a projection may be provided at the tip of the nib stem, which may be fitted into a recess in the barrel 310, or vice versa, thereby fixing the nib 320 and / or nib stem in place by an additional male-female connection. Examples of alternative nib stem shapes and writing instruments are illustrated in U.S. Patent No. 8,852,122 of the invention, “LIQUID SAMPLING, STORAGE, TRANSFER AND DELIVERY DEVICE,” by co-assignee Mao et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes. Examples and details of alternative nibs and sintered polymer materials are shown in U.S. Patent No. 8,141,717 of the invention, “SINTERED POLYMERIC MATERIALS AND APPLICATIONS THEREOF,” by co-assignee Wingo et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

[0029] As shown in Figure 301, in some embodiments, the barrel 310 may have a body, a reservoir, and a cap. The reservoir may be provided as a separate component or incorporated into the pen body. In some embodiments, all components, parts, and components of the writing instrument 300 are made of polypropylene or ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene ("UHMWPP"), thereby making the writing instrument 300 recyclable without requiring additional preparation, sorting, or disassembly processes.

[0030] In some embodiments, the pen tip 320 may contain sintered porous UHMWPP with a viscosity-average molecular weight exceeding 500,000. For example, the viscosity-average molecular weight may be 500,000-600,000, 600,000-700,000, 700,000-800,000, 800,000-900,000, 900,000-1,000,000, 1,000,000-1,100,000, 1,100,000-1,200,000 or higher. In some embodiments, the UHMWPP powder particles used to produce the sintered porous UHMWPP may have an average particle size in the range of 10-300 μm. In some embodiments, the sintered porous UHMWPP may have an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm-200 μm. In some examples, the sintered porous UHMWPP may have a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%. In some examples, the sintered porous UHMWPP may have a micromelt flow index at a temperature of 230°C, a load of 21.6 kg, and a loading time of 10 minutes. In some examples, the sintered porous UHMWPP may have flow indices in the range of 0 to 1, 1 to 2, 2 to 3, 3 to 4, 4 to 5, and 5 to 6 kg / 230°C under conditions of a load of 21.6 kg, a loading time of 10 minutes, and a temperature of 230°C. In some examples, the sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene may further contain activated carbon particles. In some examples, the sintered porous UHMWPP may further contain a surfactant.

[0031] Figure 4 shows a simplified schematic diagram of the tip portion of a writing instrument equipped with a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene nib according to several embodiments. The tip portion 400 of the writing instrument may include a nib 420 connected to a barrel 410. The barrel 410 is made of polypropylene. The nib 420 is formed of sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene ("UHMWPP") material. The sintered porous UHMWPP material may have a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000. The sintered porous UHMWPP material may have an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%. In some embodiments, the sintered porous UHMWPP material is produced from UHMWPP powder having an average particle size in the range of 10 μm to 300 μm.

[0032] Figure 5 shows a schematic diagram of a liquid dispensing device containing a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene core, according to several embodiments. In some embodiments, the liquid dispensing device may be a fragrance dispensing device or an insecticide dispensing device. The liquid dispensing device 500 includes a core material 510 fluidly connected to a solution 530 and a housing 520 in which the core material 510 is placed. The core material 510 is formed of sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene ("UHMWPP") material. The sintered porous UHMWPP material has an average pore size in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%. The sintered porous UHMWPP material may have a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000. In some embodiments, the sintered porous UHMWPP material is produced from UHMWPP powder having an average particle size in the range of 10 μm to 300 μm. The housing 520 is formed from polypropylene material. In some embodiments, the solution 530 may contain a fragrance or an insecticide.

[0033] As those skilled in the art will understand, each individual embodiment described and illustrated herein has its own independent components and features, and these can be readily separated or combined with features of several other embodiments without departing from the scope or spirit of this specification.

[0034] The descriptions of the examples in this specification are presented for illustrative and explanatory purposes only and are provided to provide a complete disclosure and description of how a person skilled in the art can manufacture and use the examples herein. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the exact forms described, nor to indicate that all or only experiments have been conducted. This specification is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the exact forms described, nor to represent all or only experiments that have been conducted. For clarity, this disclosure is described in detail by examples and illustrations, but it will be apparent that a person skilled in the art can make certain changes and modifications thereto without departing from the spirit or scope of the appended claims, in light of the teachings of this disclosure.

[0035] Accordingly, the foregoing is merely illustrative of the principle of the invention. Those skilled in the art will understand that they can devise various configurations that embody the principle of the invention and that fall within its spirit and scope, even if not explicitly stated or indicated herein. Furthermore, all examples and conditional statements contained herein are primarily intended to help the reader understand the principle of disclosure and are not limited to the examples or conditions specifically described. Moreover, all descriptions relating to the principle, aspects, embodiments and specific examples of the invention contained herein are intended to include both structural and functional equivalents. In addition, such equivalents are intended to include currently known equivalents and equivalents to be developed in the future, i.e., any elements that perform the same function regardless of their structure. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is not limited to the examples shown and described herein. Rather, the scope and spirit of the invention are embodied by the appended claims.

[0036] Unless otherwise specified, the use of "a," "an," or "the" means "one or more." Unless otherwise specified, the use of "or" means "inclusive or" and not "exclusive or." A reference to the first component does not necessarily require the provision of the second component. Furthermore, a reference to the first or second component does not limit that component to a specific position unless explicitly stated. The term "based on" means "based on at least in part."

[0037] Claims may be drafted to exclude any element. Accordingly, this Specification is intended to serve as prior art for the use of exclusive terms such as “exclusively,” “only,” or “negative” limitation in relation to the description of elements of claims.

[0038] Where a numerical range is provided, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, each intermediate value between the upper and lower limits of that range (up to one-tenth of a unit of the lower limit) is also understood to be specifically disclosed. Each smaller range between any value or intermediate value within a stated range and any other value or intermediate value within that stated range is included in the embodiments herein. The upper and lower limits of these smaller ranges may be independently included in or excluded from the range, and ranges that include either one, both, or both limits are also included in this disclosure unless there are limits specifically excluded within the stated range. If a stated range includes either one or both limits, ranges that exclude either one or both of those included limits are also included in this disclosure.

[0039] All patents, patent applications, publications, and descriptions described herein are incorporated by reference in whole for any purpose as if each individual publication or patent were cited individually, and are incorporated by reference herein to disclose and describe methods and / or materials relating to the cited publications. None of the publications are considered prior art. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0040] 110 ... Initial stage 112... Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene particles 113… Additive particles 115… Mold 116… Pores 120 … First Intermediate Stage 130... Second Intermediate Stage 140… Final stage 200… Pipette devices 210 ... Pipette tip 220… Porous plastic plug 230 ... Tubular tip 300 … writing utensils 301… First Intermediate Stage 310… Barrel 320… Pen nib

Claims

1. A composition comprising a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight exceeding 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

2. A tubular tip that defines the reservoir for receiving the sample, and A porous thermoplastic plug installed inside the tubular tip. Equipped with, The tubular chip contains polypropylene, A pipette tip comprising a porous thermoplastic plug containing a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight exceeding 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

3. A barrel for defining the sample reservoir, and Multiple frits arranged inside the barrel Includes, The barrel comprises polypropylene, The solid-phase extraction column comprises a plurality of frits made of a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight exceeding 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

4. A housing containing multiple wells, and Multiple filters arranged within the housing Equipped with, The housing and the plurality of wells are made of polypropylene. The plurality of filters comprise a multi-well device made of a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight exceeding 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

5. A barrel for containing the solution, and Pen tip connected to the barrel Equipped with, The barrel comprises polypropylene, The pen tip is a writing instrument comprising a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight exceeding 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

6. A housing for containing the solution, and Filter located within the housing Equipped with, The housing includes polypropylene, The liquid dispenser comprises a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight exceeding 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

7. A housing for containing the solution, and A core material that is in fluid communication with the aforementioned solution and is placed inside the housing. Equipped with, The housing includes polypropylene, The liquid discharge device comprises a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight exceeding 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

8. The liquid dispensing device according to claim 7, wherein the solution comprises a fragrance or an insecticide.

9. A device comprising the composition described in claim 1.

10. The device according to claim 9, wherein the device is a liquid recovery device comprising a polypropylene housing and a filter comprising the composition described in claim 1, or a diagnostic device comprising a polypropylene housing and a component comprising the composition described in claim 1.

11. A process of reprocessing a device by melting its components without separating them. Includes, A recycling method comprising a device whose components include a housing containing polypropylene, and a functional component containing a sintered porous ultra-high molecular weight polypropylene material having a viscosity-average molecular weight of over 500,000, an average pore diameter in the range of 10 μm to 200 μm, and a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%.

12. A process of placing recyclable items into a recycling chamber. A step of heating the recycling chamber to depolymerize the recyclable article and obtain a plurality of subunit molecules, A step of purifying the aforementioned plurality of subunit molecules to obtain a plurality of purified subunit molecules, and The process of repolymerizing the plurality of purified subunit molecules to form a regenerated polymer. Includes, The aforementioned recyclable article is a thermoplastic resin, The aforementioned recyclable article includes components comprising a porous sintered polymer material, A recycling method wherein each component of the recyclable article contains the same repeating subunit molecule.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the sintered polymer material has a porosity in the range of 20% to 60%, the sintered polymer material is polypropylene, and the sintered polymer material has a viscosity-average molecular weight greater than 500,000 or 1,000,000.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein the recyclable article is any one of the pipette tip described in claim 2, the multiwell device described in claim 4, the writing instrument described in claim 5, the liquid dispenser described in claim 6, or the liquid recovery device or diagnostic device described in claim 10.

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