When it comes to using and selecting plastic cups, the key factors are the material and how they are used. You can safely use cups made from safe materials like PP or Tritan for daily needs, but PC cups pose risks when filled with hot water, and low-quality, unlabeled products should be avoided altogether.
Common materials for disposable plastic cups include polypropylene (PP), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polystyrene (PS), and polylactic acid (PLA).
According to plastic recycling codes, heat resistance varies significantly among materials; for instance, PP (Code 5) can withstand temperatures up to 120°C, PET (Code 1) is heat-resistant up to 65°C, and PS (Code 6)-while resistant to both heat and cold-is unsuitable for microwave heating. Compressive strength also varies by material: traditional plastic cups (such as those made of PP, PS, or PET) range from 26 N to 975 N, whereas PLA cups range from 26 N to 151 N. Regarding thermal insulation, disposable paper cups generally outperform disposable plastic cups; corrugated and double-walled hollow-structure paper cups offer the best insulation, with surface temperatures differing by more than 20°C compared to standard PE plastic cups.
