Abstract
Covid is now something we need to be aware of and not let it interfere with our lives. Covid now seems to be like the annual flu that we have all lived with. As a result, I have had the opportunity recently to attend three conferences: • FlexPackCon in Montreal, Canada • International Polyolefins conference in Galveston TX • SPE 2024 ANTEC in St Louis, MO.
We have all heard about protecting the environment and how plastics are polluting the world. The issue has centered around single use plastics; however, the issue really is “single use” not “plastics”. Is it proper to blame the resin manufacturer or the package fabricator for the person who allows the plastic to enter the environment polluting not only the land but also the oceans. It is not the bullet that should be blamed for the damage, it is the person who pulls the trigger. Now the counter argument is that if there were no plastic then there would be no pollution. While this is true, this specious argument leaves out the good that plastics brings to our standards of living. To make intelligent decisions about which product is the better environmental choice, life cycle analysis (LCA) is used to calculate the total impact on the environment. I am impressed by the number of companies that are not waiting for people to stop polluting and are actively working on recycling. There is not one technology that will solve the problem, there are physical and chemical technologies. Each has a role to play in the circular economy. Physical processes are solvation and melting to reshape. Chemical recycling such as pyrolysis, gasification, hydro-cracking, and depolymerisation change the plastic waste chemical structure. Each technology has its advantages and disadvantages. Time will tell just how each technology matures and contributes to the circular economy.
Another environmental issue is forever chemicals contamination. These are PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) which are linked to several health issues. A recent study as of February 5, 2024 shows that there are 5021 sites in 50 states, the District of Columbia and four territories in the USA (https://www.ewg.org/interactive-maps/pfas_contamination/) that have detectable PFAS levels. PFAS is used to alleviate melt fracture in many applications such as food packaging and chemical storage containers. Currently there are many companies working on alternates to the PFAS. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has made available their method for measuring 40 PFAS in wastewater, surface water, groundwater, soil, biosolids, sediment, landfill leachate, and fish tissue. (https://www.epa.gov/water-research/pfas-analytical-methods-development-and-sampling-research).
I am encouraged by the research and development underway to solve pollution issues and I see progress toward a circular and sustainable economy. And I realize that it will still take many years and help from both the public and private sector to realize this dream. I can not say it better than Bernie Sanders who recently said “We are custodians of the earth. All of us. And it would be a moral disgrace if we left to future generations a planet that was unhealthy, unsafe, and uninhabitable.” Please do what you can to protect our planet and provide a safe and peaceful world for our descendants. Be kind to yourself and to others too.
In this issue we have four original articles.
The first two are based on presentations at the SPE FlexPackCon 2023, organized by the SPE Flexible Packaging Division in Montreal, Canada October 10–12, 2023.
The first paper “Development of a Multilayer Film for the First FDA Cleared Aseptically-Produced Intravenous Solution Bags with A Short History of Key Medical Device Milestones” is by Len Czuba, President of Czuba Enterprises, Inc. Len was one of the 100 MD&DI Notable Persons in the medical device industry. He is very active in the Society of Plastics Engineers and is a long-time member of the Medical Plastics Division. He served as its Division Chair over three different years and in 2001 was selected to the SPE Executive Committee. There he served in several Society officer positions and in 2005 was the SPE’s President for 2005–06. He is now a Distinguished Member, Honored Service Member, and Fellow. His review is a very interesting narrative on the developments of modern IV devices. His unconventional review is a personal and historical perspective which provides a valuable insight into a vital product used globally.
Our second paper “Flexible Packaging Past, Present and Future: Reflections on a Century of Technology Advancement” is by Barry A. Morris of BA Morris Consulting LLC, Wilmington, DE USA. Barry retired from Dow as an R&D Fellow with over 35 years of experience in material science and packaging innovation and technology. He held many technology roles supporting the ethylene copolymer business at Dow (formerly DuPont). Barry holds 12 U.S. granted patents and has over 125 publications, including his recently published 2nd edition to his comprehensive book, The science and technology of flexible packaging (Elsevier, 2022). He excels at applying scientific principles to complex technical issues and explaining it in a way that the practitioner can understand and use. In 2022 he formed BA Morris Consulting LLC to continue to offer his expertise to the packaging and plastics industries. Morris holds a PhD in chemical engineering from Princeton University and an MBA from the University of Delaware. He is a Fellow of the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) and chair-elect of the SPE Flexible Packaging Division. He has won several industry awards, including the TAPPI PLACE Division Technical award, SPE’s Bruce Maddock Award and the DuPont Pedersen Medal.
The manuscript is an engaging personal perspective on flexible packaging from an industry leader. It presents a thorough and systematic account of the development and current/future state of these important materials.
The Third paper “Improvement of PLA-PVA/chitosan nanocomposite laminate film for packaging via crosslinking with electron beam irradiation: mechanical, thermal and antimicrobial analysis” is by Thawanrat Chaisit, Punnanee Sumpavapol, Thitirat Rattanawongwiboon, Kittisak Jantanasakulwong and Thorsak Kittikorn. They investigated and developed a laminate packaging film of poly (lactic acid) (PLA) and poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) containing modified chitosan nanoparticles (MCSNPs) treated with 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate silane (TMSPM) which functioned both as a reinforcement and as an antimicrobial filler. Electron beam irradiation caused crosslink between the PVA and MCSNP molecules via the free radical of carbonyl in the methacrylate group of TMSPM-grafted chitosan nanoparticles and the free radical of hydroxyl group in poly (vinyl alcohol). This improved the PVA hydrophobicity. In addition, the laminate with PVA-g-MCSNPs film irradiated with a 30 kGy electron beam showed the best performance properties due to improved interfacial adhesion between PLA and PVA-g-MCSNPs. As a consequence, the mechanical and thermal properties improved. The 30 kGy irradiated film also had better antibacterial activity against both Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus.
The fourth paper “Developing a novel konjac flour/PVA composite film: preparation, properties and characterization” is by Shuang Lang, Xin Zhang, Guowei Liu, Liangjun Xiao, Hui Wang, Xiaojian Zhou and Guanben Du. They studied konjac flour (KF) and poly-vinyl alcohol (PVA) as main film-forming substances with added citric acid (CA), glutaraldehyde (GA) and glycerin to prepare bio-based composite films via solution casting. They investigated how PVA polymer affected the composite films including mechanical performance, structural properties and morphology. The PVA polymer improved the film’s mechanical properties, and at 25% PVA based on KF mass with fixed CA, GA and glycerin demonstrated the optimal amount, maintaining an excellent tensile strength (TB) and elongation at break (EAB). Fourier transform infrared spectra (FT-IR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) results indicated the successful cross-linking reaction between PVA and KF, and some further proofs could be confirmed from scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and thermogravimetry (TG). After modification with PVA, the KF/PVA composite film cross section was more dense and uniform, implying that PVA was well fused with KF system. Meanwhile, the films modified with PVA presented a good thermal resistance ability. This work provided an effective pathway for preparing KF/PVA composite films with improved mechanical properties, which may be an alternative way for using konjac flour.
And a final quote: “ A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.” - Walter Winchell.
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