INEOS Commissions Film Line for Development of Recyclable Films
Technology aimed at reducing complexity of multilayer packaging films.
INEOS Olefins & Polymers Europe successfully commissioned a new pilot blown film line with machine direction orientation (MDO). The company intends to use the line to co-develop multilayer recyclable packaging films with its customers.
The new multilayer, blown film line with MDO has been installed at INEOS’ R&D center in Brussels, Belgium. It enables customers to carry out full-scale tests without losing production capacity on their own lines. The first collaboration projects are already under way, developing new films that can be applied directly to customer production lines.
New film line supplied by Hosokawa Alpine will support recyclable film development at INEOS. Source: INEOS
Flexible films provide lightweight, low-emission packaging for transporting goods, increasing the shelf life of food products. However, today’s multimaterial packaging films combine different polymers, each performing
different functions, but which in combination make the film difficult to recycle. Making simpler films with the same performance means the new packaging can be more easily recycled, to meet the requirements of the
EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation.
Rob Ingram, CEO at INEOS Olefins & Polymers Europe, says: “Flexible packaging films play a valuable role in society, but we recognize and share people’s concerns about plastic waste. Every day we work alongside stakeholders across the value chain who share our commitment to a circular economy, developing more sustainable solutions to consumers’ needs. Fully recyclable films are a big development and I’m excited about the possibilities created by our investment in this new MDO line.”
The state-of-the-art technology, supplied by Hosokawa Alpine, heats and stretches polymer films to improve their physical and barrier properties, enabling them to be used in different product applications.
Related Content
-
How to Optimize Injection Molding of PHA and PHA/PLA Blends
Here are processing guidelines aimed at both getting the PHA resin into the process without degrading it, and reducing residence time at melt temperatures.
-
In Sustainable Packaging, the Word is ‘Monomaterial’
In both flexible and rigid packaging, the trend is to replace multimaterial laminates, coextrusions and “composites” with single-material structures, usually based on PE or PP. Nonpackaging applications are following suit.
-
Medical Tubing: Use Simulation to Troubleshoot, Optimize Processing & Dies
Extrusion simulations can be useful in anticipating issues and running “what-if” scenarios to size extruders and design dies for extrusion projects. It should be used at early stages of any project to avoid trial and error and remaking tooling.
