It's not that complicated at all, I work in the plastic industry. Our products are primarily medical application, fluid collection, disposible surgical and post surgery products. We do make items for tank liners uptoo .1875 thick and other porduct as thin as .004.
I'm a batch blender, my job is to mix the raw components in precise recipies to customer orders, the products I mix determines the final properties, a half pound in a 1200# batch CAN change plastic characteristics. Our Medium size shop mixes and uses 65,000# in 24hrs, 5 days a week.
We don't blow mold bottles, but PVC is PVC. It's black because it's cheapest, re-grind or used product of any color can be mixed and made black easiest, no mystery there. That's 6th grade Art Class and primary colors, black is black.
Anti-static to National ISO2009 spec is easy, it's a simple alkyly compound added at about 4# per ton. They've used it for decades.
They use black plastic bottles because it's cheap, air tight and water tight, If they where worrried about metal to plastic contact they wouldn't put a metal cap on the plastic jug..
Static discharge ingniting powders, even sensitive black powder, is a myth.
Anybody watch Football? We make the free molded plastic that lines every Riddel helmet. Every NFL football player has to wear a sanctioned Riddel helmet. They'er all custom fit for the pro's,,but it's our plastic that saves your favorite players skull from crackin