hydrocarbons as well as oxidising acids than other polymers such as polysulfone and polyamide 6/6. Additional features include excellent wet abrasion resistance, easy melt flowability (shear thinning), and good dispersion of fillers. It is compatible with polypropylene, ethylene propylene rubbers, and thermoplastic elastomers. Some properties: Elastic modulus 290–295 MPa Tensile strength 36.5 MPa Molecular weight 725,000 (g/mol) Crystallinity 48–55% Water absorption <0.03% Glass transition temperature –25 to –17 °C Thermal conductivity 0.22 W/(m·K) Application areas Piping systems The main use of PB-1 is in flexible pressure piping systems for hot and cold drinking water distribution, pre-insulated district heating networks and surface heating and cooling systems. ISO 15876 defines the performance requirements of PB-1 piping systems. PB-1's most notable characteristics are weldability, temperature resistance, flexibility and high hydrostatic pressure resistance. The material can be classified PB 125 with a minimum required strength (MRS) of 12.5 MPa. Other features include low noise transmission, low linear thermal expansion, no corrosion and calcification. PB-1 piping systems are no longer being sold in North America (see "Class action lawsuits and removal from building code approved usage", below). The overall market share in Europe and Asia is rather small but PB-1 piping systems have shown a steady growth in recent years. In certain domestic markets, e.g. Kuwait, the United Kingdom, Korea and Spain, PB-1 piping systems have a strong position. Plastic packaging Several PB-1 grades are commercially available for various applications and conversion technologies (blown film, cast film, extrusion coating). There are two main fields of application: Peelable easy-to-open packaging where PB-1 is used as blend component predominantly in polyethylene to tailor peel strength and peel quality, mainly in alimentary consumer packaging and medical packaging. Lowering seal initiation temperature (SIT) of high speed packaging polypropylene based films. Blending PB-1 into polypropylene, heat sealing temperatures as low as 65 °C can be achieved, maintaining a broad sealing window and good optical film properties. Hot melt adhesives PB-1 is compatible with a wide range of tackifier resins. It offers high cohesive and adhesive strength and helps tailoring the "open time" of the adhesive (up to 30 minutes) because of its slow crystallisation kinetics. It improves the thermal stability and the viscosity of the adhesive. Compounding and masterbatches PB-1 accepts very high filler loadings in excess of 70%. In combination with its low melting point it can be employed in halogen-free flame retardant composites or as masterbatch carrier for