Neopac launches recyclable flip-top cap plastic tube in circular economy first
07 Oct 2020 --- Hoffmann Neopac is introducing the market’s first fully recyclable polyethylene-based (PE) tubes with high-density polyethylene (HDPE) flip-top caps. The mono-material tube and cap combination overcomes a longstanding functionality hurdle for hinged caps, previously made predominantly from less recyclable polypropylene (PP) materials.
The new tube’s body, shoulder and cap are composed of a single material enabling recyclability. Also available in screw-top formats, the solution is designed for health, beauty, food and pharma packaging applications.
“Achieved in collaboration with a long-time supplier, the new HDPE flip-top caps overcome the last hurdle to fully recyclable tube packaging – namely, the ability to form functional closures from the same material as the tube body and shoulder,” explains Simon Böhlen, development engineer, Neopac.
Boosting mechanical recycling
In mechanical recycling streams, mono-material plastic packaging is preferable over combination plastics, as its comparable simplicity makes it easily recyclable.
In addition to the new HDPE flip-top caps, Neopac is launching a comprehensive portfolio of PE screw caps. The screw caps are available in diameters of 10-40 mm and manufactured entirely in-house.
The full PE Cap range is commercially available for all Neopac’s PE, COEX, EcoDesign or Polyfoil Range.
The recyclable mono-material PE tubes with flip-top cap will be available as stock solutions with the new printing service DigitAll360° starting November 2020.
Neopac is in the development stages of next-generation, HDPE-optimized high-performance barrier tubes (Polyfoil MMB) with enhanced decoration options.
Available with PE screw-top caps, the forthcoming solutions have received “excellent ratings” from Institute Cyclos-HTP, a packaging recyclability certification organization.
Taking on technical challenges
Hinge and screw caps for tubes are usually made of PP due to the tube’s rigidness and tightness, Böhlen tells PackagingInsights.
Ensuring that the hinge is firm and snaps back when touched can be testing. “A PE cap needs to be tight with the tube shoulder and cracking-proof – that is usually easier to achieve with a PP cap on a PE tube.”
“It is also a challenge to achieve a high surface quality optical finish with PE caps, and to find food and pharma grade PE quality with the right melt flow index to lower the required changes on the standard toolings.”
Bringing on the beauty
Mono-material PE and Coex tubes are used for beauty products, such as shower gels or body lotions, hand creams, baby creams and other formulas that do not require high barrier properties.
Neopac can facilitate more sensitive formulas through stability tests with high-performance mono-material barrier tubes – called Polyfoil MMB – if a higher barrier is required relative to a standard PE or Coex tube.
“This is mainly used for toothpaste, preservative-free beauty products and pharma. This tube also has nice metallic effects without an aluminum barrier. Our recyclable tube family is growing fast!” Böhlen says.
Incorporating recycled content
Neopac has a specification with 64 percent post-consumer recycled (PCR) content in the tube body and shoulder, but not yet for the HDPE hinge caps.
Böhlen identifies the main barriers to increased PCR use as the volume and color availability of food-grade rPE, cap cracking and hinge functionality.
In other Neopac news, the global supplier partnered Thyssenkrupp Rasselstein to develop the RecyCan – a 100 percent recyclable and recyclable steel-based tinplate solution.
Ideal for a variety of premium organic and specialty products, including organic infant nutrition, coffee, tea, dry or pasty cosmetics and tooth powder, RecyCan tins are available as three-piece, two-piece or deep-draw cans, protecting against light, oxygen and moisture.
By Joshua Poole
