Best Cups for Cold Drinks

Posted by Marc Allen Tan on Aug 6th 2021

When it comes to cold drinks, a combination of form and function is something that needs to be considered. A bigger cup can accommodate more heat while smaller ones do not and unlike normal drink temperatures, cold drinks can easily change from one temperature to another. This is mostly because of heat radiation. Items and human hands radiate a certain amount of heat that easily affects the temperature of cold drinks. This is why constantly holding a cold drink can easily crank up the heat and make the cold drink a bit warm.

However, with some engineering magic, some cups were designed and made that could keep cold drinks cold. Here are the best cups for cold drinks.

Polypropylene Cups

Polypropylene is a material that is similar to plastics. They are durable, easy to make, and easy to find. However, the similarities with normal plastics end there. They are made up of different fibers and polymers that do not use bisphenol A as a hardening agent. Bisphenol A or BPA is known to be one of the primary hardening chemicals found in plastics, but they are also responsible for most of the health issues when it comes to people using plastics.

Establishing that polypropylene cups are safe for drinking is one thing, but what does polypropylene have benefits for cold drinks and their drinkers.

Well, here are 5 awesome reasons why.

Polypropylene produces low friction

One of the not-so-secret secrets of cup science is friction. When 2 things come in contact with each other they create friction which in turn creates heat. Depending on the material, friction can be increased or decrease which is important when dealing with temperature-sensitive items.

Polypropylene in this case produces low friction when touched or handled which is important when it comes to keeping cold drinks cold. It’s also one of the reasons why polypropylene cups are smoother and lighter than the average plastic cup.

Polypropylene has a high chemical resistance

When it comes to variety, cold drinks may have an upper hand compared to hot drinks. Most hot drinks come from brewing ingredients and powders which can be very limiting unlike cold drinks wherein syrups, juices and alcohol become a party in one’s mouth. However, one would think that having these kinds of mixtures might also affect the container since contamination problems such as BPA poisoning exist.

This is where polypropylene shines. Polypropylene is known to have a high chemical reaction resistance which means that drinks that have alcohol or other chemically reactive drink won’t be a problem when used with a polypropylene cup.

Polypropylene has a high freezing limit

The main purpose of freezing is to prolong items and food for storage. Storing food is a hallmark in human evolution and is one of the key to humanity’s survival, but storing food in some containers can pose a different problem. Some containers can break in freezing temperatures which can also affect the item being preserved inside. Broken pieces of plastic can go into the food and can cause problems if they get cooked.

Polypropylene avoids this problem because of its high freezing limit. Polypropylene cups or containers won’t break in freezers making sure that the food or liquid store inside won’t be compromised or wouldn’t compromise other stored foods. 

Polypropylene is very malleable

Plastics are known to be very durable and flexible but they tend to lose these properties when mixed in with outer elements such as extra chemicals and temperature. As mentioned above, polypropylene can handle those things but why is that?

Turns out that polypropylene has a tensile strength which means that it can bend but it won’t break. Chemicals and temperature tend to expand materials to the point of breaking, this problem doesn’t apply as much to polypropylene because of its awesome malleable property.

Polypropylene does not absorb liquid

Cups that do not absorb any liquids mean that the cup does not have any chance to let any toxic residue seep into the drink. Polypropylene cups are very good for long drinking sessions since they won’t create any toxic residues when it comes in contact with liquids.

This also means that they won’t actively absorb any cold temperature from the drink making the cold drink last longer.

Click here to know more about ePackagesupply’s Versalite Polypropylene Cups for Cold Drinks

Plastic Cups

Plastic cups are the go-to cups when it comes to parties, events, and outdoor activities. They are affordable, easy to find, and very durable. But what makes plastic cups great for cold drinks?

Plastic cups that are BPA Free are safe to use and do not carry any toxic residue after it comes in contact with liquids.These cups are perfect for whole day parties, events and concerts since they do not pose any threats to its users. It’s also important to remember the longevity of use since cold drinks are drinks are important in events because they are mood extenders.

They are also known to be cheaper than paper cups since they are made of out of polymers which is a combination of different materials. They don’t really rely on a singular resource unlike paper, but because of the complex material, the recycling process is definitely more intricate.

One of the best features of plastic cups is that they do not absorb liquids, this means that the structure of the cup won’t change, unlike paper cups which do absorb water. Paper cups also distort faster with cold drinks since the cold temperature also breaks down the paper cup’s structure, unlike plastic cups.

Click here to know more about ePackagesupply’s Plastic Cups.

The Cold Never Bothered These Cups Anyway

Cups for cold drinks all boil down to keeping cold drinks cold by avoiding further heat radiation from contact. This marvelousfeat has been achieved by man’s constant need to hydrate and to celebrate life with cold drinks.

Check out the Plastics 101 guide article to know more about plastics and to know more abou ePackageSupply’s cups for cold drinks, head over to this page.