Cellulose derivatives, i.e. cellulose functionalized in a solvent state with various side groups, are an important source of biomaterials for food packaging. This review considers the following materials: i) cellophane, ii) cellulose acetate, iii) methylcellulose, and iv) carboxymethylcellulose. Mechanical and barrier properties are important for freestanding packaging films as well as for coatings. The potential of the selected cellulose derivatives and cellophane is thus examined from the viewpoint of their tensile properties as well as their moisture and oxygen barrier properties. The capacity of microcrystalline cellulose and nano-sized celluloses to reinforce the films and to help impede gas diffusion is examined for microfibrillar celluloses, nanocrystalline celluloses, and whiskers. Very good oxygen barrier properties have been reported for cellophane. Nanocellulose fillers have regularly been shown to enhance the tensile properties of several cellulose derivatives, but the effects on the water vapor permeability (WVP) have been studied less often.

In this work we challenge some earlier theoretical ideas on the strength of lightweight fiber materials by analyzing an extensive set of foam-formed fiber networks. The experimental samples included various different material densities and different types of natural and regenerated cellulose fibers. Characterization of the samples was performed by macroscopic mechanical testing, supported by simultaneous high-speed imaging of local deformations inside a fiber network. The imaging showed extremely heterogeneous deformation behavior inside a sample, with both rapidly proceeding deformation fronts and comparatively still regions. Moreover, image correlation analysis revealed frequent local fiber dislocations throughout the compression cycle, not only for low or moderate compressive strains. A new buckling theory including a statistical distribution of free-span lengths is proposed and tested against the experimental data. The theory predicts universal ratios between stresses at different compression levels for low-density random fiber networks. The mean ratio of stresses at 50% and 10% compression levels measured over 57 different trial points, 5.42 ± 0.43, agrees very well with the theoretical value of 5.374. Moreover, the model predicts well the effect of material density, and can be used in developing the properties of lightweight materials in novel applications.

Foam technology enables the preparation of new fiber-based materials with reduced density and improved mechanical performances. By utilizing multi-scale structural features of the formed fiber network, it is possible to enhance the elasticity of lightweight cellulose materials under compressive loads. Sufficient strength is achieved by optimally combining fibers and fines of different length-scales. Elasticity is improved by adding polymers that accumulate at fiber joints, which help the network structure to recover after compression. This concept was demonstrated using natural rubber as the polymer additive. For a model network of viscose fibers and wood fines, the immediate elastic recovery after 70% compression varied from 60% to 80% from the initial thickness. This was followed by creep recovery, which reached 86% to 88% recovery within a few seconds in cross-linked samples. After 18 h, the creep recovery in those samples was almost complete at up to 97%. A similar improvement was seen for low-density materials formed with chemi-thermomechanical fibers. The formed structure and elastic properties were sensitive not only to the raw materials, but also to the elastomer stiffness and foam properties. The improved strain recovery makes the developed cellulose materials suitable for various applications, such as padding for furniture, panels, mattresses, and insulation materials.

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Poly(lactic acid) (PLA)/kraft pulp fiber (30 wt%) composites were prepared with and without a coupling agent (epoxidized linseed oil, ELO, 1.5 wt%) by injection molding. The non‐annealed composite samples, along with lean PLA, were exposed to two hydro‐thermal conditions: cyclic 50% RH/90% RH at 23 and 50°C, both up to 42 days. The aging effects were observed by size exclusion chromatography, differential scanning calorimetry, dynamic and tensile mechanical analysis, and fracture surface imaging. ELO temporarily accelerated the material's internal transition from viscous to an increasingly elastic response during the aging at 50°C. ELO also slowed down the tensile strength reduction of the composites at 50°C. These observations were explained with the hydrophobic ELO molecules' coupling and plasticizing effects at fiber/matrix interfaces. No effects were observed at 23°C.

This paper reports experiments on silica coating formulations that are suitable for application as a thin pigment layer with foam coating technique on a paper web. To understand the foaming properties of nanosilica dispersions, the critical micelle concentration, foam half-life time, and foam bubble size stability were determined with three different foaming agents. The results indicate that the bubble stability measurement is a useful characterization method for foam coating purposes. Pilot foam coating trials were done and the effects of the chosen foaming agents were studied on the properties of the nanosilica-coated paper. The surface hydrophilicity of silica coated paper was related not only to silica pigment, but also to the chemical nature of the foaming agent. Standard paper properties were not affected by the thin silica coating.

Solid fibreboard is used mainly in highly demanding packaging applications. One solid fibreboard quality having six paper and paperboard layers, a thickness of 1.7 mm and polyethylene coating was studied. Several material tests on liquid water and water vapour penetration were done to assess the environmental moisture sources that change the material moisture content after the lamination process. The in-plane diffusion coefficient of the combined board was determined based on an integrated unsteady state moisture transport equation and moisture sorption measurements. The transverse diffusion coefficient of the polyethylene coated kraft paper and the solid fibreboard medium were based on water vapour transmission rate measurements. The original moisture content of the solid fibreboard sheet was measured gravimetrically 2 days after the lamination at the mill. The results show that high relative humidity (RH) conditions during the transportation (4°C/90% RH) change the moisture content of the transportation box made from a solid fibreboard sheet very little in 8 days. Local moister (or drier) INTRODUCTIONContainerboard is the largest grade group by volume in the paper industry, accounting for 31% (117 million tons) of the world's total paper and board production. 1 Corrugated containers make the majority of packaging production. Solid fibreboard is a multilayer paper-based packaging material often based on recycled fibres. The material can be finished with a variety of lining papers and optionally polyethylene coating. Most grades are glued together in an off-line laminator. Solid fibreboard boxes account for 0.5% of US total industry corrugated shipments.1 Solid fibreboard is mainly used in demanding packaging applications where the product is wet, frozen or greasy. The difference in consumption is reflected in the extent of research done on these materials.Several paperboard layers are glued together in a lamination process to form a solid fibreboard sheet. The glue contains water. The lamination process together with the moisture content of the sheets determines the original moisture content of the laminated paperboard. As a transport box, the sheet is exposed both to liquid water and water vapour. The exposure takes place through the edges and planes of the sheet. Mechanical properties of paper-based materials depend strongly on the moisture content of the material. 2 The strength of the container box is thus dependent on the initial moisture content after production, and how the material resists additional moisture penetration into the material. This work aims at evaluating the effect of different moisture sources in the environment on the moisture content of the sheet when it is used as a transport box. This topic is justified from a practical point of view, since the mechanical properties of the transport box folded from a solid fibreboard sheet depend on the evolvement of the material moisture content during transportation.In the present work, the original moisture content of a newly fabricated solid fib...