Extrusion International USA 1-2022

44 Extrusion International 1/2022 RECYCLING, THERMOFORMING Alternative to non-food packaging made from virgin material Kiefel has successfully thermoformed both colored trays and cups from the recycled PP fl at fi lms, on the KMD and KTR series machines. “The ma- chine settings practically did not have to be changed from processing of new material,” emphasizes Olaf Tanner, Head of Project and Product Management in the Packaging divi- sion at Kiefel. “The shape, appearance and func- tionality of the deep-drawn, recycled packaging is so good that it repre- sents a real alternative to non-food packaging made from virgin mate- rial.” Production of recycled PP fl at fi lms The recyclates have also been incor- porated up to 100% into the middle layer of ABA fl at fi lm structures of different thicknesses (500 μ m, 800 μ m) without any issues. The use of extrusion technology, equipped with a single screw without degas- sing or a twin screw with degassing, has proven equally suitable for pro- ducing color fi lms free of defects and odors with excellent thickness uniformity and stretchability. PrintCYC is an initiative along the entire packaging value chain for the recycling of printed fi lms. The con- sortium utilizes fact-based industrial tests to showcase solutions for a cir- cular economy of printed PP-based packaging fi lms. The initiative in- cludes the machine suppliers Brück- ner Maschinenbau. Kiefel and Pack- Sys Global, Profol, the specialist for fl at fi lms made of PP (polypropyl- ene), the printing ink manufacturer hubergroup Print Solutions, and Erema, the specialist for recycling technology. Energy savings of up to 20% In addition, with the increasing pro- portion of recycled material, sav- ings of up to 20% in heating energy could be observed in the production of deep-drawn PP cups compared to virgin material. This effect can even be further enhanced through the use of dark recyclates due to the better heat absorption. “As a result, we can operate our machines with a shorter heating time,” adds Tanner. This opens up interesting possibili- ties for packaging manufacturers to reduce the proportion of new materials in their containers to con- tribute to the climate and to save energy. The research initiative PrintCYC, of which KIEFEL is a member, has gained further insights into promoting the circular economy of plastic packaging through material recycling. PU-based printing inks allowed the production of color-stable, odorless and defect-free recyclates from fully printed PP-based packaging fi lms by mechanical material recycling, incorporated into fl at fi lms without any problems and deep-drawn on thermoforming machines from Kiefel with lower energy consumption. This will open up new possibilities for recycling post-industrial printed fi lm waste and potential for zero-waste production along the value chain of PP-based packaging for packaging manufacturers New Recycling Options for Printed PP Films Deep-drawn cups and bowls with> 50% PP recyclate, made fromprinted PP fi lm (©KIEFEL GmbH) KIEFEL GmbH Sudetenstr. 3, 83395 Freilassing, Germany www.kiefel.com Increased amounts of rPP reduce energy consumption in cup production (©PrintCYC) Heating power 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0% Reference 20% 30% 50% 70% 100% white brown