Eco-Friendly Corrugated Board and Sustainable Packaging Manufacturing

Abstract

The paper is focused on the sustainability of packages manufactured from corrugated board. The arguments proving that corrugated board is an eco-friendly material intended for goods packaging are discussed considering carbon footprint, water footprint, Life Cycle data released as a result of comprehensive analyses elaborated by specialized bodies and scientists. A "cradle-to-cradle" approach is promoted since corrugated board is fully recyclable, it is reusable and easy disposable. Moreover, corrugated board is simple to produce and is an energy-efficient material. Carbon and water footprints of corrugated board are less than of any other packaging material. Statistics to illustrate production dynamics of corrugated board in Romania are presented, while driving forces and risks of corrugated board industry are underlined. It is emphasized that the demand of packages made from corrugated board constantly increased in the last years in Romania. The main reasons refer to the increase of gross domestic product and to the growing interest of producers to use corrugated board packages from economic, environmental and social reasons. The new challenges of Romanian corrugated board industry like the rapid expansion of internet shopping, the need to further reduce the energy and water consumptions in order to improve the environmental footprints of packages and to enhance products competitiveness and the need to be prepared for the new demands of environmental legislation are also discussed.

Biodegradation Behavior of Starch in Simulated White Water System of Old Corrugated Cardboard Pulping Process

“…Corrugated cardboard is one of the most important paper/paperboard products of pulp and paper industry and has been widely utilized in paperboard packaging industry owing to its various advantages, such as costeffectiveness, low density, carbon neutrality, superior physical performance, and convenient recycling for fiber regeneration and reuse in pulp and paper industry [1] .…”

“…As a result, paperboard manufacturers have reported that the usage of starch and starch derivatives in the Vol.8, No.1, 2023 PBM • Biodegradation Behavior of Starch production of paperboard products has increased from 10 kg/t to 40-60 kg/t, which would induce the superfluous release of starch into the system and lead to serious threats during paperboard production [12] , such as (1) starch accumulation in the white water of OCC pulping process [13][14] ; (2) explosion in microbial population within white water system [15][16] ; (3) decrease in system pH value and deteriorated system stability, due to the presence of highly acidic hydrolysates produced by the degraded starch within white water [17][18] ; and (4) most importantly, the serious starch biodegradation in white water system would result in unnecessary starch loss and increased COD/BOD level of wastewater for treatment [19][20] .…”