A new, ‘fully recyclable’ heat seal coating from Henkel Adhesive Technologies is reportedly made from ‘harmless ingredients’ suitable for direct-contact packaging – enabling customers to adopt paper-based designs for food, pharmaceuticals, home care, and other products.
Loctite Liofol HS 2819 RE claims to be free of substances of concern such as mineral oils, instead containing only ‘harmless’ substances. According to Henkel, this means the coating can be used to seal primary packaging in direct contact with food without any safety risks.
Under ‘certain conditions’, it is said to align with the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) as well as European and FDA guidelines.
At the same time, ‘accredited testing institutes’ are said to have proven the coating’s recyclability. This apparently allows customers to replace their plastic packaging with paper alternatives, with Loctite Liofol HS 2819 RE thought to integrate ‘seamlessly’ into the paper conversion process and replace PE and PE-coex paper – all without impacting product efficiency or performance.
Henkel also highlights the coating’s ‘excellent’ sealability against itself and against paper, as well as the ‘efficiency’ of its low initiation temperature. It can be applied using flexographic and rotogravure technologies, the company says, which is expected to maximize strength at high machine speeds.
“The new innovative recycling compatible heat seal coating is paving the way for new, sustainable packaging opportunities,” says Cagri Turkmen, market strategy manager Europe Flexible Packaging Adhesives at Henkel. “With Loctite Liofol HS 2819 RE, we are creating a future-proof, environmentally sustainable solution for a wide range of applications – from hygiene products and tea bags to e-commerce deliveries.”
This development comes after Henkel Adhesive Technologies previously unveiled a new hot melt containing 49% directly biobased raw materials and 30% ISCC-certified mass-balanced material. Intended for folding carton, tray, and wrap-around packaging applications, it is hoped to save 7,500kg of CO2 every year.
Smart Planet Technologies recently revealed a similar development – a biopolymer version of its EarthCoating barrier. This new design applies a ‘specialized mineral blend’ to a biobased PLA resin, which is then applied to both recyclable and compostable paper cups. It is intended as a drop-in solution and aims to improve barrier and heat seal performance compared to 100% plastic coatings.
In other news, Pulpex and the University of Surrey have sought to save energy and water while improving packaging performance by using AI-powered computer vision to correct imperfections while applying barrier coatings to fibre-based bottles. They hope to achieve 100% reliability in the manufacturing process, improve packaging performance, and give consumers more sustainable packaging options.
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