Technological watch

Dow had presented a selection of polyethylene-based (PE) pouches that allow for the production of medium-to-high barrier packaging with machine direction oriented (MDO) films designed for recyclability, which were developed jointly with machine manufacturer BOBST, extrusion converter Hosokawa Alpine and packaging producer ELBA and were on display at K 2019.
PE-based Mono-material Packaging Solutions
“One of the biggest challenges in designing PE-based packaging for recyclability is to incorporate barrier functionalities that are today carried out by different materials in multi-material structures,” said Jaroslaw Jelinek, EMEA marketing manager at Dow Packaging & Specialty Plastics.
“Thanks to our Pack Studios expertise fueled by strong industry collaborations we have developed our next generation of high-performance resins to help enabling the production of PE-based mono-material packaging solutions that are designed for recyclability.”
Range of Dow Products Present in Packaging
In combining state-of-the-art MDO conversion machinery with Dow’s innovative PE-based polymers, similar production efficiency to existing multi-material packaging structures has been achieved. Dow products enabling this solution include:

• ELITE™ resins for remarkable stiffness, thermal resistance, optics and a wide enough orientation window which is important for the MDO process
• NUCREL™ copolymers to create a suitable surface for the coating and metallization
• INNATE™ precision resins for balanced toughness and stiffness as well as enhanced dimensional performance
• AFFINITY™ sealants to provide a low seal temperature and good operating window on the packaging line

“We must work to find solutions that are efficient, innovative and that can lead to a circular economy,” said Romain Cazenave, EMEA marketing director at Dow Packaging & Specialty Plastics.
“The array of prototypes that were presented at K 2019, such as the one developed together with BOBST, Hosokawa Alpine and ELBA, clearly demonstrates that mono-material PE-based packaging is the future, contributing to move the industry towards recyclable packaging.”