The specialist in plastics extrusion Reifenhäuser will make focus on sustainable packaging solutions for a functioning circular economy at CHINAPLAS 2021. The company will particularly promote its production machines for monomaterial composites as well as other components.

The problem with today's plastic packaging lies primarily in the material mix which cannot be separated in the recycling phase, or only with great difficulty. Therefore, no pure recyclates are obtainable from standard packaging, which explains why recyclability is low.

Monomaterials and digital recycling solutions

The solution: Customers produce monomaterial laminates (All-PE film) for flexible packaging on Reifenhäuser EVO Ultra Stretch blown film lines. The regular PET layer is replaced by stretched PE. With maximum stretching of up to 1:10, the Ultra Stretch stretching unit gives PE film completely new mechanical properties.

Reifenhäuser EVO Ultra Stretch.

Sustainable solution for flexible packaging: Reifenhäuser All-PE Pouch.

This is a simple replacement for PET and there is no need to adapt downstream processing steps. The unique and patented position of the stretching unit directly in the haul-off of the blown film line makes the process particularly stable and efficient. The film still warm from extrusion is stretched at the ideal time and without reheating.

In addition, this simultaneously extends the natural annealing phase until the film is winded and gives the film the necessary time to adopt its new properties.

The Ultra Stretch process offers decisive advantages over film stretching that takes place conventionally between the haul-off and the winder. Visitors to the exhibition booth can experience the Ultra Stretch technology as an impressive 3D animation video and as part of a virtual 360° tour through the Reifenhäuser development center (Technology Center) projected on large event screens.

Reifenhäuser also presents a special highlight at the show: To be able to recycle fully recyclable plastic packaging at a high standard, special marking and data standards are required to identify packaging reliably when sorting waste streams and to make recycling properties transparent. Reifenhäuser is therefore promoting the R-Cycle tracing standard which is driven by a crosscompany initiative.

The standard can be networked as an open industry platform on all production and processing machines along the plastic packaging value chain and can store recycling relevant information automatically in a digital product passport. This information can then be retrieved in the waste sorting phase using digital watermarks in the printed image of the packaging.

Biofilm for the Asian market

Another approach to sustainable packaging is biopolymers - plastics made from renewable raw materials. Reifenhäuser EVO Bio blown film lines are optimized specially to process biopolymers. They have a higher cooling capacity since biopolymers have a lower thermal conductivity. The range of applications is enormous and demand is growing on the Asian market.

They have another advantage: After use, they are compostable. Customers can also process both bio-based and conventional raw materials flexibly on Reifenhäuser EVO Bio lines to respond rapidly to changing market requirements.

Highly stable film through the use of water shock cooling

Besides sustainability, film performance naturally plays an important role and Reifenhäuser offers a special technology highlight. With the EVO AquaCool series, customers produce highly robust and transparent film for particularly demanding applications, such as infusion bags for the medical sector.

The Reifenhäuser EVO AquaCool blown film line.

Instead of using air, the film tube is shock-cooled directly after extrusion by running water over the bubble. This creates the film’s special optical and mechanical properties. Subsequently, the water is removed from the film by vacuum.

Efficient flat film for safe food packaging

Moreover, with high-performance MIREX barrier sheet systems, Reifenhäuser offers the film and packaging industry a safe and proven solution for the production of low-shrinkage and low-stress films with good thickness tolerances for optimized thermoforming performance.

The patented REIcofeed Pro IE co-extrusion feedblock.

Mirex barrier systems clearly distinguish themselves from other common systems with their flexibility in combining layers and raw materials and the possibility of adjusting their distribution during ongoing production.

The patented REIcofeed Pro IE co-extrusion feedblock guarantees very good and reliable single-layer thickness tolerances, which are critical for ensuring consistent barrier, seal and thermoforming film performance. In addition, it features a feedblock internal edge encapsulation device to reduce the use of barrier raw materials to the area of the film necessary for thermoforming.

The specialist in plastics extrusion Reifenhäuser will make focus on sustainable packaging solutions for a functioning circular economy at CHINAPLAS 2021. The company will particularly promote its production machines for monomaterial composites as well as other components.

The problem with today's plastic packaging lies primarily in the material mix which cannot be separated in the recycling phase, or only with great difficulty. Therefore, no pure recyclates are obtainable from standard packaging, which explains why recyclability is low.

Monomaterials and digital recycling solutions

The solution: Customers produce monomaterial laminates (All-PE film) for flexible packaging on Reifenhäuser EVO Ultra Stretch blown film lines. The regular PET layer is replaced by stretched PE. With maximum stretching of up to 1:10, the Ultra Stretch stretching unit gives PE film completely new mechanical properties.

Reifenhäuser EVO Ultra Stretch.

Sustainable solution for flexible packaging: Reifenhäuser All-PE Pouch.

This is a simple replacement for PET and there is no need to adapt downstream processing steps. The unique and patented position of the stretching unit directly in the haul-off of the blown film line makes the process particularly stable and efficient. The film still warm from extrusion is stretched at the ideal time and without reheating.

In addition, this simultaneously extends the natural annealing phase until the film is winded and gives the film the necessary time to adopt its new properties.

The Ultra Stretch process offers decisive advantages over film stretching that takes place conventionally between the haul-off and the winder. Visitors to the exhibition booth can experience the Ultra Stretch technology as an impressive 3D animation video and as part of a virtual 360° tour through the Reifenhäuser development center (Technology Center) projected on large event screens.

Reifenhäuser also presents a special highlight at the show: To be able to recycle fully recyclable plastic packaging at a high standard, special marking and data standards are required to identify packaging reliably when sorting waste streams and to make recycling properties transparent. Reifenhäuser is therefore promoting the R-Cycle tracing standard which is driven by a crosscompany initiative.

The standard can be networked as an open industry platform on all production and processing machines along the plastic packaging value chain and can store recycling relevant information automatically in a digital product passport. This information can then be retrieved in the waste sorting phase using digital watermarks in the printed image of the packaging.

Biofilm for the Asian market

Another approach to sustainable packaging is biopolymers - plastics made from renewable raw materials. Reifenhäuser EVO Bio blown film lines are optimized specially to process biopolymers. They have a higher cooling capacity since biopolymers have a lower thermal conductivity. The range of applications is enormous and demand is growing on the Asian market.

They have another advantage: After use, they are compostable. Customers can also process both bio-based and conventional raw materials flexibly on Reifenhäuser EVO Bio lines to respond rapidly to changing market requirements.

Highly stable film through the use of water shock cooling

Besides sustainability, film performance naturally plays an important role and Reifenhäuser offers a special technology highlight. With the EVO AquaCool series, customers produce highly robust and transparent film for particularly demanding applications, such as infusion bags for the medical sector.

The Reifenhäuser EVO AquaCool blown film line.

Instead of using air, the film tube is shock-cooled directly after extrusion by running water over the bubble. This creates the film’s special optical and mechanical properties. Subsequently, the water is removed from the film by vacuum.

Efficient flat film for safe food packaging

Moreover, with high-performance MIREX barrier sheet systems, Reifenhäuser offers the film and packaging industry a safe and proven solution for the production of low-shrinkage and low-stress films with good thickness tolerances for optimized thermoforming performance.

The patented REIcofeed Pro IE co-extrusion feedblock.

Mirex barrier systems clearly distinguish themselves from other common systems with their flexibility in combining layers and raw materials and the possibility of adjusting their distribution during ongoing production.

The patented REIcofeed Pro IE co-extrusion feedblock guarantees very good and reliable single-layer thickness tolerances, which are critical for ensuring consistent barrier, seal and thermoforming film performance. In addition, it features a feedblock internal edge encapsulation device to reduce the use of barrier raw materials to the area of the film necessary for thermoforming.