How Do You Spell POLYETHYLENE?

Pronunciation: [pˌɒlɪˈɛθɪlˌiːn] (IPA)

Polyethylene is a commonly used plastic that has a relatively simple IPA phonetic transcription ˌpɒliːˈθiːn. The word is formed from the prefix "poly-" meaning "many" and "ethylene", which is a hydrocarbon compound. The spelling of the word follows the rules of English orthography, with "poly" being spelled as it sounds and "ethylene" being spelled with the "e" pronounced as "eh". The double "e" in both "poly" and "ethylene" helps to emphasize the long "e" sound in the middle of the word.

POLYETHYLENE Meaning and Definition

  1. Polyethylene is a highly versatile polymer consisting of chains of repeating ethylene monomer units. It is a widely used and extensively produced plastic that exhibits excellent physical properties, such as durability, flexibility, and resistance to moisture, chemicals, and impact. Polyethylene is commonly abbreviated as PE in scientific and industrial contexts.

    There are different types of polyethylene, including low-density polyethylene (LDPE), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), and linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE). LDPE is characterized by its flexibility, transparency, and ability to be heat-sealed, making it suitable for applications such as packaging films, squeeze bottles, and trash bags. HDPE, on the other hand, is more rigid and offers exceptional strength, thus being commonly used in applications like milk jugs, pipes, and storage containers. LLDPE combines the advantages of LDPE and HDPE, displaying both flexibility and toughness, which make it suitable for various packaging films and industrial applications.

    Polyethylene is produced through a process called polymerization, where the ethylene monomers undergo a chain reaction to form the long polymer chains of polyethylene. The resulting material can be tailored to possess specific properties by modifying the polymerization conditions, such as temperature, pressure, and catalysts used. Through various processing techniques, polyethylene can be molded, extruded, or blown into different shapes and forms to meet the requirements of a wide range of industries, including packaging, construction, automotive, and consumer goods.

Top Common Misspellings for POLYETHYLENE *

* The statistics data for these misspellings percentages are collected from over 15,411,110 spell check sessions on www.spellchecker.net from Jan 2010 - Jun 2012.

Other Common Misspellings for POLYETHYLENE

Etymology of POLYETHYLENE

The word "polyethylene" is derived from two Greek roots: "poly", meaning "many" or "several", and "ethylene", which refers to the chemical compound ethylene (C2H4). Ethylene is an organic compound composed of two carbon atoms and four hydrogen atoms. When multiple ethylene molecules combine, a polymer is formed, resulting in a long-chain structure known as polyethylene. The term polyethylene, therefore, signifies the presence of multiple ethylene units in its chemical structure.

Plural form of POLYETHYLENE is POLYETHYLENES

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