VTT’s 30% extensibility of formable cellulose-based webs was employed in an industrial product packaging process to create rigid packages made possible by foam-forming technology. This paves the way for the production of numerous environmentally friendly packaging options.
Image Credit: VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland established exceptional maximum limits of its extremely extensible formable cellulose-based webs utilized for rigid packaging applications in a pilot-scale study to investigate alternative raw materials for rigid plastic packages. The findings pave the way for the production of previously impossible sustainable 3D packaging solutions.
The best commercial formable boards have 10–18% extension, while most commercial boards have 3–6% extensibility (geometric mean). Through the application of foam forming technology, VTT has achieved a 30% increase in extensibility. This lets brand owners cater to customers who want to purchase more environmentally friendly products by using rigid, cardboard-like packaging.
This material development allows food companies that produce cold cuts, for example, to raise the size of their cardboard-like packaging from 75 grams to 200–250 grams. Even bigger cardboard-like packaging can be made by modifying the tray forming procedure and tray size.
Polypropylene film is one of the world’s most used polymers—its extensibility is up to 300%. Our invention now offers a viable, sustainable alternative on the market.
Jarmo Kouko, Research Team Leader, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland
“There has been a lot of great academic research around the world on how to eliminate plastics, but the challenge is that those seldom go beyond research. So, we are extremely excited and proud of the results we have produced in our pilot-scale study, which clearly shows the commercial potential of our rigid cellulose-based packaging. In industries that use huge amounts of plastic like the food packaging sector, we can find plenty of opportunities to reduce the use of fossil fuel-based materials and replace them with sustainable ones that take us closer to carbon-neutral societies of the future and allow us to be more frugal with natural resources,” Kouko added.
Expanded polystyrene (EPS) food containers and cups are prohibited in the European Union as of 2021 due to the Single-use Plastics Directive and the European Commission's proposal for the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation.
Manufacturers of single-use plastic products are also required to pay for the waste management associated with their products. Suppliers have a cost-effective and environmentally friendly substitute for single-use plastic, thanks to products like VTT’s foam-formed cellulose-based packaging.
The fact that VTT, together with gruppo x di x gruppo s.r.l. and Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology (LUT), were able to incorporate the product into existing product packaging lines with no changes in the process, making it affordable and easy for brands to adopt the product as a sustainable alternative to plastic packages can be a real game-changer.
Kristian Salminen, Lead, Bio-based Products, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland
Development work has been done as part of a research initiative where VTT has upscaled potential alternatives for plastic products in collaboration with 54 companies and the Regional Council of Central Finland.
The study team from VTT will present their findings at The Greener Manufacturing Show 2023 in Cologne, Germany on November 8–9, 2023.