Seal properties of medical packaging materials at elevated temperature

Dixon, Dorian; McIlhagger, Alistair; Crangle, A. A.; McIlhagger, R.; McCracken, K

doi:10.1163/156856107782844774

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 1 publication

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“…8, for those PE/EVA sealants containing no montmorillonite nanofillers, fused seals are formed for sealer temperatures above 90 • C, independent of sealant composition. In contrast, the seals of the montmorillonitecontaining nanocomposite sealants (PE/EVA/clay) become peelable in all cases, and when a reduced loading of nanofiller (2 wt%) is used the seal strengths increase, remaining below but close to 5.3 N/cm [44]. The 4 wt% montmorillonite nanocomposite sealants result in a lower strength peelable heat seal.…”

Section: Pe/eva/clay Nanocomposite Sealants Of Varied Compositionsmentioning

confidence: 96%

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Tailored Polyethylene Nanocomposite Sealants: Broad-Range Peelable Heat-Seals Through Designed Filler/Polymer Interfaces

Zhang

Manias

Polizos

et al. 2009

Journal of Adhesion Science and Technology

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The heat sealing behavior of novel polyethylene-based nanocomposite films was investigated, as they relate to flexible packaging of fresh-cut vegetables, processed foods and biomedical devices. Appropriately designed sealant nanocomposites, which include dispersed montmorillonite nanofillers and ethyl vinyl acetate copolymer, produce a hermetic but peelable heat seal across a broad, 30-40 • C, range of heat sealing temperatures, outperforming optimized commercial polyethylene-based sealants that achieve peelable seals in a much narrower heat sealing temperature range, of less than 15 • C. Appropriate nanocomposite design leads to a general easy-open/peelable character of heat seals, which is: (a) independent of sealing conditions and apparatus -ranging from long dwell times at very high sealing pressures to very short heat impulses at very low sealing pressures; (b) markedly independent of the opposite side of the heat seal -for example, when sealed on itself, on unfilled sealant, or on high density polyethylene; and (c) rather insensitive to formulation variations of the sealant -for example, variations of the polyethylene of the ethyl vinyl acetate type and concentration, and of nanofiller loading. Insights from observations of the fracture seal surfaces by infrared spectroscopy and electron microscopy reveal that the underlying mechanism of this behavior is related to a synergistic effect of the ethyl vinyl acetate copolymer and the montmorillonite clay nanofiller, which introduces weak interfaces in the nanocomposite that lead to cohesive failure of the sealant.

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Section: Pe/eva/clay Nanocomposite Sealants Of Varied Compositionsmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…4. A seal strength in the range 1.8-5.3 N/cm (1-2.5 lb/in) allows for convenient (easy-open) opening for typical seal widths in flexible packaging [44]. The neat sealant (PE on PE in Fig.…”

Section: High Pressure and Long Dwell Time Heat-sealsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tailored Polyethylene Nanocomposite Sealants: Broad-Range Peelable Heat-Seals Through Designed Filler/Polymer Interfaces

Zhang

Manias

Polizos

et al. 2009

Journal of Adhesion Science and Technology

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“…After sterilization, the chamber was repeatedly flushed with air or nitrogen to remove any remaining EtO gas in the chamber. The relatively hot and humid EtO gas and vacuum cycles can cause packaging materials to expand and contract during the sterilization process, changing their physical properties or, in severe cases, lead to mechanical failures such as ruptures or packaging tears and the delamination of sealed parts . Therefore, changes to the properties of the coated Tyvek ® that may have occurred during the EtO sterilization process should be investigated to determine if the as‐prepared coated Tyvek ® sheets are suitable for sterilizable medical packaging applications.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Effect of Coating Process and Additives on EVA Coated Tyvek^® for Gas Sterilizable Medical Packaging Applications

et al. 2017

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Tyvek®, as an ethylene oxide (EtO) gas sterile medical packaging material with a high‐gas permeation and serving as an excellent microbial barrier, must be coated with heat‐sealable adhesives to thermally seal various plastic packaging trays or films. Tyvek® sheet coated with heat‐sealable adhesives must have both porous structure and good sealing strength to various substrates. In this study, an acid pre‐coating method was distinctively introduced to minimize reactions between the blowing agent and acid during mixing, to resultantly generate ethyl vinyl acetate (EVA) layers with porous structure on Tyvek® sheets. To determine the feasibility of applying the as‐prepared coated Tyvek® as a sterile medical packaging material, we investigated the properties of the coating solution and coated Tyvek® as a function of process and additive composition. Finally, EtO gas sterilization tests were performed, and property changes in the coated Tyvek® were investigated. Properties of the coated Tyvek® were strongly dependent on the pre‐coating process and the composition of various additives. Pre‐coating with citric acid led to less of a reaction between citric acid and ammonium carbonate as a blowing agent during mixing and resulted in both good seal strength and air permeation for the coated Tyvek® sheets. The coated Tyvek® sheets, composed of a water‐based EVA emulsion solution with various additives, were not affected by the EtO sterilization process and yielded good resistance to humidity, EtO gas and vacuum cycles. The coated Tyvek® sheets prepared by applying an acid pre‐coating may be a promising candidate for gas sterilizable medical device packaging materials. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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“…The 'bag' is the commonest shape of packaging involving films. In bag making, it is required that two films be sealed by using any of the available methods such as mechanical fastening, heat sealing, [3][4][5][6] use of adhesives, high frequency sealing, and ultrasonic sealing. 7 Heat sealing is the most versatile of these techniques.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The most important factor is the ability to sustain mechanical loading as premature failure could have serious consequences especially in medical applications in which case human life could be at stake. 6,[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17] The adhesive properties of heat-sealed parts are normally evaluated mechanically by peeling tests. The heat-sealed part, however, possesses different properties from the raw materials because of the heat and pressure applied to the heat-sealed parts during fabrication.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterisation of heat-sealing part of laminated oriented nylon and polyethylene films

Tsujii¹,

Ishiaku²,

Kitagawa³

et al. 2005

Plastics, Rubber and Composites

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In order to clarify the relationship between heat-sealing conditions and the strength of the heatsealed part, the crystalline structure of the heat-sealed part of the film was evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and Fourier transform infrared (FT IR) spectroscopy. The laminated films that include a biaxially oriented nylon (ONY) film and a cast linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) film with an appropriate adhesive were heat-sealed by using an impulse type heat-sealer. First the possibility of adhesion was examined by changing the processing conditions and the maximum temperature was measured. As for mechanical properties, a peel strength test was performed to evaluate the strength of the heat-sealed parts. However, the strength could not be evaluated by the peeling test alone, because the fracture shifted from the heat-sealed part to the edge of the heat seal accompanied by necking and yielding of the film. In order to solve this problem, a tensile specimen with a semicircular notch was proposed to evaluate the strength of the heat-sealed part. Tensile strength increased with increasing crystallinity of the LLDPE indicated by the melting peak in the DSC measurement and FT IR spectra. It was found that crystallinity profoundly affected the mechanical properties of the heatsealed part.

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Seal properties of medical packaging materials at elevated temperature

Cited by 3 publications

References 1 publication

Tailored Polyethylene Nanocomposite Sealants: Broad-Range Peelable Heat-Seals Through Designed Filler/Polymer Interfaces

Tailored Polyethylene Nanocomposite Sealants: Broad-Range Peelable Heat-Seals Through Designed Filler/Polymer Interfaces

The Effect of Coating Process and Additives on EVA Coated Tyvek^® for Gas Sterilizable Medical Packaging Applications

Characterisation of heat-sealing part of laminated oriented nylon and polyethylene films

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Seal properties of medical packaging materials at elevated temperature

Cited by 3 publications

References 1 publication

Tailored Polyethylene Nanocomposite Sealants: Broad-Range Peelable Heat-Seals Through Designed Filler/Polymer Interfaces

Tailored Polyethylene Nanocomposite Sealants: Broad-Range Peelable Heat-Seals Through Designed Filler/Polymer Interfaces

The Effect of Coating Process and Additives on EVA Coated Tyvek® for Gas Sterilizable Medical Packaging Applications

Characterisation of heat-sealing part of laminated oriented nylon and polyethylene films

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Product

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The Effect of Coating Process and Additives on EVA Coated Tyvek^® for Gas Sterilizable Medical Packaging Applications