| HS Code | 327547 |
| Density | 1.24 g/cm³ |
| Melt Flow Rate 190 C 2 16 Kg | 40 g/10 min |
| Tensile Strength | 60 MPa |
| Tensile Modulus | 3500 MPa |
| Elongation At Break | 3.5 % |
| Flexural Strength | 90 MPa |
| Flexural Modulus | 3600 MPa |
| Notched Izod Impact Strength | 2.5 kJ/m² |
| Vicat Softening Temperature | 55 °C |
| Heat Deflection Temperature 0 45 Mpa | 55 °C |
| Melting Temperature | 155 °C |
| Glass Transition Temperature | 60 °C |
| Crystallization Temperature | 110 °C |
| Biobased Carbon Content | 100 % |
| Moisture Content | <0.025 % |
| Processing Temperature | 190-220 °C |
| Mold Temperature | 20-50 °C |
As an accredited Luminy Polylactic Acid (PLA) L040 factory, we enforce strict quality protocols—every batch undergoes rigorous testing to ensure consistent efficacy and safety standards.
| Packing | Luminy PLA L040 is supplied in 25 kg moisture-resistant paper bags with inner liners, palletized for shipping and storage. |
| Container Loading (20′ FCL) | Luminy PLA L040 is loaded in 25 kg bags on pallets; a 20′ FCL typically contains about 20,000 kg net. |
| Shipping | Luminy Polylactic Acid (PLA) L040 is shipped as a non-hazardous solid resin in moisture-barrier bags, drums, or bulk containers. It is not classified as dangerous goods and has no UN number. Store cool, dry, away from heat/moisture, using standard industrial hygiene. |
| Storage | Store Luminy Polylactic Acid (PLA) L040 in a cool, dry, well-ventilated area. Keep containers tightly closed to prevent moisture uptake. Protect from direct sunlight, heat, and ignition sources. Recommended storage: below 30 °C and low humidity. Store away from incompatible materials, oxidizers, and foodstuffs. Avoid dust generation. Use first-in, first-out stock rotation. |
| Shelf Life | Shelf life is typically 12 months from manufacture if stored unopened in cool, dry conditions below 30°C, away from direct sunlight. |
Luminy PLA L040 is fed to a dehumidifying hopper dryer with a dew point of −40°C and a setpoint of 80°C for 4 h. This sequence reduces residual moisture below 250 ppm, which is the upper limit recommended before injection molding because hydrolytic chain scission accelerates rapidly when wet PLA is processed above 180°C. On a reciprocating screw injection molding machine with an L/D ratio of 20:1 and a compression ratio of 2.5:1, the melt temperature window is maintained between 200°C and 220°C. Barrel zones are profiled from 160°C at the throat to 215°C at the nozzle, while the mold surface is held at 15–25°C for rapid set-up of amorphous thin-wall articles. High-flow PLA grades of this class fill wall thicknesses down to 0.8 mm at injection pressures of 600–900 bar, but the process is critically sensitive to venting: vents shallower than 0.02 mm trap volatiles and produce burn marks, while vents deeper than 0.03 mm can flash due to the low melt viscosity. The gate geometry is another boundary condition; edge gates with a land length-to-diameter ratio greater than 1:1 freeze prematurely, while tunnel gates with a diameter below 0.6 mm generate excessive shear heating and may shift the melt temperature locally above 230°C. At that point, degradation is not instantaneous but cumulative, and production practice limits screw-recovery residence time to less than 5 min when the melt is above 230°C. Thin-wall containers and disposable beverage accessories produced from this grade are tested for tensile yield strength per ISO 527-2:2012 and for flexural modulus per ISO 178:2019, with reported values for neat L040 typically in the range of 60–65 MPa for tensile yield and 3,300–3,600 MPa for flexural modulus. These values apply to conditioned specimens at 23°C and 50% RH and are not representative of hot-fill performance, because the heat deflection temperature under 0.45 MPa load, ISO 75-2/B, is below 60°C for the amorphous state.
Masterbatch carrier selection with L040 is driven by viscosity matching rather than by simple pellet size compatibility. Because the grade exhibits a nominal melt flow index of 40 g/10 min under ISO 1133-1:2022 at 210°C and 2.16 kg, it lowers the capillary shear viscosity of a masterbatch dilution more aggressively than a conventional 10 g/10 min PLA carrier. Twin-screw compounding on a 40:1 L/D co-rotating machine with side feeding of organic pigments requires barrel temperatures between 180°C and 205°C, and the carrier melt pool must remain below 215°C to prevent thermal yellowing. The low-viscosity carrier improves pigment dispersion at screw speeds up to 400 rpm, but the same fluidity reduces the pressure-generating capacity of the melt seals. A vacuum vent connected to −0.08 MPa gauge pressure at barrel section 7 is required to strip residual lactide and water; if vent pressure rises above −0.06 MPa, dispersion quality drops because trapped volatiles plasticize the melt and reduce shear stress transfer. Let-down ratios are bounded on both sides: below 2 wt% of masterbatch, color strength inconsistency can exceed ∆E 2.0 when measured per ISO 7724-1; above 6 wt%, the carrier fraction can reduce the tensile strength of injection molded plaques by more than 5% relative to neat L040. This is not a universal rule, but it is observed in production-scale trials when the masterbatch carrier is a low-MFR acrylic or SAN, which creates melt-flow instability and visible rheological striations.
Solution preparation from L040 follows a solubility window that excludes aliphatic hydrocarbons and alcohols. In ethyl acetate, methyl ethyl ketone, or dichloromethane, low-molecular-weight PLA dissolves at 60°C under mechanical stirring to form clear solutions up to 15 wt% solids; above that concentration, high-shear mixing in a Cowles dissolver produces shear heating and solvent loss. Brookfield viscosity at 25°C measured per ASTM D2196-20 is a function of solids and residual water, but typical 10 wt% solutions fall between 200 mPa·s and 900 mPa·s depending on cosolvent selection. The low molecular weight of L040 reduces solution viscosity relative to extrusion-grade PLA, which is advantageous for gravure and roller coating, but the dried film has lower cohesive strength than high-molecular-weight film grades. Adhesion to corona-treated PET and OPP film is evaluated with cross-cut tape tests per ISO 2409:2020; acceptable adhesion generally requires a surface energy above 40 mN/m on the substrate. Formulations containing nitrocellulose can plasticize the PLA film and reduce blocking resistance, but each additive must be checked for insolubility and phase separation because PLA is incompatible with most vinyl chloride copolymers. These coatings are not intended for retort or hot-fill use; continuous use temperature is limited to 40°C unless crystallinity is introduced by post-treatment, which is difficult for L040 due to low stereoregularity.
In melt-blown nonwoven trials, the advantage of L040 is a reduced extrusion torque and a lower die pressure at the typical PLA processing range, but the trade-off is a narrow air-drawing window. Melt temperature at the die is maintained between 230°C and 250°C, measured with a thermocouple inserted 5 mm from the die lip; temperature below 225°C produces shotlike melt rather than continuous filaments because the shear viscosity remains too high, while temperature above 260°C triggers rapid chain scission and a measurable rise in degradation oligomers. Hot air at 0.2–0.4 MPa and 230–255°C is supplied through a narrow gap of 0.6–1.0 mm on both sides of the die tip, and the collector distance is set between 150 mm and 350 mm to balance fiber entanglement against web density. The absence of a polymer melt strength additive in neat L040 is the limiting factor: under high air drag, filaments can break before entanglement, producing a coarse, low-tensile web. Typical nonwoven fabric produced from L040 at 30–50 g/m² basis weight is tested for tensile strength per ISO 9073-3:2002 and for air permeability per ISO 9073-15:2007. For compostability claims, the final article is tested under EN 13432:2000, where disintegration under pilot-scale composting must occur within 12 weeks and mineralization of 90% relative to cellulose within 180 days. Published data for this specific configuration is limited, so pilot-line trials must establish the acceptable air temperature and quench rate for each die geometry.
| Standard | End point | Typical acceptance criterion |
|---|---|---|
| EN 13432:2000 | Disintegration during pilot-scale composting | ≤ 12 weeks |
| ISO 14855-1:2012 | Aerobic biodegradation under controlled composting | ≥ 90% within 180 days |
| ASTM D6400-19 | Compostability specification for municipal and industrial aerobic composting | ≥ 90% mineralization within 180 days |
Lignocellulosic fiber compounding presents a processing conflict: the low melt viscosity of L040 improves wetting of dried wood flour or hemp fiber, but the same fluidity reduces the ability to maintain a stable melt strand if the compound contains more than 30 wt% fiber. Twin-screw extrusion is performed on a 48:1 L/D co-rotating machine with a side feeder at barrel section 6 and a vacuum vent at barrel section 9, and the screw profile incorporates at least two kneading blocks after the side feeder. Barrel temperatures are held at 175°C in the feed zone and 190°C at the die; exceeding 200°C causes volatile release from hemicellulose, generating surface voids and odor. Fiber moisture must be reduced below 8 wt% before side feeding, measured by a halogen moisture analyzer, because higher moisture levels depress the melt temperature at the die and produce foaming. The vacuum vent should maintain −0.08 MPa or lower to remove water and lactide; if vent flow is obstructed, the extrudate surface becomes rough and the compound MFR rises due to hydrolytic degradation. Evaluation of the compounded pellets includes melt flow index per ISO 1133-1:2022, tensile modulus and strength per ISO 527-2:2012, flexural properties per ISO 178:2019, and un-notched Charpy impact per ISO 179-1/1eU:2023. For injection molded test specimens, mold temperature is set at 25°C; raising it to 60°C improves crystallinity but increases warpage in thin sections. The upper use temperature of the natural-fiber compound is limited by the fiber rather than by PLA; long-term exposure above 60°C in humid environments reduces strength retention below 60% after 500 h in accelerated testing per ISO 6270-2:2018, though published data for this exact formulation is limited.
Micro-injection molding of L040 is used for disposable diagnostic plates, pipette tips, and microfluidic cassettes where high flow is necessary to fill features below 0.5 mm thickness. The molding machine is equipped with a high-injection-speed capability of 200–400 mm/s and a screw diameter of 18–22 mm to minimize dead volume. Melt temperature is held at 210°C with a maximum deviation of ±5°C because the low melt viscosity of L040 creates rapid temperature rise under shear; if the melt exceeds 230°C, molecular weight loss changes the fill pattern and increases flash in micro-features. Mold temperature is controlled at 20–25°C with a variotherm option only for high-aspect-ratio channels; thermal cycling above 60°C can extend cycle time beyond 30 s and is usually unnecessary for amorphous L040. Venting is the dominant quality variable: vacuum venting of −0.09 MPa is applied to the cavity because micro-features below 100 µm depth cannot evacuate air through conventional parting-line vents. The resulting parts are evaluated dimensionally by optical coordinate measurement with a tolerance of ±5 µm and mechanically by tensile testing per ISO 527-2:2012 if geometry permits. Cytotoxicity testing is not inherent to the resin; each finished diagnostic device must be validated according to ISO 10993-5:2009 and, where applicable, ISO 10993-1:2018. L040 is not marketed as an implantable grade, and no claim of ISO 10993 compliance can be transferred from polymer suppliers to finished medical device manufacturers without completed device-level testing.
Competitive Luminy Polylactic Acid (PLA) L040 prices that fit your budget—flexible terms and customized quotes for every order.
For samples, pricing, or more information, please contact us at +8618136850665 or mail to sales4@ascent-chem.com.
We will respond to you as soon as possible.
Tel: +8618136850665
Email: sales4@ascent-chem.com
Flexible payment, competitive price, premium service - Inquire now!
Luminy Polylactic Acid (PLA) L040 is a semi-crystalline poly(L-lactic acid) homopolymer supplied by TotalEnergies Corbion. The grade is polymerised from predominantly L-lactide monomer, and the defining specification parameter is a low D-lactide content. This optical purity raises the crystalline melting point and increases achievable crystallinity compared with general-purpose PLA grades. L040 is intended for injection moulding of rigid articles that require elevated heat resistance after crystallisation, including hot-beverage lids, dairy cups, single-use food service items, cutlery, and technical appliance components.
Representative datasheet values for L040 include a melt flow rate of 20–25 g/10 min at 210 °C under 2.16 kg load when tested to ISO 1133-1:2022, a glass transition temperature near 60 °C, and a melting peak in the 170–180 °C range by differential scanning calorimetry according to ISO 11357-3:2018. Density is typically 1.24 g/cm³ to ISO 1183-1:2019. Tensile modulus is reported near 3.5 GPa and tensile yield stress near 70 MPa under ISO 527-2:2012; these values are sensitive to mould temperature and degree of crystallinity. Because PLA is hygroscopic, property testing requires conditioning at 23 °C and 50 % relative humidity before evaluation.
L040 is supplied as a crystalline pellet with low residual lactide. Before melt processing, the resin must be dried in a desiccant dryer to a residual moisture level below 250 ppm, preferably below 100 ppm. Drying at 80 °C for 4–6 h with a dew point no higher than -30 °C is typical. At moisture contents above 250 ppm, hydrolysis in the melt reduces molecular weight rapidly; this manifests as viscosity loss, increased flash, reduced impact resistance, and elevated acetaldehyde generation. On a production injection moulding machine, vented plasticating units are not a substitute for adequate drying because hydrolysis products can corrode tooling and reduce part quality.
Processing is commonly performed on reciprocating-screw injection moulding machines with general-purpose screws having L/D ratios of at least 20:1. A melt temperature of 190–210 °C is used; the upper limit should not exceed 220 °C for extended residence times because poly(L-lactic acid) undergoes random chain scission and lactide regeneration. Barrel temperatures are typically profiled from 180 °C in the feed zone to 200 °C at the nozzle. Screw back pressure is maintained below 1.0 MPa to limit shear heating. If crystalline parts are required, the mould is held at 80–100 °C; this is the critical processing window for L040 because mould temperatures below 80 °C yield amorphous surfaces with limited thermal resistance, while mould temperatures above 105 °C can increase cycle time and cause ejection deformation.
The D-lactide content of L040 is specified below 0.5 % by weight, compared with 1.0–1.5 % for many standard PLA grades. Each D-lactate unit incorporated into the poly(L-lactide) chain acts as a crystal defect; reducing this concentration from approximately 1.4 % to below 0.5 % can raise the equilibrium melting point by more than 10 °C and decrease the critical nucleus size. This is why L040 can develop useful crystallinity in shorter cycle times. On a hot-stage microscope at 105 °C, spherulite growth in L040 is measurable within minutes; however, injection moulding trials are required to translate this into demoulding time because cooling rate, pressure, and shear history also govern crystallinity.
Compared with general-purpose PLA grades such as Luminy PLA L105, L040 has a lower D-lactide specification. This reduces the frequency of stereochemical defects along the poly(L-lactide) chain and increases both the equilibrium melting point and the crystallisation rate. In practice, this permits the use of higher mould temperatures and yields semi-crystalline parts with higher heat distortion temperature. General-purpose grades with higher D-lactide content are limited to lower service temperatures unless annealed, and they may require longer crystallisation times. L040 is therefore selected when the part must maintain stiffness above 60 °C without mineral fillers or nucleating additives. Compared with high-impact PLA compounds, L040 has lower notched impact strength, typically in the range of 4 kJ/m² to ISO 180/1A, and should not be used where ductile failure under impact is required. Compared with high melt strength PLA grades, L040 is not optimised for blown film or low-density foam extrusion.
Despite its higher crystallisation rate, L040 remains a relatively brittle material. Notched Izod impact strength is approximately 4 kJ/m² at 23 °C under ISO 180/1A, and ductile failure is not expected below 60 °C. The grade should not be combined with amine-based nucleating agents or strongly alkaline fillers that promote transesterification or hydrolysis in the melt. If impact modification is required, blending with an impact modifier or selecting a compounded PLA grade is preferred. UV resistance is limited; long-term outdoor exposure requires stabilisation or an opaque coating.
On high-speed injection moulding lines, two failure modes are observed with L040: gate blush and whitening at sharp corners when crystallinity is uneven, and post-mould shrinkage when parts are ejected before crystallisation is complete. Gate blush can be minimised by reducing injection velocity below 100 mm/s and increasing gate diameter; sharp-corner whitening is controlled by local mould temperature. Dimensional checks should follow ISO 294-4 for plate shrinkage, and measurements should be taken after 48 h of conditioning because cold crystallisation and moisture uptake shift dimensions by up to 0.3 %. In multi-cavity tools, cavity-to-cavity temperature variation above ±2 °C can produce differential shrinkage and warpage.
Under slow cooling or an elevated mould temperature, L040 develops spherulitic crystallinity. The crystallisation half-time at 100 °C is reduced relative to standard PLA, but actual demoulding times must be determined with part-specific wall thickness and gate geometry. In multi-cavity tools with hot runners, holding pressure and cooling time are adjusted to compensate for shrinkage anisotropy. Parts moulded without crystallinity exhibit heat distortion temperatures close to the amorphous glass transition; subsequent annealing at 100–110 °C for 30–60 min in a forced-air oven can raise heat distortion temperature, but produces measurable directional relaxation in moulded-in stress. Annealed parts should therefore be held in fixtures to maintain flatness and dimensional tolerance.
In a 40:1 L/D co-rotating twin-screw compounding line, L040 can be melt-mixed with nucleating agents or fillers, but torque and melt pressure must be monitored because the low melt viscosity increases sensitivity to shear heating. Vacuum devolatilization is used to remove low-molecular-weight volatiles. On a production line, melt temperature probes should be placed as close to the die as possible; if the melt temperature exceeds 220 °C at 100 s⁻¹ shear rate, molecular weight loss accelerates and the resulting parts show reduced tensile strength and increased brittleness. A screw design with a low compression ratio of 2:1–3:1 and gentle mixing elements is preferred.
Pellets should be stored in sealed silos or moisture-barrier packaging. Once a bag is opened, the resin adsorbs atmospheric moisture; at 23 °C and 50 % relative humidity, surface moisture can exceed 250 ppm within 24 h depending on pellet geometry. Production environments where relative humidity exceeds 60 % require hopper drying and sealed material handling. Returned regrind should be limited to 20–30 % by weight unless its moisture and intrinsic viscosity are verified; higher regrind contents can reduce melt stability and increase acetaldehyde levels.
Typical applications for L040 are injection-moulded single-use food packaging, hot-beverage lids, dairy cups, cutlery, and technical components such as handles, knobs, and appliance housings. In thin-wall packaging, fast crystallisation enables demoulding at high mould temperature without excessive cycle time. In durable goods, the grade is used where service temperatures briefly reach 80–100 °C, for example dishwasher baskets and oven-door handles. For sustained load at temperatures above 90 °C, creep resistance must be validated by ISO 899 or a part-level thermal soak test. Published data for L040 under long-term creep is limited and should not be extrapolated without verification.
Regulatory declarations for L040 are obtained from the supplier. The grade can be included in compliance assessments for EU Regulation EC 1935/2004 and EU Regulation 10/2011 on plastic materials intended for food contact, subject to monomer migration limits and overall migration testing under food simulants. A declaration of compliance should be checked for the specific grade and colourant package. Under REACH Regulation EC 1907/2006, PLA is a polymer exempt from registration, but monomer import and downstream use obligations may apply. RoHS Directive 2011/65/EU restricted substance screening is typically satisfied, but the manufacturer’s analytical report should be referenced. Industrial compostability can be evaluated according to EN 13432 when the final article has appropriate thickness and surface area.
| Regulatory domain | Reference | Assessment basis |
|---|---|---|
| Food-contact plastics | EU 10/2011 | Overall migration and specific migration of lactic acid |
| Food-contact framework | EC 1935/2004 | Declaration of compliance for the final article |
| REACH | EC 1907/2006 | Polymer exemption; monomer registration status |
| RoHS | 2011/65/EU | Restricted substances screening |
| Industrial compostability | EN 13432 | Disintegration, biodegradation, and ecotoxicity testing |
When L040 is selected for hot-fill packaging or dishwasher-durable articles, the part design and processing history determine the actual service temperature. In amorphous injection mouldings, L040 behaves similarly to standard PLA: the heat distortion temperature remains below 60 °C under 1.8 MPa load according to ISO 75-2/A. Crystallisation is therefore required to exploit the low D-lactide content. On tooling with hot oil or pressurised water heating, mould temperatures of 90–100 °C allow the part to crystallise during the normal cooling phase. For thick-walled parts, this may add 10–30 s of cooling time compared with amorphous moulding. In multi-shot or insert moulding, the differential shrinkage between crystallised L040 and non-crystallising substrates must be addressed in tool design to avoid sink marks and stress cracking.
In hot-runner systems, L040 requires balanced thermal management because the low melt viscosity at the recommended processing temperature can produce drool if nozzle temperature exceeds 210 °C. Hot-runner tips should be set 5–10 °C below the nozzle temperature to prevent stringing. Gate freeze time is shorter than for higher-viscosity PLA grades, so pack pressure should be applied for a defined interval rather than a fixed machine timer. On parts with wall thickness below 1.5 mm, crystallisation is extremely fast at 100 °C, but the narrow flow path may require injection speeds above 150 mm/s, which can produce shear heating and gate blush. Process engineers should balance injection speed, melt temperature, and gate diameter using short-shot studies.
For post-mould crystallisation, a controlled annealing cycle at 100–110 °C for 30–60 min is used when the mould cannot be heated. This approach avoids the cycle-time penalty of a heated mould but introduces a secondary operation. Annealing ovens must provide uniform airflow and temperature distribution within ±2 °C to avoid differential crystallinity and warpage. Part orientation during annealing is critical; unsupported overhangs and thin sections will distort. Parts should be cooled to below 50 °C before ejection from fixtures to limit post-crystallisation shrinkage.
The heat resistance achieved by L040 after crystallisation is dependent on test geometry and applied stress. A simple flat plaque may show a heat distortion temperature above 90 °C at 0.45 MPa load, while a complex article may warp at lower service temperatures due to localised stress concentration. For this reason, part-level validation is required rather than relying solely on material datasheet values. Published data for this specific configuration is limited for long-term hot-oil or steam exposure; trials should include thermal ageing at the intended service temperature for a minimum of 500 h and monitor creep, discolouration, and migration.
In compounding with mineral fillers such as talc, calcium carbonate, or glass fibre, the addition level strongly affects nucleation and impact performance. Talc at 5–15 wt% increases stiffness and crystallisation rate but reduces tensile elongation. Calcium carbonate at 10–20 wt% acts as an inert filler and lowers cost, but increases density and can reduce heat distortion temperature. Glass fibre at 10–20 wt% raises heat deflection temperature and flexural modulus significantly, but requires wear-resistant screws and barrels. Each formulation must be tested for tensile properties according to ISO 527-2, flexural properties according to ISO 178, and notched impact according to ISO 180/1A. Because PLA is sensitive to moisture during compounding, the feed throat should be nitrogen-blanketed when ambient humidity exceeds 60 %.
L040 is not recommended for use in solvent welding or adhesive bonding without compatibility testing. Many common solvent cements for PLA contain chlorinated or aromatic solvents that can cause environmental stress cracking in moulded parts. Ultrasonic welding is generally preferred for joining L040 parts, with welding parameters adjusted for the crystalline skin layer. Weld strength should be validated by tensile pull tests on actual weld geometries because crystallised PLA can show lower energy director penetration than amorphous PLA.
