ISO 15013:2022

Overview

ISO 15013:2022 - "Plastics - Extruded sheets of polypropylene (PP) - Requirements and test methods" specifies requirements and test methods for solid flat extruded polypropylene sheets (homopolymers PP‑H and copolymers PP‑B and PP‑R) without fillers or reinforcement. The standard applies to sheets in rolled form with thicknesses from 0.5 mm to 40 mm and covers appearance, dimensional tolerances, mechanical and thermal properties, behaviour on heating, physiological considerations and required test methods.

Key topics and technical requirements

• Material scope: Unfilled PP extrusion compounds (additives such as stabilizers, colorants and impact modifiers permitted; unknown additives not allowed). Reference designation system: ISO 19069‑1.
• Appearance: Sheets must be substantially free from bubbles, voids, cracks, sharp grooves and similar defects; colorants must be homogeneously distributed.
• Dimensional tolerances
  • Thickness: tolerance per sheet |Δh| ≤ (0.08 mm + 0.03 × h) where h is nominal thickness.
  • Length/width: tolerances increase with nominal size (specific table in the standard); for rolled sheets the minimum length is the nominal length.
  • Rectangularity: diagonal-length-difference limits defined in Annex A.
  • Bow (rolled form): maximum bow 20 mm per 10 m length.
• Mechanical & thermal properties (Table 2): sets minimum average values by PP group for:
  • Tensile stress at yield (e.g., many PP‑H groups ≥ 30 MPa; PP‑R groups ≥ 20 MPa)
  • Tensile strain at yield (minimum values vary, e.g., ≥ 7–12 % depending on group)
  • Modulus of elasticity in tension (ranges from ≥ ~700 to ≥ 1,200 MPa)
  • Charpy notched impact strength (group-dependent, e.g., ≥ 4–15 kJ/m2)
  • Melt mass‑flow rate (MFR) and heat resistance (heat‑age days at specified temperatures range by group, e.g., 20–100+ days)
• Behaviour on heating / shrinkage
  • General applications: maximum shrinkage in extrusion direction < 3%.
  • Thermoforming applications: maximum shrinkage specified by nominal thickness (e.g., 0.5 mm → 60 %, 1 mm → 50 %, 2 mm → 42 %, 4 mm → 34 %, etc.).
• Test methods & specimen preparation: references standard test procedures and specimen conditioning (e.g., conditioning at 23 °C for ≥16 h per ISO 291). Referenced test methods include tensile (ISO 527‑2), Charpy impact (ISO 179‑1/2), MFR (ISO 1133‑1), shrinkage (ISO 11501) and others.

Applications and users

ISO 15013:2022 is used by:

• Manufacturers and extruders of PP sheet for product specifications and quality control
• Material engineers and product designers selecting PP sheet for thermoforming, packaging, industrial panels and consumer goods
• Test laboratories verifying compliance with mechanical, thermal and shrinkage criteria
• Buyers and specifiers requiring clear tolerances and performance limits for rolled PP sheet
• Conformity assessors and regulatory bodies concerned with physiological behaviour and safety

Related standards

Normative references include ISO 179‑1/2, ISO 291, ISO 527‑2, ISO 1133‑1, ISO 2818, ISO 4577, ISO 11501 and ISO 19069‑1 - consult ISO 15013:2022 for the complete list and test-method cross‑references.