The functional properties of the coating lacquers in disposable cup-making
Aghamohammadi, Golnoosh (2023)
Diplomityö
2023
School of Energy Systems, Konetekniikka
Kaikki oikeudet pidätetään.
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2023061656261
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2023061656261
Tiivistelmä
This study aims to identify available lacquers on the market and determine their functionality for use as PE replacements for paper cups. This thesis consists of a literature review of disposable paper cup manufacturing as well as a comparison of different lacquers and varnishes, printing methods, coating methods, and sealing methods. Next, a selection of lacquers was made based on the properties required by a disposable paper cup. The study highlights the potential for more environmentally friendly and recyclable paper cups.
After the selection process, the lacquers were applied to the reference paperboards. Then, to choose the most suitable lacquer for coating the cup blanks with flexography printers, some measurements including mechanical properties characterization, friction test, and Cobb test were taken. Next, the coated cup blanks with the selected lacquers were ready to be fed into the cup machine. After the cup trial runs, further measurements were done to check the sealing area and functionality of the cups.
Although the selected lacquers had full fibre tear sealing in the laboratory, they did not act as heat-sealable lacquers at the desired level in the final stage. The results suggest that four main factors can affect the cup manufacturing process. These four factors include the chemical composition of the lacquer, the amount of applied lacquer on the paperboard, the grammage and thickness of the reference paperboard, and the cup machine parameters. Not only does the heat sealability of the lacquers depends on their chemical composition but also increasing the number of lacquer layers during flexography printing can improve the water resistance and heat sealability of the cups. Moreover, selecting a paperboard with the right thickness and grammage can affect the runnability of the material in the manufacturing process positively. Based on the results, the samples with Paperboard 1 coated with Lacquer E provided the most promising paper cups.
After the selection process, the lacquers were applied to the reference paperboards. Then, to choose the most suitable lacquer for coating the cup blanks with flexography printers, some measurements including mechanical properties characterization, friction test, and Cobb test were taken. Next, the coated cup blanks with the selected lacquers were ready to be fed into the cup machine. After the cup trial runs, further measurements were done to check the sealing area and functionality of the cups.
Although the selected lacquers had full fibre tear sealing in the laboratory, they did not act as heat-sealable lacquers at the desired level in the final stage. The results suggest that four main factors can affect the cup manufacturing process. These four factors include the chemical composition of the lacquer, the amount of applied lacquer on the paperboard, the grammage and thickness of the reference paperboard, and the cup machine parameters. Not only does the heat sealability of the lacquers depends on their chemical composition but also increasing the number of lacquer layers during flexography printing can improve the water resistance and heat sealability of the cups. Moreover, selecting a paperboard with the right thickness and grammage can affect the runnability of the material in the manufacturing process positively. Based on the results, the samples with Paperboard 1 coated with Lacquer E provided the most promising paper cups.