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8 -Laboratory-scale thermoforming machine I process events during the measurements of temperature. The blue rectangle represents the sensor embedded in the piston. The orange and green circles represent the two thermocouples placed underneath the paper sample.
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![Figure 1.1 -European paper recycling rate, year to year comparison [5].](profile/Mattia-Didone/publication/345858324/figure/fig1/AS:957785500053504@1605365266186/European-paper-recycling-rate-year-to-year-comparison-5_Q320.jpg)
![Figure 1.2 -Example of a molded pulp packaging solution [6].](profile/Mattia-Didone/publication/345858324/figure/fig2/AS:957785500049408@1605365266221/Example-of-a-molded-pulp-packaging-solution-6_Q320.jpg)
![Figure 2.9 -(a) Example of molded pulp cushioning [95]. (b) Example of...](profile/Mattia-Didone/publication/345858324/figure/fig5/AS:957785500037121@1605365266331/a-Example-of-molded-pulp-cushioning-95-b-Example-of-molded-expanded-polystyrene_Q320.jpg)
The matter of this thesis is the development, characterization and ultimately modeling
of the manufacturing process of molded pulp products. In particular, focus was placed
on studying and optimizing the drying step, as the cost of energy required may be
from eight to twenty times that needed for pre-forming.
Moving towards the 2021 European ban o...
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Citations
... The paper bottle is based on the thermoforming of pulp [67,68], which is conventionally done to make trays for eggs, take-away containers in many restaurants, fruit trays or baskets, and pulp-based disposable food trays [69][70][71]. For pulp thermoforming, a porous molding die is required to provide the initial shape to the pulp product [72]. ...
Packaging for liquid products is mainly made from petroleum-based polymers, either rigid or flexible. The multilayer packaging provides small and handy packs available for the common masses. However, an alternative bio-sourced material for liquid products is urgently needed due to the limitation of fossil fuel, restrictions from environmental regulations, and its non-biodegradable nature. Paper is used as a packaging material that mainly provides structural strength to the package with some barrier properties if required after suitable surface treatment. Here we review the use of lignocellulosic pulp to produce paper-based sachets and paper bottles for liquid product packaging, emphasizing the detailed manufacturing process. The barrier properties of various conventional polymers and barriers required by a specific liquid product package are also discussed and detailed, as a barrier is required to increase further or maintain the product’s shelf-life. Current research and new product development at an industrial scale and their materials are critically discussed. Suitable coating materials on paper sheets and paper bottles are detailed, as paper alone cannot be used for liquid products due to wettability in the hydrophilic region and poor barrier properties. The potential of biopolymers like polylactic acid, polyhydroxyalkanoates, and their nanocomposites are further explored to ensure the package’s sustainability compared to conventional polymers. Moreover, the emerging biomaterial such as cellulose fatty ester, cellulose nanopaper, waterborne acrylic emulsion, and natural wax-based dispersion for coating on paper packaging is detailed. Furthermore, the barrier, mechanical properties, and finally, recyclability are a concept taken into account from the design phase onwards.
Graphical Abstract
... The thermoforming setup used for tooling process chain validation. Image adapted from[26]. ...
Paper-based packaging products, due to their excellent sustainable properties are preferred over the glass, plastic, and metal-based packaging solutions. The paper bottle molding process is very new in this category, and the tooling aspect is not well explored. Existing tooling solutions offer certain limitations in the molding process such as clogging of channels, low open-area fraction, low fatigue life, and longer cycle times. With the utilization of additive manufacturing techniques, the tooling can not only be made more economical and produced in shorter time duration but also more efficient. VAT photopolymerization based soft tooling process chain is highlighted and discussed in this work. Design of micro-features and their fabrication is carried out using UV light mask projection method. A characterization approach for precision manufacturing of micro-features using X-ray Computed Tomography is also discussed. Validation of the soft tooling process chain and its effectiveness against the conventional tools is presented and discussed in this work. It is shown that the proposed soft tooling process chain for the manufacturing of molds for paper bottle production is a better performing and cheaper alternative to existing solutions implemented in industry.
