The growth of nanotechnology in the packaging industry has mainly been driven by factors like stringent government regulations dictating the use of packaging materials that can provide better shelf life to products and are recyclable. Besides, ever changing consumer needs and increasing competition in the marketplace have also prompted the packaging manufacturers to embrace new and improved technologies like RFID and nanotechnology in recent years. However, since nanotechnology is still at a nascent stage, the use of nanotechnology in the packaging industry has been limited, so far.
Nanotechnology has been used in the packaging industry mainly to develop raw materials with improved features. These materials offer enhanced durability and help in increasing the shelf life of a packaged product. They also allow inclusion of special features in the package, which eventually help converters in developing intelligent packaging concepts. Moreover, nanotechnology based materials add value to a given product because of their unique features and also enable retailers in promoting a brand. Nanotechnology is said to be cost effective. Production of nano particle materials require lower temperature, compared with other traditional materials and thus help in reducing the manufacturing cost. Moreover, to obtain a given specification, less quantity of material is required if it is produced using nanotechnology.
Recent Developments
The packaging companies worldwide are actively exploring ways to develop nanotechnology-based materials. In recent years, some leading global companies have attempted to develop nanocomposite-based polymer films, bottles, coatings and inks. For instance, Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company, Inc. (Mitsubishi) together with Nanocor Inc. (Nanocor), a subsidiary of AMCOL International Corporation, has developed nanoclay/ MXD6 nylon blend (nylon nanocomposite) for use as a barrier layer in multilayer PET bottles. Similarly, Honeywell International Inc., the US-based technology and manufacturing leader, has also developed a special range of barrier nylon resins under the trade name Aegis. The product which is available in three grades namely OX, HFX and CSD, has been developed for plastic beer bottles, hot fill applications and carbonated soft drinks respectively.
Nanocomposite materials have high modulus and low gas permeability, and have superior chemical and physical properties such as enhanced barrier properties, higher mechanical strength, thermal stability, chemical stability, recyclability, dimensional stability, light and heat resistance, and optical clarity. Other than nylon, plastics such as polypro-pylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyethylene (PE) can also be used for nanocomposite structures.
Usability of Nanocomposite Material Packs
Owing to their superior properties, polymer nano-composites are likely to find a number of applications in future and might gradually reduce the use of metals and glass containers in sectors like food and consumer products packaging. Nanocomposite packages also lead to reduction of overall cost of production, transportation and material handling. Moreover, nanocomposites can also help in reducing packaging waste, since they use less material to form packages and they are recyclable. Further research is underway to develop non-refrigerated packaging system that is capable of maintaining food items fresh forthree years in normal room temperature.
Another area of research, which is being undertaken in Netherlands, promises to develop a preservative releasing packaging in which preservative is released only when the presence of micro-organism is detected in a package. The advantages of such a package is that the preservative is released only when it is needed i.e. when the product starts spoiling and the preservative is confined to a certain area which results in less preservative in the food stored inside the pack.
The potential areas where this technology can be applied are cap liners to prevent the formation of bacterial growth in a pack, on foils in case of vacuum-packed products, in coatings of multi-layer bottles, or fermented products, in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.
Apart from polymer nanocomposite, nanotechnology has also been applied in the manufacturing of special types of coatings and adhesives. A number of applications of nanotechnology are in the process of development. These include: 1) the use of nanoscale pigments to manufacture inks; 2) the use of nanomaterials to provide colours to packages that would make the use of dyes or conventional pigments redundant; 3) the use of nanomaterial for making smart packaging by using sensor technology in food packaging; and 4) using nanotechnology-based tags to provide anti-counterfeit features. For instance, nanophosphorous particles, which appear white in daylight but turn fluorescent when exposed to light of certain wavelengths, can be used as an anti counterfeit feature in products. Nanophosphorous can be applied on paper, holograms, and glass.
Nanotechnology has also been applied in the development of barcodes and is considered a cheaper option, compared with RFID. Moreover, nano barcodes have other advantages: they are encodable, machine readable, durable, and they can be produced in an infinite number of combinations. The technology used to produce these barcodes enables each barcode to be unigue and hence it provides a unique identity to products in which they a re attached.
Prospects of Nanotechnology
According to a paper published by the University of Wisconsin-Stout, the global market for nanocomposites is expected to grow to US$250 mn by 2008, with annual growth rates projected to be between 1 8-25% per annum. Most of the demand for nanocomposite packaging is expected to come from the foodand beverage industry. Further, while it is estimated that the food and beverages industry would consume nanocomposite packaging materials worth £5 mn by 2009, by 2011 the consumption is expected to increase to £100 mn.
According to industry estimates, the worldwide sale of nanotech products to the food and beverages sector has increased to US$ 860 mn in 2004 from US$ 1 50 mn in 2002. It is also interesting to note that as per the estimates, there were less than 40 nanopackaging-based products in the market in 2002; today there are about 250 such products in the market.
Many companies around the world are currently active in research and development in the area of nanotechnology. The US is the leader in nanotechnology research. About 400 research centres and companies are presently involved in nanotechnology-based research in the US, and more than $3.4 bn has already been invested in research in this area. However, the growth of nanotech packaging industry has been largely restricted to the US and Europe. Investment in nanotechnology by most of the Asian countries is negligible today.
Nanotechnology in India
In case of India, nanotechchnology is an upcoming science. Therefore, its commercial usage across industries has been quite limited. However, companies like Panacea Biotech, a New Delhi-based pharmaceutical company, and Dabur Research Foundation, the research wing of Dabur India have invested in nanotechnology research. Apart from these companies, National Chemical Lab, Pune, Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad, Central Electrochemical Research Institute, Karaikudi, Central Glass & Ceramic Research Institute, Kolkata are some of the research organisations in India that are extending their support for research in nanotechnology.
The Government of India (Gol) too has been extending support towards research and development activities in nanotechnology. In FY06, a budgetary allocation of Rs 4.9 bn was sanctioned by Gol through India's Department of Science & Technology for Nanomaterials Science & Technology initiatives. Further, the FY07 Union Budget has made provision of Rs 1.8 bn fund for a national nanotechnology research programme.
All these initiatives are expected to accelerate the research activity in nanotechnology and commercial application of nanotechnology in various sectors including the packaging sector in the future. However, the response of the packaging industry would largely depend on the cost effectiveness of nanotechno-logy-based materials and the availability of suitable infrastructure and machinery.
(Source: ITC Limited - Onboard - August 2006)