Adhesive label for labelling a recyclable container, and recyclable container

Abstract

The invention relates to an adhesive label (100) for labelling a labelling region (23) of a recyclable container (200) made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), especially a PET bottle (2001), wherein the container (200) has at least one rib (24) in the form of an indentation in the labelling region (23). The invention further relates to a recyclable container (200) made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), especially a recyclable PET bottle (2001), wherein the container (200) has a labelling region (23) having at least one rib (24) in the form of an indentation and is labelled with an adhesive label (100). The invention provides that the adhesive label (100) comprises a film which consists of polyethylene (PE), is printable or printed on its front side and has a full-surface or partial coating of a pressure-sensitive adhesive on its reverse side.

Description

[0001] Adhesive label for labeling a recyclable container and recyclable container

[0002] The invention relates to an adhesive label for labeling a labeling area of ​​a recyclable container made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), in particular a PET bottle, wherein the container has at least one rib in the form of an indentation in the labeling area.

[0003] Furthermore, the invention relates to a recyclable container made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), in particular a recyclable PET bottle, wherein the container has a labeling area with at least one rib in the form of an indentation and is labelled with an adhesive label.

[0004] Technological background

[0005] In the food and beverage industry, food products, especially beverages, are increasingly packaged or bottled in PET containers, particularly PET bottles. It has been observed that, for ecological and economic reasons, the wall thickness of these containers is decreasing to reduce the amount of material required for their production. To ensure sufficient stability for containers with particularly thin walls, they feature radially oriented ribs in the form of parallel indentations. In the area of ​​these ribs, the geometry of the containers deviates from the otherwise typical cylindrical shape with a smooth outer surface.

[0006] Furthermore, each container has at least one labeling area where generic adhesive labels are applied to identify the container. These labels typically contain information about the contents and the origin or manufacturer of the packaged or filled foodstuffs and are noticed with particular attention by the target consumer. The ribs also typically run along the labeling area, which is why the applied adhesive labels span the ribs at least partially, and in these areas there is no direct contact with the container.In these sections, conventional adhesive labels tend to wrinkle or crease, causing them to engage with the ribs or protrude from the container's outer surface. This results in the labels becoming dimensionally unstable in the areas spanning the ribs, negatively impacting the visual appearance of the applied labels. Therefore, adhesive labels intended for use on such containers must meet specific requirements.

[0007] First, the adhesive labels, once applied, should span the ribs without creases, so that they neither fully nor partially follow the contour of the ribs nor protrude from the surrounding surface. Instead, the applied labels should have a smooth, crease-free surface. Furthermore, the labels should be opaque, water-resistant, and abrasion-resistant / scratch-resistant to ensure they remain essentially undamaged even under varying conditions and during transport. Finally, empty containers should be recyclable, particularly through a hot-wash recycling process. In this process, empty containers are shredded into flakes and cleaned in a washing solution, typically a 2% sodium hydroxide solution at a temperature of approximately 80°C to 85°C, during which the remaining adhesive labels detach from the flakes.Ideally, the detached adhesive label remnants float to the top of the washing solution, depending on the material, while the PET flakes sink, allowing these materials to be separated and recycled. The collected PET flakes are then processed into granules, which enable the extrusion of new and recycled PET containers.

[0008] The adhesive labels known from the prior art do not meet these requirements.

[0009] While paper labels have the advantage of being opaque and completely covering the ribs, paper is very sensitive to moisture, such as condensation in a refrigerator, and is not very abrasion-resistant. As a result, paper labels quickly become unsightly during normal transport and storage of the containers. Furthermore, paper labels are unsuitable for recycling the containers using the hot-wash recycling process because paper residues, due to their specific density, sink during the washing process and mix with the PET flakes. This makes it difficult or impossible to obtain pure PET flakes and thus the extrusion of new or recycled PET containers.

[0010] Self-adhesive labels made of polypropylene, especially those made of biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP), must have a thickness of more than 60 µm to completely cover the ribs. The resulting high stiffness of the labels prevents them from being used to label containers along a radius of curvature, as the labels tend to detach easily from the container surface due to their rigidity.

[0011] Description of the invention: Problem, solution, advantages

[0012] Based on this, the object of the invention is to propose an adhesive label for labeling a labeling area of ​​a recyclable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) container and a recyclable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) container with an adhesive label that meets the aforementioned requirements. In particular, the applied adhesive label should be dimensionally stable, opaque, water-resistant, and abrasion-resistant / scratch-resistant, and it should allow recycling by means of the hot-wash recycling process.

[0013] This task is solved by an adhesive label for labeling a labeling area of ​​a recyclable container made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), in particular a PET bottle, wherein the container has at least one rib in the form of an indentation in the labeling area, wherein the adhesive label has a film made of polyethylene, printable or printed on the front and has a full or partial coating of an adhesive on the back.

[0014] Furthermore, the problem is solved by a recyclable container made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), in particular a recyclable PET bottle, wherein the container has a labeling area with at least one rib in the form of an indentation and is labelled with an adhesive label, wherein the adhesive label has a film made of polyethylene, is printable or printed on the front and has a full or partial coating of an adhesive on the back.

[0015] The adhesive label according to the invention has good conformability and can therefore be easily applied to the container. Furthermore, the adhesive label is dimensionally stable in its applied state, opaque, water-resistant, and abrasion-resistant / scratch-resistant, and it allows recycling via the hot-wash recycling process because polyethylene, due to its specific density, floats during the washing process, thus separating PET and PE components into pure forms. The adhesive label according to the invention therefore fulfills diametrically opposed requirements.

[0016] Advantageous embodiments of the invention are specified below and in the dependent claims.

[0017] The film is preferably white in its unprinted state, which allows for any desired and therefore flexible printing of the adhesive labels with regard to information and motifs.

[0018] The film preferably has a thickness of 80 pm to 170 pm, particularly 100 pm to 150 pm, and preferably 120 pm. Polyethylene films of such thickness are particularly suitable to meet the requirements of the adhesive label with regard to conformability and dimensional stability in the applied state.

[0019] The adhesive is preferably a UV-acrylic hot-melt wash-off adhesive. In its applied and cured state, the adhesive exhibits a final adhesion of less than 4 N, particularly less than 3 N, and preferably less than 2 N. The final adhesion is determined using the FINAT test method (FTM). Such an adhesive is therefore particularly well-suited for the present material composition of PE and PET and provides sufficient adhesion in its applied state to prevent premature detachment of the adhesive labels. Furthermore, the adhesive allows for residue-free removal of the labels from PET flakes during the hot-wash recycling process, thus enabling the recovery of PET flakes without contaminating adhesive residue.

[0020] In a further advantageous embodiment, the film is provided that, in the unapplied state, it is detachably arranged on a release carrier. The release carrier is preferably a PET release carrier and preferably has a thickness of 17 pm to 36 pm, in particular 20 pm to 33 pm, and more preferably 23 pm to 30 pm. Alternatively, the release carrier is provided that it is a glassine release carrier and preferably has a mass of 54 g / m². 2 up to 73 g / m² 2 , especially of 58 g / m² 2 up to 69 g / m² 2 , preferably of 62 g / m² 2 up to 65 g / m² 2 This makes the adhesive label particularly easy to print, store, and transport. Furthermore, the release carriers allow for easy and residue-free removal of the adhesive labels, enabling them to be applied to containers with simple means.

[0021] List of characters

[0022] A specific embodiment of the invention is explained below with reference to the figures.

[0023] Fig. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a labelled container according to the prior art;

[0024] Fig. 2a shows a first cross-sectional view of an adhesive label;

[0025] Fig. 2b shows a second cross-sectional view of the adhesive label;

[0026] Fig. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of a labeled container.

[0027] Detailed description of the characters

[0028] Fig. 1 shows a recyclable PET container 10 in the form of a cylindrical PET bottle 101, which has four radially extending ribs 11 so that the bottle 101 can also have a comparatively thin wall thickness D wexhibits sufficient stability. Bottle 101 is provided with an adhesive label 13 within a labeling area 12, as is known in the prior art. The adhesive label 13 spans the ribs 11 and forms inward-facing folds 14 in these sections. This results in an irregular surface 15 of the applied adhesive label 13, which does not meet the high requirements for the desired appearance.

[0029] Fig. 2a shows an adhesive label 100 in its unapplied state, designed for labeling a labeling area of ​​a recyclable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) container, in particular a PET bottle. The adhesive label 100 has a white film 20 made of polyethylene (PE), printed on the front and coated on the back with a full-surface adhesive 21. The film 20 has a thickness D Ffrom 120 pm. The pressure-sensitive adhesive 21 is a UV-acrylic hot-melt wash-off adhesive 211 and exhibits a final adhesion of less than 4 N in the applied and cured state. In the unapplied state, the adhesive label 100 is releasably arranged on a release carrier 22, which is designed as a PET release carrier 221 and has a thickness D T owns from 25 pm.

[0030] Fig. 2b shows the adhesive label 100 peeled from the release carrier 22, which can thus be applied to the labeling area of ​​a container. The adhesive label 100 detaches from the release carrier 22 without leaving any residue.

[0031] Fig. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of such a labeled PET container 200, which in the illustrated embodiment is designed as a PET bottle 2001 and has four ribs 24 in the form of radially extending indentations in a labeling area 23. The adhesive label 100 applied to a labeling area 23 of the container 200 spans the ribs 24 without creases, thus providing a conforming and flawless appearance. Reference numeral list

[0032] 100 adhesive labels

[0033] 200 containers

[0034] 2001 bottle

[0035] 10 containers

[0036] 101 bottles

[0037] 11th rib

[0038] 12 Labeling area

[0039] 13 adhesive labels

[0040] 14 folds

[0041] 15 surface

[0042] 20 slides

[0043] 21 Pressure-sensitive adhesive

[0044] 211 UV Acrylic Hotmelt Wash-Off Pressure Adhesive

[0045] 22 release carriers

[0046] 221 PET release carriers

[0047] 23 Labeling area

[0048] 24th rib

[0049] Dw wall thickness

[0050] DF film thickness

[0051] D T Thickness of the release carrier

Claims

Claims 1. Adhesive label (100) for labeling a labeling area (23) of a recyclable container (200) made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), in particular a PET bottle (2001), wherein the container (200) has at least one rib (24) in the labeling area (23) in the form of an indentation, characterized in that the adhesive label (100) has a film (20) made of polyethylene (PE), which is printable or printed on the front and has a full or partial coating of an adhesive (21) on the back.

2. Adhesive label (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that the film (20) is white in the unprinted state.

3. Adhesive label (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the film (20) has a thickness (D F ) from 80 pm to 170 pm, in particular from 100 pm to 150 pm, preferably from 120 pm.

4. Adhesive label (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the adhesive (21) is a UV-acrylic hot melt wash-off adhesive (211).

5. Adhesive label (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the adhesive (211) in the applied and cured state has a final adhesion of less than 4 N, in particular less than 3 N, preferably less than 2 N.

6. Adhesive label (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the film (20) is arranged detachably on a release carrier (22) in the unapplied state.

7. Adhesive label (100) according to claim 6, characterized in that the release carrier (22) is designed as a PET release carrier (221) and preferably a thickness (D T ) from 17 pm to 36 pm, in particular from 20 pm to 33 pm, preferably from 23 pm to 30 pm.

8. Adhesive label (100) according to claim 6, characterized in that the release carrier (22) is designed as a glassine release carrier and preferably has a mass of 54 g / m² 2 up to 73 g / m² 2 , especially of 58 g / m² 2 up to 69 g / m² 2 , preferably of 62 g / m² 2 up to 65 g / m² 2 owns.

9. Recyclable container (200) made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), in particular a recyclable PET bottle (2001), wherein the container (200) has a labeling area (23) with at least one rib (24) in the form of an indentation and is labelled with an adhesive label (100), characterized in that the adhesive label (100) is designed according to one of claims 1 to 8.

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