Sidel helps Milliken develop PP bottling technology

Milliken Chemical has installed a Sidel, Series 2, SBO4 machine at its R&D centre in support of its research into injection stretch blow moulded clarified polypropylene (ISBM cPP).

Milliken Chemical has installed a Sidel, Series 2, SBO4 machine at its R&D centre in support of its research into injection stretch blow moulded clarified polypropylene (ISBM cPP). Trials with the Sidel machine, which the company claims offers enhanced clarity and increased production outputs for food and beverage packaging, has resulted in the production of “crystal clear” bottle walls at production speeds of 1,600 bph/m. The purchase of the machine comes on the heels of a joint research project in which Sidel and Milliken developed a methodology for increasing production speeds for polypropylene (PP) containers, making PP more cost competitive with PET for several bottle applications including hot fill applications. PP has historically not had good barrier properties to oxygen or to CO2, which is why neither the carbonated beverages market, nor the market for food highly sensitive to oxygen, has been targeted in the past. However, Milliken claims that its high temperature resistance allows for hot fill packaging, which opens up a wide range of possibilities for the food, beverage and dairy industries. The firm argues that even for cold fill packaging, PP offers a competitive advantage compared to the alternatives available in the market. This is because its moisture and aroma barrier properties are excellent, making it highly recommended for packaging spices, powdered food, instant coffee, cereals or capsules.