Plastics News - Show Daily - October 25, 2022 - 5

SHOW DAILY
Plastics News, October 25, 2022 * 5
Kuhne triple bubble hits weight saving needs
By David Vink
Plastics News Correspondent
Sankt Augustin, Germany-based
cast fi lm and blown fi lm line producer
Kuhne Anlagenbau GmbH
fi rst developed triple bubble blown
fi lm extrusion lines in 1996, but this
is the fi rst time for them at K.
The company is highlighting its
large triple bubble lines for biaxially
oriented vacuum forming fi lm
as a model and on video screen.
Part of the line is on display,
too, in the form of a " modular
concepts by conical discs " 13-layer
blowing head with an 800-millimeter-diameter
die lip that runs
with 1,000 bar melt pressure at
2,000 kilograms per hour.
The process involves three bubbles,
with cold water quenching
applied to cool the fi rst bubble, biaxial
orientation 1:10 stretching to
the second bubble and thermal relaxation
in the third bubble stage
to set vacuum forming properties.
Heiko E. Schenk runs the consultancy
Project IF in Leipzig,
Germany, with Isolde Freese and
advises Kuhne on the use of extrusion
machinery and materials
in the packaging market. With 30
years' experience in this sector,
Schenk leads presentations on
Kuhne's triple bubble lines at the
Kuhne booth at K 2022.
Schenk told Plastics News that
Kuhne has sold more than 150
triple bubble lines. Looking back
on how blown fi lm extrusion technology
has evolved, Schenk said
lines typically processed just 30
kg/hour into three-layer fi lm 20
years ago, while today they typically
process 2,000 kg/hour into
fi lm with 13 layers or even more,
having passed through fi ve, nine
and 11 layers on the way.
The Kuhne triple bubble line
produces 6,000 mm fi lm width, derived
from 3,000 mm wide double
fl at blown fi lm.
" Kuhne has been perceived by
many people as not making large
machines. That is no longer true,
even if many people don't know it
yet, " Schenk said.
There is a strong motivation to
take up biaxially oriented vacuum
forming fi lm, as it is possible to
produce such fi lms at 80 to 120 microns
that meet vacuum formed
packaging requirement, which is
at least half the thickness the cast
fi lm than has so far predominated
in such applications.
" Companies running 80-micron
bioriented fi lm obtain the same
or even better functionality, "
Schenk said. He also pointed to
higher productivity, with a typical
cast line having 6,000 to 10,000
tonnes/year capacity, the Kuhne
triple bubble blown fi lm lines
15,000 tonnes/year. And there is
less waste than biaxially oriented
cast fi lm, which inevitably has
tenterframe marks on fi lm edges,
Schenk added.
The attraction of the lower
weight is that becomes increasingly
important internationally
as more countries apply extended
product responsibility obligations,
with fees charged on
packaging weight. This started in
Germany in 1991 under the Green
Dot scheme and is now being imposed
by the European Union's
packaging directive and supported
by the CEFLEX circular economy
for fl exible packaging susThere
can only be one greatest plan! And we have it! For a secure and
successful future. Sustainability, efficiency and cutting-edge technology,
perfectly combined. No compromises. You can rely on our Plan A - A for
ARBURG. Wir sind da.
www.arburg.com
tainability guidelines. Schenk said
China, Indonesia and Vietnam are
among countries introducing EPR
in 2023, " accounting for half the
world's population, " he observed.
Schenk said the pressure is on
brand owners and retailers. Consumers
are hardly affected, as the
thin vacuum packaging weight is
only a small fraction of packed
product weight. Another advantage
of the thinner fi lm is that it requires
less energy consumption and therefore
cost during vacuum forming,
with a lower CO2 footprint.
Schenk said Kuhne's water
quenching cooling is more effective
than others, which is important
to prevent crystallization that can
negatively affect uniform stretchKuhne
has been perceived
by many people as not
making large machines. That
is no longer true, even if many
people don't know it yet. "
Heiko E. Schenk
Project IF
ing in the second bubble stage.
Vacuum packed sausage and
meat products displayed on the
booth were packed in Veraplex
triple bubble fi lm blown by Ochsenhausen,
Germany-based Südpack
GmbH, described by Schenk
as probably the best possible
reference for the process and the
fi lm it produces.
In discussion with PN about recycling,
Schenk said his opinion
is that post-consumer recyclate
" will never be as good as virgin
KUHNE
ANLAGENBAU
Hall 17,
Booth A41
plastic, as
it is only
saleable in
nonfood
applications.
That
is its limitation. "
But
Kuhne
announced a premiere at
K in the form of a 1,400-mm-wide
horizontal roll stack three-layer
cast sheet line for PET and PCR
blends that includes an infrared
drier system so that production
of food-contact fi lm is possible.
Another premiered cast line, with
a 1,110 mm vertical roll stack has
been designed for extrusion of
three-layer polypropylene fi lm.
THERE IS
ONLY A PLAN
19 - 26/10/2022
Hall 13, stand A13
Düsseldorf
Germany
http://www.arburg.com
Plastics News - Show Daily - October 25, 2022

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