Paper based packaging has seen an increase in use recently, driven by the increase in home deliveries and online shopping. As a renewable and biodegradable source of packaging it has a number of advantages over other materials such as plastic. However, in some applications paper isn’t suitable due to its porous structure resulting in poor barrier properties to liquids. A possible solution is a barrier or coating of some kind, with the use of biobased coating sourced from renewable materials preferred. Whilst biodegradation is an important factor, the ability to repulp and reuse these materials is seen as a key factor in creating circular processes and reducing resource use.
This is the basis of a current project of a post graduate student, Jennifer Woods, at Bangor University who is working with Wipak UK Ltd. Funded through the Kess 2 program and working with the Transfire project Paper Working Group based at Bangor, Jennifer is investigating synthetic materials such PET and PLA to give baseline data and comparing them to biobased materials such as beeswax and seaweed extracts. The project initially considered as a Masters by Research (MRes) has now been converted to a PhD based on the progess so far. Jennifer has been looking at a range of key properties including barrier and grease resistance. Development is ongoing but results look promising!
For more information, Jennifer’s project has been used as a case study by the funders
https://kess2.ac.uk/case-studies/bio-based-coating-applications-onto-paper-based-packaging/