Caps, containers, containers with caps, and containers containing contents

Abstract

To provide a cap that can suppress strength in capping from becoming too high, while sufficiently increasing a ratio of biomass plastics to the total mass.SOLUTION: A cap 50 comprises a plug main body 10 made of polyolefin which is fitted to a mouth part of a container and has a discharge port which discharges contents stored in the container, and an upper lid 40 which has a sealing part 20 sealing the discharge port, which can be attached to and detached from the plug main body. A ratio Bu of biomass plastics to the total mass of the upper lid 40 is higher than a ratio Bm of biomass plastics to the total mass of the plug main body 10, where the ratio Bu of biomass plastics is 30% or higher.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] One aspect of this disclosure relates to caps, containers, capped containers, and containers containing contents. [Background technology]

[0002] For resin containers, resin caps are often constructed from multiple components, such as an inner stopper and an outer lid, to ensure airtightness until opening and to improve strength and ease of handling. For example, Patent Document 1 proposes a cap that includes an outer cap made of polyolefin resin and an inner stopper made of PET resin.

[0003] Such resin caps and containers are recycled or sorted to ensure the effective use of resources. Recently, plastics such as polyethylene made from biomass-derived raw materials have been developed from the perspective of reducing environmental impact and carbon dioxide emissions. For example, Patent Document 2 proposes a resin composition containing plant-derived polyethylene. Patent Document 3 proposes a blow-molded multilayer container made of synthetic resin having a surface layer containing plant-derived ethylene-based resin. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2021-160729 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2021-31563 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2015-134632 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0005] To create a carbon-neutral cap, it is desirable to use biomass-derived plastic and to have a high biomass plastic content. On the other hand, it has been found that changing the material of the plastic cap to increase the biomass plastic content increases the capping strength. Therefore, this disclosure aims to provide a cap that can sufficiently increase the biomass plastic content while suppressing excessively high capping strength. Furthermore, this disclosure aims to provide a container to which such a cap is attached, a capped container equipped with such a cap, and a container containing contents. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] One aspect of this disclosure provides a cap comprising a polyolefin stopper body that is attached to the mouth of a container and has a discharge port for discharging contents contained in the container, and a polyolefin top lid that has a sealing portion for sealing the discharge port and is detachably configured to be attached to the stopper body, wherein the biomass plasticity Bu of the top lid is higher than the biomass plasticity Bm of the stopper body, and the biomass plasticity Bu of the top lid is 30% or more.

[0007] The above cap comprises a stopper body and a top lid made of polyolefin. Because it has at least two components, the biomass plastic content of each can be set individually. Furthermore, since the biomass plastic content Bu of the top lid is higher than that of the stopper body Bm, it is possible to prevent the required sealing strength when sealing the stopper body onto the mouth of the container from becoming too high. And since the biomass plastic content Bu is 30% or more, the biomass plastic content can be made sufficiently high.

[0008] In the above cap, the biomass plastic content Bu of the top lid may be 35% or more, and the biomass plastic content Bm of the stopper body may be 10% or less. This makes it possible to further increase the overall biomass plastic content of the cap while further suppressing the issue of excessively high sealing strength.

[0009] In the cap described above, the male threads on the stopper body and the female threads on the top cover may be screwed together to secure the stopper body and the top cover to each other. This allows for smooth opening and closing even if the biomass plastic content of the top cover and stopper body is high. It also helps to suppress a decrease in opening torque.

[0010] In the above-described cap, the ratio of the mass of the top lid to the mass of the stopper body may be 1 or more. The ratio of the mass of the top lid to the total mass of the cap may be 0.5 or more. Such a cap can achieve a sufficiently high biomass plastic content throughout the entire cap.

[0011] The above-described top cover comprises a sealing portion having an insertion portion into which the discharge port is inserted, and a main body portion having a female thread that holds the sealing portion and engages with a male thread provided on the stopper body, and may be configured so that when attaching or detaching the top cover to the stopper body, the sealing portion, the holding portion that holds the sealing portion, and at least one of the inner circumferential surface of the discharge port slide against each other. Such a top cover can be made up of multiple members with different biomass plastic content.

[0012] The biomass plastic content Bi of the sealing part is equal to the biomass plastic content of the main body. Bo It can be lower than that. It is thought that as the content of biomass-derived plastic in the component increases, the frictional force when the component slides will decrease. Therefore, the Bi of the sealing part, which is a component that slides with other components, Bo By making it lower than this, the decrease in frictional force can be suppressed, and the decrease in the opening torque of the cap can be suppressed. Bo By increasing this factor, the overall biomass plastic content of the cap can be increased.

[0013] In the above cap, the main body part includes polyethylene derived from biomass and block polypropylene, the sealing part includes a high-density polyethylene resin, and the plug body may include a linear low-density polyethylene resin. Such a cap can be manufactured at a low manufacturing cost and has excellent sealing properties. In addition, such an upper lid is excellent in impact resistance, so it is difficult to break even when dropped and has excellent durability.

[0014] One aspect of the present disclosure provides a container having a mouth portion to which any of the above caps is fastened, wherein the biomass plastic degree Bc of the container is greater than the biomass plastic degree Bc of the plug body. By using such a container, the biomass plastic degree of the capped container can be made sufficiently high.

[0015] The above container may include polyethylene terephthalate derived from biomass. With such a container, it is possible to perform fastening smoothly and to make the biomass plastic degree sufficiently high.

[0016] One aspect of the present disclosure provides a capped container including any of the above caps and a container having a mouth portion to which the cap is fastened. Since such a capped container includes any of the above caps, it can be fastened smoothly while sufficiently increasing the biomass plastic degree of the cap. In addition, since the sealing property is also sufficiently excellent, leakage can be sufficiently suppressed.

[0017] The above container may include polyethylene terephthalate derived from biomass. With such a container, it is possible to sufficiently maintain various functions required for the container while making the biomass plastic degree of the capped container sufficiently high.

[0018] One aspect of this disclosure provides a container for contents, comprising a container with one of the caps described above and a contents to be contained in the container with the cap. Such a container for contents has excellent sealing properties because it is equipped with one of the caps described above. Therefore, it is possible to sufficiently suppress leakage while sufficiently increasing the biomass plastic content of the cap. [Effects of the Invention]

[0019] It is possible to provide a cap that can sufficiently increase the biomass plastic content while suppressing excessively high sealing strength. It is also possible to provide a container to which such a cap is sealed, a capped container equipped with such a cap, and a container containing its contents. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0020] [Figure 1] This is a front view of a container with a cap. [Figure 2] (A) is a top view of the container with a cap. (B) is a bottom view of the container with a cap. [Figure 3] This is a diagram showing a disassembled longitudinal cross-section of a container with a cap. [Figure 4] This is a cross-section of the top lid. [Figure 5] This is a perspective view showing the stopper body and the sealing part that is inserted into the opening of the stopper body. [Figure 6] This is a cross-section of the cap. [Figure 7] This is a cross-sectional view of the opening of the container. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0021] Embodiments of this disclosure will be described below, with reference to the drawings as appropriate. However, the following embodiments are illustrative examples for illustrating this disclosure and are not intended to limit this disclosure to the following. In the description, the same reference numerals will be used for identical elements or elements having the same function, and redundant explanations will be omitted as appropriate. Furthermore, unless otherwise specified, positional relationships such as up, down, left, and right will be based on the orientation of the reference numerals shown in the drawings. Moreover, the dimensional ratios of each element are not limited to those shown.

[0022] A cap according to one embodiment comprises a stopper body made of polyolefin, which is fitted onto the mouth of a container by being pressed into place and has a discharge port for discharging the contents contained in the container; and a top lid made of polyolefin, which has a sealing portion for sealing the discharge port of the stopper body and is configured to be detachably attached to the stopper body. The biomass plasticity Bu (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as "Bu") of the top lid is higher than the biomass plasticity Bm (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as "Bm") of the stopper body. That is, Bu > Bm. When the top lid and the stopper body are composed of multiple members, Bu and Bm can be determined by weighted averaging the biomass plasticity of each member. When the cap is opened, the part that remains integrated with the container is the stopper body, and the part that is removed from the container and the stopper body is the top lid.

[0023] From the viewpoint of ensuring a sufficiently high biomass plastic content throughout the cap, Bu should be 30% or more, may be 33% or more, or may be 35% or more. From the viewpoint of reducing the sealing strength, the upper limit of Bu may be 80%, may be 60%, or may be 50%.

[0024] From the viewpoint of reducing the capping strength, Bm may be 10% or less, less than 5%, less than 2%, or even 0%.

[0025] In this specification, biomass plasticity refers to the ratio of the mass of biomass-derived components to the total mass of a cap, a capped container, or each component comprising them. Biomass plasticity is measured according to ASTM D6866 for radiocarbon in the plastic. 14 The concentration of C) is used to calculate the following formula (A). Biomass plastic content (%) = 14 C concentration (pMC)×0.935 (A)

[0026] The biomass plastic content can be adjusted by changing the proportion of biomass-derived plastics (plastics derived from plants, etc.) among the plastics used as materials. Examples of biomass plastics include biomass-derived low-density polyethylene, linear low-density polyethylene, high-density polyethylene, and polyethylene terephthalate. These are available commercially (for example, from Blaschem or Indorama). When biomass-derived low-density polyethylene, linear low-density polyethylene, high-density polyethylene, and polyethylene terephthalate are included, the amount of each resin derived from fossil fuels is reduced, thus reducing the environmental impact.

[0027] From the viewpoint of increasing the biomass plastic content of the entire cap, the ratio of the mass of the top lid to the mass of the stopper body may be 1 or more, or 1.2 or more. The upper limit of this ratio may be, for example, 5 or 3.

[0028] From the viewpoint of increasing the biomass plastic content of the entire cap, the ratio of the mass of the top lid to the total mass of the cap may be 0.5 or more, and may also be 0.55 or more. The upper limit of this ratio may be, for example, 0.9.

[0029] The top lid and the stopper body may both contain polyolefin. The top lid may contain block polypropylene and biomass-derived polyethylene from the viewpoint of improving impact resistance while increasing Bu. The block polypropylene may be homopolypropylene in which ethylene propylene rubber (EPR), which is a rubber component, is dispersed. The block polypropylene may be fossil fuel-derived block polypropylene, biomass-derived block polypropylene, or a mixture thereof. From the viewpoint of sufficiently increasing impact resistance, the content of block polypropylene in the top lid may be, for example, 20% by mass or more, 30% by mass or more, or 40% by mass or more. From the viewpoint of sufficiently increasing Bu, the content of block polypropylene in the top lid may be, for example, 85% by mass or less, 80% by mass or less, or 70% by mass or less.

[0030] The density of the block polypropylene contained in the lid is 0.88-0.92 g / cm³. 3 It is acceptable for it to be 0.89-0.91 g / cm³. 3 The melt flow rate (MFR) of block polypropylene may be 5 to 18 [g / 10 min], 6 to 14 [g / 10 min], or 7 to 12 [g / 10 min]. The melt flow rate (MFR) as used herein is measured in accordance with JIS K 7210 at a temperature of 190°C and a load of 2.16 kg.

[0031] The flexural modulus of the block polypropylene contained in the top lid may be 800 to 1300 MPa, 900 to 1200 MPa, or 950 to 1100 MPa. The flexural modulus of the block polypropylene can be measured in accordance with JIS K 6922-2:1998 or ASTM D790.

[0032] The biomass-derived polyethylene content in the top lid may be 15% by mass or more, 20% by mass or more, or 30% by mass or more, from the viewpoint of increasing Bu. From the viewpoint of sufficiently reducing the sealing strength, the biomass-derived polyethylene content in the top lid may be 80% by mass or less, 70% by mass or less, or 60% by mass or less. The biomass-derived polyethylene may be high-density polyethylene.

[0033] The density of the biomass-derived polyethylene contained in the lid is 0.92-0.99 g / cm³. 3 It is acceptable for it to be 0.94-0.98 g / cm³. 3 The density of biomass-derived polyethylene can be measured in accordance with ASTM D 792 or JIS K6922-2:1998. The melt flow rate (MFR) of biomass-derived polyethylene contained in the lid may be 4-12 [g / 10min], 5-10 [g / 10min], or 6-8 [g / 10min]. The flexural modulus of biomass-derived polyethylene contained in the lid may be 900-1600 MPa, 1100-1500 MPa, or 1200-1400 MPa. The flexural modulus of biomass-derived polyethylene resin can be measured in accordance with ASTM D2240 or JIS K6922-2:1998.

[0034] The stopper body may contain linear low-density polyethylene (SLPE) from the viewpoint of improving sealing performance to sufficiently suppress leakage of contents, and from the viewpoint of reducing the force required when sealing the container in the case of a stopper body of the press-fit type. The content of linear low-density polyethylene in the stopper body may be 60% by mass or more, 70% by mass or more, 80% by mass or more, or 90% by mass or more.

[0035] The density of the linear low-density polyethylene contained in the stopper body is 0.942 g / cm³. 3 It may be less than 0.800-0.940 g / cm³. 3 It is acceptable for it to be 0.840~0.935 g / cm³.3 may be, 0.890 to 0.930 g / cm 3 may be, 0.910 to 0.925 g / cm 3 It may be. The density of linear low density polyethylene can be measured in accordance with ASTM D1505 or JIS K6922 - 2:1998.

[0036] The flexural modulus of the linear low density polyethylene contained in the stopper body may be 30 to 700 MPa, may be 80 to 500 MPa, may be 150 to 400 MPa, or may be 200 to 350 MPa from the viewpoint of making the plugging strength within a suitable range. The flexural modulus of the linear low density polyethylene resin can be measured in accordance with JIS K 6922 - 2:1998 or ASTM D790.

[0037] The stopper body may contain polyethylene derived from biomass from the viewpoint of increasing the biomass plastic degree of the whole cap. However, from the viewpoint of sufficiently suppressing the excessive increase in plugging strength, the content of polyethylene derived from biomass in the stopper body may be less than 15% by mass, may be less than 10% by mass, or may be less than 5% by mass. The stopper body may not contain plastic derived from biomass.

[0038] The density of the polyethylene derived from biomass contained in the stopper body is 0.91 to 0.99 g / cm 3 may be, 0.93 to 0.98 g / cm 3 It may also be. The melt flow rate (MFR) of the polyethylene derived from biomass contained in the stopper body may be 10 to 30 [g / 10 min], or may be 15 to 25 [g / 10 min]. The flexural modulus of the polyethylene derived from biomass contained in the stopper body may be 800 to 1500 MPa, may be 1000 to 1400 MPa, or may be 1100 to 1350 MPa.

[0039] A container according to one embodiment has an opening to which the above-described cap is fitted by pressing it into place. The cap may be fitted by pressing it into the opening. The container may be made of plastic. The container may contain biomass plastic, for example, biomass-derived polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The biomass plastic content Bc of the container (hereinafter simply referred to as "Bc") may be 10% or more, or 20% or more. Bc may be 50% or less, or 40% or less. The container is a capped container.

[0040] The density of biomass-derived polyethylene terephthalate (PET) contained in the container is 1.3-1.5 g / cm³. 3 It may be as follows. The density of biomass-derived PET can be measured in accordance with ASTM D 792. The flexural modulus of biomass-derived PET contained in the container may be 1.7 to 3 GPa, or 2 to 2.8 GPa. The flexural modulus of biomass-derived PET can be measured in accordance with ASTM D 790.

[0041] A capped container according to one embodiment comprises the above-described container and the above-described cap fitted onto the mouth of the container. By including biomass-derived plastic in both the cap and the container of this capped container, the biomass plastic content of the entire capped container can be made sufficiently high. The biomass plastic content of the entire capped container may be, for example, 15% or more, 20% or more, or 25% or more. There is no particular upper limit on the biomass plastic content of the entire capped container; for example, it may be 40% or 30%.

[0042] A container containing a substance according to one embodiment comprises a capped container and a substance contained in the container section of the capped container. The substance is not particularly limited and can take various forms, such as powdered solids, liquids, or viscous substances. Specifically, it can take the form of food, seasonings, or beverages. The substance may contain oil. Since the cap of the container containing a substance in this embodiment can maintain its opening torque, leakage can be sufficiently suppressed even if the substance contains oil. The substance may be, for example, salad dressing.

[0043] An example of a capped container 100 shown in Figures 1 and 2 comprises a container 60 and a cap 50 fitted to the mouth of the container 60. The capped container 100 may contain contents and be used as a container for contents. When opening a container for contents, the user grasps the container 60 with one hand and the top lid 40 of the cap 50 with the other hand. Then, when viewed from above as shown in Figure 2(A), the top lid 40 is rotated counterclockwise relative to the container 60 to open the container for contents (capped container 100). The surface of the main body 30 of the top lid 40 may have knurling to prevent slipping.

[0044] After opening, some or all of the contents are dispensed from the container. Then, if necessary, the top lid 40 is rotated clockwise around the container 60 to close the container (capped container 100). When the contents are to be used in multiple portions, the container (capped container 100) will be opened and closed repeatedly. For this reason, it is preferable to maintain the opening torque (opening torque) within a predetermined range, while maintaining ease of opening and suppressing leakage of the contents. Even when the contents are to be used all at once, it is naturally preferable to maintain the opening torque (opening torque) within a predetermined range.

[0045] As shown in Figure 3, the capped container 100 comprises a container 60 having a storage section for storing contents, and a cap 50 that is fitted onto the mouth 61 of the container 60 by being pressed in. Both the cap 50 and the container 60 are made of plastic. The cap 50 comprises a stopper body 10 that is pressed into the mouth 61 of the container 60, and an upper lid 40 that is detachably configured to be attached to the stopper body 10. The upper lid 40 comprises a sealing section 20 and a main body section 30 that holds the sealing section 20. That is, the upper lid 40 is composed of two members: the sealing section 20 (inner stopper) and the main body section 30 (outer lid). The sealing section 20 and the main body section 30 may be made of the same material, or they may be made of different materials.

[0046] The materials and biomass plastic degrees Bm and Bc of the stopper body 10 and container 60 are as described above. The materials and biomass plastic degrees Bo (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as "Bo") of the main body 30 may be the same as the materials and Bu of the top lid described above.

[0047] The sealing portion 20 has an insertion portion that is inserted into the discharge port, and since this insertion portion has the function of being inserted into the discharge port and sealing it, it may contain high-density polyethylene. The content of high-density polyethylene in the total sealing portion 20 may be 60% by mass or more, 80% by mass or more, or 90% by mass or more. From the viewpoint of smooth molding, the sealing portion 20 may contain a slip agent or a component derived therefrom. From the viewpoint of sufficiently suppressing the reduction of the opening torque, the sealing portion 20 does not have to contain biomass-derived plastic.

[0048] The high-density polyethylene contained in the sealing portion 20 may be either a homopolymer of ethylene or a copolymer of ethylene and an olefin compound, or it may contain both. The density of the high-density polyethylene contained in the sealing portion 20 is 0.942 g / cm³. 3 The above is acceptable, and the range is 0.948 to 0.970 g / cm³. 3 It is acceptable for it to be 0.952~0.965 g / cm³. 3This may be the case. The density of high-density polyethylene can be measured in accordance with ASTM D 792 or JIS K6922-2:1998.

[0049] Examples of the olefin compounds mentioned above include α-olefins such as 1-butene, 1-hexene, 4-methyl-1-pentene, and 1-octene. The content of structural units derived from olefin compounds in the high-density polyethylene resin may be 15% by mass or less, 10% by mass or less, or 1 to 8% by mass.

[0050] The melt flow rate (MFR) of the high-density polyethylene contained in the sealing portion 20 may be 6 to 20 [g / 10min], 8 to 18 [g / 10min], or 10 to 14 [g / 10min].

[0051] The flexural modulus of the high-density polyethylene contained in the sealing portion 20 may be 800 MPa or higher, 900 MPa or higher, or 950 MPa or higher. The flexural modulus of the high-density polyethylene resin can be measured in accordance with ASTM D2240 or JIS K6922-2:1998. The upper limit of the flexural modulus of the high-density polyethylene may be, for example, 1400 MPa.

[0052] From the viewpoint of sufficiently stabilizing the opening torque of the cap 50, the biomass plastic content Bi (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as "Bi") of the sealing portion 20 may be less than 5%, less than 1%, or 0%. Examples of the relative sizes of Bo, Bm, and Bi may be Bo>Bm≧Bi, or Bo>Bm>Bi.

[0053] From the viewpoint of increasing the biomass plastic content of the entire cap 50, the ratio of the mass of the top lid 40 to the mass of the sealing part 20 may be 5 or more, 10 or more, or 20 or more. The upper limit of this ratio may be, for example, 50. The stopper body 10, sealing part 20, body part 30, and container 60 can be manufactured by preparing pellets of each plastic and using known molding methods such as injection molding and blow molding.

[0054] As shown in Figure 4, in the top cover 40, the sealing portion 20 is attached to the main body portion 30. The main body portion 30 has a first circumferential wall portion 31 that forms the exterior of the cap 50. Knurling may be formed on the surface of the first circumferential wall portion 31. Inside the main body portion 30, a second circumferential wall portion 32, a third circumferential wall portion 33, and a fourth circumferential wall portion 34 are provided concentrically in this order from the first circumferential wall portion 31 toward the center of the main body portion 30. A female thread 33a is formed on the inner surface of the third circumferential wall portion 33. This female thread 33a and a male thread 13 formed on the surface of the plug body 10 shown in Figure 5 are screwed together, fixing the plug body 10 and the main body portion 30 to each other. At this time, the tip 32A of the second circumferential wall portion 32 abuts against the flange body 12 of the plug body 10 shown in Figure 5. In this way, the second circumferential wall portion 32 has the function of reinforcing the strength of the main body portion 30.

[0055] Returning to Figure 4, the fourth circumferential wall portion 34 forms a retaining portion 36 that holds the sealing portion 20. The fourth circumferential wall portion 34 has a projection 35 at its tip that protrudes toward the center of the main body portion 30. This projection 35 abuts against the flange portion 25 of the sealing portion 20, which extends outward from the insertion portion 22. That is, the inner diameter of the projection 35 is smaller than the outer diameter of the flange portion 25. Therefore, the sealing portion 20 is held in the retaining portion 36 provided inside the main body portion 30 by the abutment between the flange portion 25 and the projection 35. The fourth circumferential wall portion 34 that forms the retaining portion 36 may have a deformable thickness and be made of an elastically deformable material. This allows the sealing portion 20 to be fitted into the retaining portion 36 after the sealing portion 20 and the main body portion 30 have been molded separately.

[0056] The insertion portion 22 is composed of a peripheral wall and has a cavity 22A in the center. The presence of the cavity 22A makes the insertion portion 22 easily deformable to reduce its outer diameter. This allows the sealing portion 20 to be smoothly fitted and attached to the holding portion 36. The sealing portion 20 attached to the holding portion 36 of the main body portion 30 is removed from the stopper body 10 together with the main body portion 30 and attached to the stopper body 10 together with the main body portion 30. In other words, the sealing portion 20 is attached to and detached from the stopper body 10 as an integral part of the main body portion 30.

[0057] In Figure 5, for illustrative purposes, the main body portion 30 to which the sealing portion 20 is attached is omitted from the top cover 40, and only the sealing portion 20 is shown. As shown in Figure 5, the sealing portion 20 has an insertion portion 22 that is inserted into the discharge port 14 of the plug body 10, and a flange portion 25 on the base end side of the insertion portion 22 that has a larger outer diameter than the insertion portion 22. The flange portion 25 has the function of covering the discharge port 14 when the insertion portion 22 is inserted into the discharge port 14, and sealing the discharge port 14 together with the insertion portion 22.

[0058] The inner circumferential surface 14A forming the discharge port 14 is a smooth surface. The plug body 10 has a male screw 13 and a flange portion 15 extending downward from the discharge port 14. The flange portion 15 has an outer edge portion 11 at its lower end that extends outward from the center. When the main body portion 30 is attached to the plug body 10, the tip 31A of the first circumferential wall portion 31 abuts against the outer edge portion 11. The outer edge portion 11 may have a band structure that allows it to be detached from the flange portion 15 for separate collection.

[0059] Referring to Figures 4 and 5, the procedure for attaching the main body 30 to the stopper body 10 and closing it will be explained. The top cover 40 is placed over the stopper body 10 so that the insertion part 22 and the discharge port 14 face each other. When the top cover 40 (main body 30) is placed so that the centerlines of the top cover 40 (main body 30) and the stopper body 10 coincide, the female thread 33a of the third peripheral wall 33 of the main body 30 and the male thread 13 of the stopper body 10 come into contact. When the top cover 40 (main body 30) is rotated clockwise in a plan view relative to the stopper body 10, the female thread 33a of the main body 30 and the male thread 13 of the stopper body 10 are screwed together. As the clockwise rotation of the top cover 40 (main body 30) continues, the top cover 40 (main body 30) gradually moves along the axis of rotation so that it moves toward the stopper body 10. As this movement occurs, the insertion part 22 of the sealing part 20 is inserted into the discharge port 14.

[0060] The insertion portion 22, inserted into the discharge port 14, is gradually inserted as the main body portion 30 approaches the plug body 10. At this time, the sealing portion 20 is pressed toward the discharge port 14 by the upper surface 36A (ceiling surface) of the holding portion 36 on the main body portion 30 and inserted into the discharge port 14. At this time, the sealing portion 20 may rotate clockwise together with the main body portion 30 as the insertion portion 22 is inserted into the discharge port 14. In this case, the outer circumferential surface 24 of the insertion portion 22 and the inner circumferential surface 14A of the discharge port 14 slide in the direction of rotation and in the direction of rotation axis as the insertion portion 22 is inserted into the discharge port 14.

[0061] The attachment is completed when the tip 31A of the first circumferential wall portion 31 and the tip 33A of the second circumferential wall portion 32 of the main body portion 30 come into contact with the flange body 12 and outer edge portion 11 of the flange portion 15 of the stopper body 10, respectively. In this way, the second circumferential wall portion 32, together with the first circumferential wall portion 31, has the function of preventing the top lid 40 (main body portion 30) from being overtightened. In this manner, the top lid 40, with the sealing portion 20 held by the holding portion 36 of the main body portion 30, can be attached to the stopper body 10 to close the cap 50.

[0062] When the insertion portion 22 is inserted into the discharge port 14, the outer circumferential surface 24 of the insertion portion 22 and the inner circumferential surface 14A of the discharge port 14 do not need to slide in the rotational direction. In this case, the outer circumferential surface 24 of the insertion portion 22 and the inner circumferential surface 14A of the discharge port 14 slide in the direction of the rotation axis, and the insertion portion 22 is inserted into the discharge port 14. Then, the upper surface 36A of the holding portion 36 of the main body portion 30 and the upper surface 25A of the flange portion 25 slide in the rotational direction. In this way, the sealing portion 20 has a sliding surface that slides along the rotational direction with at least one of the main body portion 30 and the stopper body 10 when the main body portion 30 is attached to the stopper body 10. The material of this sliding surface affects the amount of rotational torque required to attach the main body portion 30 to the stopper body 10.

[0063] Figure 6 shows a cross-section of the top cover 40 attached to the stopper body 10. The insertion portion 22 of the sealing portion 20 of the top cover 40 is inserted into the discharge port of the stopper body 10, sealing the discharge port. The outer peripheral surface 24 of the insertion portion 22 is in close contact with the inner peripheral surface 14A of the discharge port, sealing the discharge port.

[0064] The procedure for opening the cap 50 will be explained with reference to Figures 6 and 5. When the main body 30 is rotated counterclockwise in a plan view relative to the stopper body 10, the action of the female thread 33a of the main body 30 and the male thread 13 of the stopper body 10, which are screwed together, causes the top lid 40 (main body 30) to gradually move along the axis of rotation so as to separate from the stopper body 10.

[0065] The insertion portion 22, which was inserted into the discharge port 14, is gradually withdrawn as the top cover 40 (main body portion 30) separates from the plug body 10. At this time, the flange portion 25 of the sealing portion 20 abuts against the protrusion 35 at the tip of the fourth circumferential wall portion 34 that forms the holding portion 36 in the main body portion 30. The sealing portion 20 may rotate counterclockwise together with the main body portion 30 as the insertion portion 22 is withdrawn from the discharge port 14. In this case, the outer circumferential surface 24 of the insertion portion 22 and the inner circumferential surface 14A of the discharge port 14 slide in the direction of rotation and in the direction of rotation axis as the insertion portion 22 is withdrawn from the discharge port 14.

[0066] In this way, the top cap 40 is removed from the stopper body 10 while the main body 30 holds the sealing portion 20 in the holding portion 36. When the insertion portion 22 is removed from the discharge port 14, the outer circumferential surface 24 of the insertion portion 22 and the inner circumferential surface 14A of the discharge port 14 may not slide along the rotational direction, but only along the rotational axis direction. In this case, the protrusion 35 of the fourth circumferential wall portion 34 of the holding portion 36 of the main body 30 and the tip of the flange portion 25 slide along the rotational direction. Thus, when opening the cap 50, the sealing portion 20 has a sliding surface that slides along the rotational direction with at least one of the main body 30 and the stopper body 10. The material of this sliding surface affects the amount of torque required to open the cap 50 (opening torque).

[0067] In the cap 50, the main body 30 and the sealing part 20 are constructed as separate components. Therefore, the main body 30 and the sealing part 20 can be made of different materials. By making the Bi of the sealing part 20 smaller than the Bo of the main body 30, the reduction in frictional force on the sliding surface can be suppressed. This effectively prevents the cap 50 from opening unintentionally or the contents from leaking. The maximum opening torque may be, for example, 60 to 80 Nm. Alternatively, by lowering or eliminating the Bi of the sealing part 20, and instead increasing the Bo of the main body 30 and the Bm of the stopper body 10, the overall biomass plastic content of the cap 50 can be increased.

[0068] Next, the procedure for attaching the cap 50 to the mouth 61 of the container 60 will be described with reference to Figures 3, 6, and 7. Position the cap 50 and the container 60 so that the lower end of the stopper body 10 of the cap 50 faces the mouth 61 of the container 60. Align the cap 50 and the container 60 so that the center line of the cap 50 coincides with the center line of the container 60. The mouth 61 of the container 60 has a first projection 61B and a second projection 61C that protrude outward around its entire circumference. A recess 61A is formed between the first projection 61B and the second projection 61C. The mouth 61 of the container 60 and the groove 17 of the stopper body 10 that is inserted into this mouth 61 have complementary shapes. In addition, the first projection 61B and the recess 61A have complementary shapes to the projection 17A in the groove 17 of the stopper body 10.

[0069] After alignment, the cap 50 and the container 60 are biased in opposing directions. This causes the projection 17A at the entrance of the groove 17 formed on the inside of the outer edge 11 of the stopper body 10 to overcome the first projection 61B on the mouth 61 and fit into the recess 61A. As a result, the first projection 61B is inserted into and fixed in the groove 17. In this way, the mouth 61 of the container 60 is fitted into the groove 17 of the stopper body 10, and a capped container 100 with the cap 50 pressed into the container 60 can be obtained. The capping strength required is thought to vary depending on the flexibility and frictional force of the outer edge 11 of the stopper body 10, which elastically deforms during capping.

[0070] The biomass plastic content Bm of the stopper body 10 may be lower than Bu and Bo. This allows for a higher biomass plastic content of the top lid 40 (body portion 30) while making the stopper body 10 more flexible and reducing friction, thereby preventing the required capping strength from becoming too high when sealing the cap 50 (stopper body 10) onto the container 60. The capping strength measured by the method described in the examples may be 200 to 350 N, or 200 to 300 N. By introducing the contents into the container 60 before such capping, and then capping, a container containing the contents can be obtained.

[0071] By lowering or setting to zero the Bi of the sealing portion 20 and the Bm of the stopper body 10, and instead increasing the Bo of the main body portion 30, it is possible to increase the biomass plastic content of the entire cap 50 while maintaining the opening torque and suppressing excessively high sealing strength.

[0072] The stopper body 10 of the cap 50 may have a notch for separating the outer edge 11 from the flange body 12. That is, the outer edge 11 may be a band member that can be separated from the flange body 12. After the user has used the container containing the contents, the stopper body 10 (cap 50) can be removed from the container 60 by separating the outer edge 11, which is made of a band member, from the flange body 12. This facilitates separate collection for disposal.

[0073] Although embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, the present disclosure is not limited in any way to the above embodiments. For example, the top lid may be composed of a single component. Also, the cap may include components other than the top lid and the stopper body, or the stopper body may be composed of two or more components.

[0074] This disclosure includes the following [1] to

[13] . [1] A stopper body made of polyolefin, which is attached to the mouth of a container and has a discharge port for discharging the contents contained in the container, The system comprises a polyolefin upper lid having a sealing portion for sealing the discharge port and configured to be detachably attached to the stopper body, A cap in which the biomass plastic degree Bu of the top lid is higher than the biomass plastic degree Bm of the stopper body, and the biomass plastic degree Bu is 30% or more. [2] The cap according to [1], wherein the biomass plastic content Bu of the top lid is 35% or more, and the biomass plastic content Bm of the stopper body is 10% or less. [3] The cap according to [1] or [2], wherein the stopper body and the top cover are fixed to each other by screwing together a male thread provided on the stopper body and a female thread provided on the top cover. [4] A cap according to any one of [1] to [3], wherein the ratio of the mass of the top lid to the mass of the stopper body is 1 or more. [5] A cap according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein the ratio of the mass of the top lid to the total mass of the cap is 0.5 or more. [6] The top cover is The device comprises a sealing portion having an insertion portion into which the discharge port is inserted, and a main body portion that holds the sealing portion and has a female thread that screws into a male thread provided on the plug body, A cap according to any one of [1] to [5], wherein when attaching or detaching the top lid to the stopper body, the sealing portion, the holding portion that holds the sealing portion, and at least one of the inner circumferential surface of the discharge port slide against each other. [7] The biomass plasticity Bi of the sealing portion is equal to the biomass plasticity of the main body portion. Bo A cap lower than the one described in [6]. [8] The main body comprises biomass-derived polyethylene and block polypropylene, The sealing portion contains high-density polyethylene resin, The cap according to [6] or [7], wherein the stopper body comprises a linear low-density polyethylene resin. [9] A container having an opening into which any one of the caps described in [1] to [8] above is fitted, A container in which the biomass plastic content Bc of the container is greater than the biomass plastic content Bm of the stopper body.

[10] The container according to claim 9, wherein the container contains polyethylene terephthalate derived from biomass.

[11] A capped container comprising a cap as described in any one of [1] to [8] above, and a container having the opening into which the cap is pressed.

[12] The capped container according to

[11] , the container comprising polyethylene terephthalate derived from biomass.

[13] A container for contents, comprising a capped container as described in

[11] or

[12] above, and contents contained in the capped container. [Examples]

[0075] The contents of this disclosure will be described in more detail with reference to examples and comparative examples, but this disclosure is not limited to the following examples.

[0076] (Comparative Examples 1-4, Examples 1,2) <Preparation of raw materials> The following ingredients were prepared. (A) Fossil fuel-derived block polypropylene (PP) Manufactured by Sun Allomer Co., Ltd., product name "PM761A", density: 0.90 g / cm³ 3 MFR: 9.5g / 10min, flexural modulus: 1050MPa (B) Fossil fuel-derived high-density polyethylene (HDPE-F) Manufactured by Nippon Polyethylene Co., Ltd., product name "HJ580", density: 0.96 g / cm³ 3 MFR: 12.0g / 10min, flexural modulus: 1000MPa (C) Biomass-derived polyethylene (PE-B1) Manufactured by Braskem, product name "SHC7260", biomass plastic content: 94% or higher, density: 0.959 g / cm³ 3 MFR: 7.2g / 10min, flexural modulus: 1365MPa (D) Biomass-derived polyethylene (PE-B2) Manufactured by Braskem, product name "SHA7260", biomass plastic content: 94% or higher, density: 0.955 g / cm³ 3 MRF: 20g / 10min, flexural modulus: 1250MPa (E) Linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) derived from fossil fuels LOTTE CHEMICAL Co., Ltd., product name "UL814", density: 0.924 g / cm³ 3 MFR: 20g / 10min, flexural modulus: 304MPa (F) Biomass-derived polyethylene terephthalate (PET) Indorama Corporation, product name "RAMPET N1B", biomass plastic content: 30% or more, intrinsic viscosity: 0.8 dl / g (G) Coloring agent (red) Manufactured by Dainichi Seika Kogyo Co., Ltd., product name "14Q3408RD-SE" (H) Coloring agent (white) Manufactured by Toyo Ink Manufacturing Co., Ltd., product name "TET 1YA550WHT" (I) Slip agent (S) Manufactured by Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd., product name "A-10"

[0077] The above-mentioned raw materials (A) to (E) and (G) to (I) were mixed in the proportions (unit: mass%) shown in Table 1 to obtain the mixed raw materials for the main body and sealing part of the top lid, and the mixed raw materials for the stopper body.

[0078] <Molding of the main body of the top lid> A resin composition was prepared by melting and kneading the mixed raw materials for the main body at 240°C for 20 seconds using an injection molding machine. This resin composition was put into an injection molding machine (FANUC Corporation, product name "α-S150iA"), and injection molding was performed using a mold at 240°C for 20 seconds to obtain a lid body having the same shape as the main body 30 shown in Figure 3. The outer diameter of the main body was approximately 37 mm and the mass was approximately 5.4 g.

[0079] <Molding of the sealing portion of the top lid> A resin composition was prepared by melting and kneading the mixed raw materials for the sealing part at 220°C for 20 seconds using an injection molding machine. This resin composition was put into an injection molding machine (FANUC Corporation, product name "α-S150iA"), and injection molding was performed using a mold at 220°C for 20 seconds to obtain a sealing part (inner plug) having the same shape as the sealing part 20 shown in Figure 3. The outer diameter of the flange portion of the sealing part was approximately 11.7 mm, and its mass was approximately 0.2 g.

[0080] <Shaping of the stopper body> A resin composition was prepared by melt-kneading the mixed raw materials for the stopper body at 220°C for 23 seconds using an injection molding machine. This resin composition was put into an injection molding machine (FANUC Corporation, product name "α-S150iA"), and injection molding was performed using a mold at 220°C for 23 seconds to obtain a stopper body having the same shape as the stopper body 10 shown in Figure 3. The inner diameter of the discharge port of the stopper body was approximately 6.5 mm, the inner diameter of the outer edge was approximately 28 mm, and the mass was approximately 3.7 g.

[0081] <Container molding> The raw material (F) was melt-kneaded at 270°C for 18 seconds and then fed into a stretchable PET molding machine (manufactured by Nissei ASB Machinery Co., Ltd., model: PF8-4B). Using a mold, injection molding and blow molding were performed at 270°C for 18 seconds to obtain a container having a shape similar to container 60 shown in Figure 3. The mass of the container was approximately 17g.

[0082] <Biomass plastic content of each component and cap> The biomass plastic content (Bo, Bi, Bm, Bc) of the lid body, sealing part, stopper body, and container was calculated based on the mixing ratio of the raw materials and the biomass plastic content of the raw materials. Note that Bo, Bi, Bm, and Bc are calculated values ​​based on the minimum guaranteed biomass plastic content of the raw materials. Furthermore, the biomass plastic content (Bu) of the entire lid and the biomass plastic content (Ba) of the entire cap (labeled "Cap" in Table 2) were calculated from the masses of the body, sealing part, and stopper body, and their respective biomass plastic content (Bo, Bi, Bm). These results are shown in Table 2.

[0083] <Making the cap> Using the fabricated main body and sealing part for the top lid, as well as the stopper body, caps for Comparative Examples 1-4 and Examples 1 and 2 were manufactured, having the cross-sectional structure shown in Figure 6. The procedure involved fitting the sealing part into the holding part of the main body, and then attaching the top lid, which includes the sealing part and the main body, to the stopper body by screwing the female thread of the main body with the male thread of the stopper body.

[0084] <Measurement of opening torque> The cap was fixed to the measuring stand of a commercially available torque meter (manufactured by Imada Co., Ltd., product name: DTXA-2N-Z) using a fixing jig. A metal cap-opening jig, having a surface shape complementary to the knurling formed on the surface of the cap's lid, was placed over the main body of the cap. The operator grasped the cap-opening jig and rotated it counterclockwise in a plan view to measure the torque required to open the cap. In the torque measurement curve, the first largest peak that appeared from the start of opening the cap was defined as the primary cap-opening torque, and the second large peak that appeared when the cap was rotated approximately 80° from the starting point (0°) was defined as the secondary cap-opening torque. The results are shown in Table 2.

[0085] <Measurement of plugging strength> A commercially available compression tester (Shimadzu Corporation, product name: Autograph AGS-X 5kN) was used to measure the capping strength. The prepared container was fixed using a fixing jig so that the opening of the mouth faced upwards. A cap was placed on the upper end of the mouth, and a pressing jig was placed over the cap. Using the above compression tester, the cap was pushed towards the bottle through the pressing jig, and the force required for capping was measured until capping was complete. The maximum value of the measured force (N) was defined as the capping strength. The descent speed was 10 mm / min, and the strain in the compression direction was set to 3 mm strain. After capping, a container with a cap as shown in Figure 1 was obtained. The results of the capping strength are shown in Table 2.

[0086] <Leakage test> After pouring salad oil into a container, a cap was applied to create a container containing the contents. This container was then placed in a vacuum pack and stored in a 45°C constant temperature bath for 15 hours with the container lying on its side. After that, the vacuum pack was removed from the constant temperature bath, and the container was visually inspected for any leakage of salad oil. Leaks were rated as "yes" and those without leaks were rated as "no". The results are shown in Table 2.

[0087] [Table 1]

[0088] [Table 2]

[0089] In Table 1, the total value of the raw materials for each component deviates slightly from 100%, which is due to rounding. As shown in the raw materials in Table 1 and the "Biomass Plasticity" column in Table 2, Comparative Example 1 is a cap that does not use biomass-derived plastic. In contrast, Comparative Example 2 is a cap made using 16-17% by mass of biomass-derived plastic uniformly for the main body, sealing part, and stopper body. As shown in the "Evaluation Results" in Table 2, the capping strength of Comparative Example 2 was significantly increased compared to the cap of Comparative Example 1. Therefore, there is a concern that capping may become difficult. In addition, the opening torque decreased significantly in both the primary and secondary directions. In particular, the decrease in primary opening torque raises concerns that the cap may open unintentionally.

[0090] One possible reason for the increased capping strength in Comparative Example 2 is that the cap body became harder and less flexible. Another possible reason for the decreased capping torque in Comparative Example 2 is that the higher biomass plastic content reduced the frictional force between the sliding plastic components. For reference, Table 3 shows the results of measuring the dimensions of each component in Comparative Example 1 and Comparative Example 2. As shown in Table 3, slight dimensional differences are observed, but these are considered to be within the margin of error.

[0091] In Comparative Example 3, only the sealing portion was made using the same material as in Comparative Example 1, while the main body of the top lid and the stopper body were made using the same material as in Comparative Example 2 to create the cap. As a result, the primary opening torque of the cap from Comparative Example 1 was significantly restored. This confirmed that the biomass plastic content (Bi) of the sealing portion greatly affects the primary opening torque.

[0092] In Comparative Example 4, the sealing portion was the same as in Comparative Example 3, as in Comparative Example 1. However, in Comparative Example 4, a body with a higher Bo than in Comparative Example 3 was used to increase the overall Ba of the cap. As a result, the capping strength was even higher than in Comparative Examples 2 and 3. This is thought to be due to the increased rigidity of the entire cap as a result of the higher Bo. The opening torque (primary) was significantly higher than in Comparative Example 2, as in Comparative Example 3. From these results, it is considered that Bo does not have much effect on the opening torque (primary).

[0093] In Example 1, the sealing portion was the same as in Comparative Examples 3 and 4, as in Comparative Example 1. In Example 1, Bo was made even higher than in Comparative Example 4, while Bm was made lower than in Example 2. As a result, it was possible to increase Bu and Ba compared to Comparative Examples 1-4 while lowering the capping strength compared to Comparative Example 4. The capping torque (primary) was significantly higher than in Comparative Example 2, as in Comparative Examples 3 and 4.

[0094] In Example 2, a cap with an even higher Bo value was used, while Bi and Bm values ​​were set to 0, so that the overall biomass plastic content Ba of the cap was maintained at the same level as in Example 1. As a result, the capping strength was reduced and brought closer to that of Comparative Example 1. From these results, it was confirmed that although the capping strength tends to increase as the biomass plastic content of the cap increases, the increase in capping strength can be suppressed by reducing the Bm of the cap body.

[0095] From the results of Comparative Examples 1-4 and Examples 1 and 2, it was confirmed that when increasing the biomass plasticity using biomass-derived plastic, by making the Bu of the top lid higher than the Bm of the stopper body, it is possible to increase the biomass plasticity Ba of the entire cap while lowering the sealing strength, using the same molding equipment (mold) as before. Furthermore, it was confirmed that by making the Bi of the sealing part lower than the Bo of the top lid, it is possible to manufacture a cap that can stably maintain the opening torque (primary) within the same range as before, using the same molding equipment (mold) as before.

[0096] [Table 3]

[0097] As shown in Table 3, since the same mold and molding apparatus were used in all comparative examples and examples, there were no significant differences in the mass and size of the components. Table 3 shows the mass ratio of the top lid to the stopper body, the mass ratio of the top lid to the entire cap, and the mass ratio of the main body to the sealing part. Because the mass of the top lid (main body) is larger than that of the other components, Ba can be increased by increasing Bu (Bo). [Industrial applicability]

[0098] It is possible to provide a cap that can sufficiently increase the biomass plastic content while suppressing excessively high sealing strength. It is also possible to provide a container to which such a cap is sealed, a capped container equipped with such a cap, and a container containing its contents. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0099] 10...Stopper body, 11...Outer edge, 12...Flange body, 13...Male thread, 14...Discharge port, 14A...Inner circumferential surface, 15...Flange part, 17...Groove part, 17A...Protrusion, 20...Sealing part, 22...Insertion part, 22A...Cavity part, 24...Outer circumferential surface, 25...Flange part, 25A...Top surface, 30...Main body part, 31...First circumferential wall part, 32...Second circumferential wall part, 33...Third circumferential wall part, 34...Fourth circumferential wall part, 31A, 32A, 33A...Tip, 33a...Female thread, 35...Convex part, 36...Holding part, 36A...Top surface, 40...Top lid, 50...Cap, 60...Container, 61...Mouth part, 61A...Concave part, 61B...First projection part, 61C...Second projection part, 100...Container with cap.

Claims

1. A stopper body made of polyolefin, which is attached to the mouth of a container and has a discharge port for discharging the contents contained in the container, The system comprises a polyolefin upper lid having a sealing portion for sealing the discharge port and configured to be detachably attached to the stopper body, A cap in which the biomass plastic content Bu of the top lid is 30% or more, and the biomass plastic content Bm of the stopper body is less than 5%.

2. The cap according to claim 1, wherein the biomass plastic content Bu of the top lid is 35% or more, and the biomass plastic content Bm of the stopper body is less than 2%.

3. The cap according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the male thread provided on the cap body and the female thread provided on the top cover are screwed together, thereby fixing the cap body and the top cover to each other.

4. The cap according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the ratio of the mass of the top lid to the mass of the stopper body is 1 or more.

5. The cap according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the ratio of the mass of the top lid to the total mass of the cap is 0.5 or more.

6. The aforementioned top cover is The device comprises a sealing portion having an insertion portion into which the discharge port is inserted, and a main body portion that holds the sealing portion and has a female thread that screws into a male thread provided on the plug body, The cap according to claim 1 or 2, wherein when attaching or detaching the top lid to the stopper body, the sealing portion, the holding portion that holds the sealing portion, and at least one of the inner circumferential surface of the discharge port slide against each other.

7. The cap according to claim 6, wherein the biomass plasticity Bi of the sealing portion is lower than the biomass plasticity Bo of the main body portion.

8. The main body comprises biomass-derived polyethylene and block polypropylene. The sealing portion contains high-density polyethylene resin, The cap according to claim 6, wherein the stopper body comprises a linear low-density polyethylene resin.

9. A container having the opening into which the cap described in claim 1 or 2 is sealed, A container in which the biomass plastic content Bc of the container is greater than the biomass plastic content Bm of the stopper body.

10. The container according to claim 9, wherein the container contains polyethylene terephthalate derived from biomass.

11. A container with a cap, comprising a cap according to claim 1 or 2, and a container having the opening into which the cap is sealed.

12. The capped container according to claim 11, wherein the container contains polyethylene terephthalate derived from biomass.

13. A container for contents, comprising a capped container according to claim 11, and contents contained in the capped container.

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