BASF offers sustainable solutions for packaging industry at interpack 2017

BASF will be showing a wide range of products from its packaging portfolio at interpack 2017, taking place in Düsseldorf, Germany from May 4-10.

Ultramid Flex F38L is an entirely new, partly bio-based copolyamide from BASF. The softness and high transparency allows manufacturers to use a polyamide (PA) for vacuum skin packaging. The product is immediately soft without conditioning and has 50% less water uptake than PA 6.

Furthermore, the bubble stability and blow-up ratio (BUR) can be significantly increased because of the higher melt stability. The new grade has a different O2/CO2 transmission ratio to all other Polyamides and can be used for cheese ripening bags or modified atmosphere packaging.

Another new copolyamide, Ultramid C37LC, allows manufacturers of shrink film for food packaging to achieve higher hot water and hot air shrinkage. Films produced with Ultramid C37LC have a lower crystallinity and are significantly softer and more transparent than films made of conventional copolyamide.

By reducing the crystallization temperature and melting point of the product, the curling of asymmetric films with polyethylene (PE) or polypropylene (PP) is significantly reduced.

BASF will also promote the innovative biomass balance approach applied for the packaging industry. Using this concept, renewable raw materials are used as feedstock in the beginning of BASF's integrated Verbund production system and then allocated to specific sales products.

As a consequence, these products save fossil resources and help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. An independent third party validates the required amount of renewable raw materials and certifies the sales product. An example of the biomass balance approach from a customer’s application will be available for visitors at the show.