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Thermoplastic film for a disposable container made of expandable thermoplastic particles

a thermoplastic particle and thermoplastic film technology, applied in the field of thermoplastic film, can solve the problems of coffee or the oil and/or fat components that are easily stained on the outer surface of the sidewall of the container, inconvenience to the container holder,

Inactive Publication Date: 2006-08-31
TANG JIANSHENG +5
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  • Summary
  • Abstract
  • Description
  • Claims
  • Application Information

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0026] It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermoplastic foam container that exhibits improved resistance to leakage and / or stain, and improved mechanical properties, such as improved rim strength and surface hardness of the container.
[0028] It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a thermoplastic container that is suitable for receiving hot liquids, such as coffee, hot water for instant soups, stews, etc. and which thermoplastic container with its contents can be reheated in a microwave.

Problems solved by technology

In spite of careful bead size control, one problem, which continues to plague the container industry, is that after a period of time the EPS containers have a tendency to leak coffee or the oil and / or fat components in food substances carried by the containers.
The result can be an unsightly stain on the outer surface of the sidewall of the container and / or inconvenience to the holder of the container.
None of the containers of the prior art have a thin thermoplastic film fused to the inner and / or outer surfaces of a foam molded container for retaining food items such as coffee, soups, meats, and the like for the purpose of reducing the penetration of the liquid and / or the oil or fatty components in these food items through the foam container.

Method used

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Examples

Experimental program
Comparison scheme
Effect test

example 1

[0053] This example illustrates the preparation of thermoplastic film lined containers. The NOVA Chemicals F271TU (expandable polystyrene) cup beads blended with zinc stearate were pre-expanded in an 11-gallon Rodman Steam pre-expander (Artisan Industries Inc.) at atmospheric pressure. The pre-expansion was operated batch wise. The weight of the cup beads (i.e. 3.5 lbs.) was adjusted to make a pre-puff with a density ranging between 2.6 - 3.6 pounds per cubic foot (pcf). The newly prepared pre-puff was air dried for 5 minutes to remove the moisture and was allowed to age for about 4 hours before molding.

[0054] Six-ounce standard cups using different density aged pre-puff beads were molded. The steam header pressure used was 80 pounds per square inch (psi) and the total cycle time was in the range of 7.50 to 8.25 seconds. The molded cups were allowed to age overnight.

[0055] Pre-cut extruded polystyrene film (1.0 mil thick) made from NOVA Chemical PS 2110 (general solid polystyrene)...

example 2

[0060] The oil retention testing and the rim strength testing for cups with a pre-puff density of 3.47 pcf were performed in a manner similar to that of Example 1. These results are shown in Table 2. The polystyrene film was similar to that used in Example 1 and its thickness varied as shown in Table 2. As indicated in Table 2, the cup samples with the thermoplastic film of the invention have an increased ATF and rim strength compared to the cup samples without the thermoplastic film.

TABLE 2Pre-puff density3.473.473.47(pcf)Film thickness0.01.01.5(mil)ATF (hour)0.784848Rim strength (kg)0.290.550.59

example 3

[0061] The oil retention testing and the rim strength testing for cups with a pre-puff density of 3.50 pcf were performed in a manner similar to that of Example 1. The thermoplastic film was similar to that used in Example 1 and was either extruded or blown as indicated in Table 3. The volume of the EPS cups was changed from 6 ounces to 16 ounces. The results are shown in Table 3. The samples with the thermoplastic film fabricated via an extrusion or a blown process have comparable testing results. Also, the samples with the thermoplastic film of the invention regardless of the process for making the thermoplastic film have an increased ATF and rim strength compared to the samples without the thermoplastic film.

TABLE 3Pre-puff density3.503.503.50(pcf)Film thickness (mil)01.01.0Process of making PSNo filmExtrusionBlownfilmATF (hour)0.833148Rim strength (kg)0.350.560.54

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Abstract

A foam thermoplastic container e.g. cup, bowl molded from expandable thermoplastic particles e.g. expandable polystyrene, has a film made of a thermoplastic resin e.g. solid polystyrene, rubber-modified polystyrene, PET, polyethylene, polypropylene, fused to its inner sidewall surface by heat and pressure to create a barrier to resist the leakage of liquid and food with oil and / or fatty components and to increase the rim strength of the container. The thermoplastic resin film can be fused to the outer surface of the container for printing purposes and / or to create a barrier and / or can be fused to the base surfaces of the container. The molding machine used to form the foam container is used to fuse the film to the container.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1. Field of the invention [0002] The present invention relates to a disposable container. More particularly, the present invention relates to a thermoplastic film, which is heat and pressure fused to the inner and / or outer surfaces of the sidewall of a thermoplastic container, and optionally, to the inner and / or outer surfaces of container's base. The container is generally pre-formed via a molding process from expandable thermoplastic particles, e.g. expandable polystyrene particles (EPS). The container is used for holding liquids, such as coffee or foods containing oil and / or fat components such as precooked fat-containing foods, e.g. instant noodles, soups, fried chicken, and the like. [0003] 2. Background Art [0004] The manufacture of molded articles, such as containers, i.e. cups, bowls, etc. from expanded thermoplastic particles is well known. The most commonly used thermoplastic particles are expandable polystyrene particles known as EPS. Ty...

Claims

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Application Information

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Patent Type & Authority Applications(United States)
IPC IPC(8): B65D39/00B29D22/00B29D23/00B32B1/02B32B1/08B32B3/00B32B3/26B32B5/14B32B5/18B32B9/00
CPCB32B5/18Y10T428/1376Y10T428/1352Y10T428/2982Y10T428/249953Y10T428/249958Y10T428/249988
Inventor TANG, JIANSHENGRUSSELL, JEFFORY E.COWAN, DAVID ALLENWILLIAMS, MICHAEL T.PIISPANEN, DENNIS H.KWOK, JOHN C.
Owner TANG JIANSHENG