Nanotechnology and packaging: future is tomorrow!

Global market for nanotechnologies estimated to hundreds of billions of dollars annually. Goods and services generated in the process could even represent up to US$ 1,000 billion annually by 2015.

Packaging too

As far as the content is concerned, as we know, some cosmetic products already contain nano-ingredients. The packaging segment is directly concerned too, for all kinds of materials: wood, glass, plastic, aluminum...

Several converters in the industry are already working at it. Many projects have already gone under test and the year 2011 should be predominant in this area. Rexam and Alcan officials admit working in several directions, and Seidel has already made some significant progress.

What is it about?

The nanotechnology term commonly refers to manipulation of atoms, molecules and supramolecular structures in order to create complex structures with original properties.

A nanometer (nm) equals one millionth of a millimeter or one billionth of a meter [1]. Nanotechnology is referred to when it comes to structures (e.g. an atom or an aggregate of atoms) which are on one side shorter than 100 nanometers and represent exploitable physico-chemical proprieties on which we can have no influence when working on a larger scale. Using nanotechnology, engineers elaborate structures at the nanoscale and act upon them to get some reaction. A number of materials change their behaviour when observed at the nanoscale. Nanoparticles generally have a large specific surface, inside of which each atom is very reactive. These particles may compose hard layers, scratch resistant, make metals look "transparent" or become very resistant to low temperatures and very "plastic" at high temperatures. Nanomodified surfaces can become waterproof or impermeable to dust and other materials in large quantities and with the necessary energy may even become "explosive", like "plain" aluminum!

Hence, nanotechnology equals to penetrating into the world of the infinitely small.

Around 35 countries have already joined the race for "nano" innovation [2]. Public or private research on nanoscience and nanotechnology is an annual international budget of 9 billion dollars.

Materials: what are the results actually?

Martin Koepenick (Innova International) recently underlined the fact that paper being a flexible, versatile, variable composite material, is an ideal fit for nano advances but that oddly enough, within the paper industry, there’s little discussion of the ways that paper, board and specialties could fit into the nano equation.

Yet there is a number of advantages in using nanotechnology with this material:
– coatings that are thinner, smoother, tougher, water-based and "non toxic".
– Surfaces that are smoother allowing better printability and sometimes topped with nano inks.
– Whiteness and brightness fine-tuned within the sheet and on the surface.
– Sheets that are mineral-rich, adding property enhancements, and with less fibre.
– Grades of paper and cardboard that are stronger and lighter.
– "Intelligent" paper (RFID).
– Products using less raw material, biodegradable and/or easier to recycle.
– Closed-loop water cleanliness with nano-filtration.

However, chemists and engineers in the paper industry have already been working on the frontier of nanotechnology. Changes in pore structure are now possible on a nanoscale, and can result in major changes in optics and printability. And pigments designed on a nanoscale will one day result in improvements in paper strength.

In the area of light metal surface treatment like aluminum, nanotechnology has already proven its superiority. Chromium-plating of light metal surfaces with substances containing notoriously toxic chromium is consigned to oblivion by "sol-gel" technology used in nanotechnology. In fact, nanoparticles of metal and metallic oxide jellify during the drying time of the solution (lacquer in its liquid form). The material is heated to a temperature of about 160°, which vaporizes the solvent of the lacquer layer and binds the particles into a stable web of polymers, i.e. a chemical bond of identical or similar units.

To remain in the same topic concerning metal, Claire Garnier, in her article "Les Alchimistes de la nanotechnologie" (www.lentreprise.com) points out that the company Quertech Ingénierie, founded in 2005 by Denis Busardo and Frédéric Guernalec, literally "took off" with its technology of "aluminum harder than steel" protected by an international patent.

Another example of nanotechnology’s impact, this time dedicated to the glass industry, the development of a protective hydrophobic coating, propose by Prelco, a Canadian producer of safety glass.

We know that water clings to glass under the effect of a molecular force called "surface tension". Using a patented protective coating called "nano-fusion", water molecules no longer interact directly with the glass.
Water droplets bead up and stream away because they are physically repelled from the glass by the physical properties of the coating.
Main advantages of the system: repels water and oil, greater impact and scratch resistance, protects against dirt and stains, protects against finger marks, antimicrobial, provides 20% more brilliance to glass, makes glass surface 30% smoother.

In the domain of plastics, one of the latest examples to date is the manufacture of a hydrophilic film by nanoimprint. Researchers design a nanostructured mold they use to print on the surface of a normally hydrophobic plastic film, a nano-structure which makes it hydrophilic. Water droplets no longer form on the surface of the film if it is splashed.

The moulding technique can also create patterns on the surface of materials which may include hydrophilic parts as well as hydrophobic parts.

Nano-packaging is arriving

A number of packaging manufacturers are ready to launch products in this context as of 2011. Will these “nano-packs” only incorporate a product (raw material, component, etc..) elaborated with a nanotechnology process, or, will they be transformed entirely through a process covered by nanotechnology?

The term nanotechnology is actually such a vast area that we run the risk of seeing it change to a "catch-all".

Behind this issue there’s a question about what can a player in the packaging industry hope to bring to the two main communities he addresses, his customers and the consumers (directly or indirectly)?

Regarding materials, in the case of glass, plastic or metal, one can actually see processes that are very similar to simple surface treatments or to a "decoration", with extra features limited to a simple design effect such as the “hydrophobic / hydrophilic” example.

Nonetheless, questions arise about the relevance of mentioning the rapprochement of the process to nanotechnologies: there is a probability to see them evolving towards a mass production process in which the only interest on the long range would be to produce low cost - which could lead to more competition between players and to their concentration - which is not the primary aim of innovative processes - hence shifting science-fiction into banality.

Ultimately, the question might be the following: "nanotechnology: new leading technology or mass production of the future?"

N. Thorne, from Alcan Packaging Beauty, says that his company “has followed nanotechnology advance for years, because its addition into polymers, varnishes or even glues can improve such basic characteristics as hardness, barrier... In fact our follow-up was never passive but very active on the contrary, with our participation for example in the European project "NanoHybrid" with names such as Fiat, the CEA in France, Pirelli and many others. The aim was to obtain more scratch-resistant polyolefins or with improved barrier properties. Other projects have been engaged since to sustain this effort. After years of research the great revolution, initially desired by all of us, is still ahead of us, but applications are now possible and we are now working on transferring our assets to specific applications.”

According to Yannick Brunat, from Pfeiffer, "as far as formulating is concerned, the subject is more than topical and in two opposite forms. First, the ones that use processes using nanotechnologies, or nano-ingredients, and who are patiently waiting until 2013 to get into compliance with the European regulation [3], or to interpret it, then those who do the same and already communicate on the nano mode".

For Andreas Ritzenhoff, CEO of Seidel, "it is clear that this new technology is one of Seidel’s major challenges for the next few years. We are working very closely in this area with specialized universities. This does not only concern aluminum but also other materials. There is a huge number applications that not only concern surface treatment but also, for example, environmental issues". There is a possibility for the firm to market "something" in the next twelve to twenty four months.