Halogen-Free Polymer Sealing Insert for Beverage Containers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing container closures, particularly for wine and carbonated beverages, face challenges in providing a reliable seal over long periods due to uneven bottle mouth openings and the use of halogen-containing materials, which can lead to leaks and contamination from oxygen and other gases.
Innovation Solution
A container closure system with a sealing insert composed of a polymer compound containing at least two different barrier polymers, such as butyl rubber and styrene-isobutylene-styrene, combined with polyolefins, that is produced through in-shell molding to ensure improved adjustability of hardness and elasticity, and is free from halogen-containing materials.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a sealing insert is made from conventional polymer materials to ensure basic sealing function, then the sealing insert can be easily manufactured and installed, but it cannot provide sufficient long-term reliability for demanding applications such as wine and sparkling wine bottles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs composite polymer materials consisting of multiple barrier polymers (such as polyvinylidene chloride, polyvinyl chloride, polyacrylonitrile, or polyamides) combined with other polymers to create a sealing insert that provides both excellent gas barrier properties and long-term sealing reliability. This composite approach allows the material to maintain its sealing function over several years or decades in demanding applications like wine and sparkling wine bottles, while the materials remain processable using conventional in-shell molding techniques.
2Ease of manufacture
If halogen-containing materials like PVC are used in sealing inserts to achieve good sealing properties and processability, then the sealing insert can be easily manufactured and provides good elasticity, but it poses health concerns and disposal problems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates halogen-containing substances from the sealing insert formulation while maintaining the essential processing properties and sealing performance. This is achieved by using alternative polymer compounds that do not contain chlorine or other halogens, thereby removing the harmful factor (health concerns and disposal problems) while preserving the beneficial factors (processability and sealing properties) through carefully selected polymer combinations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters of the polymer compound by selecting specific barrier polymers and their combinations that provide the necessary sealing properties without halogen content. The formulation adjusts the types and proportions of polymers (such as using polyvinylidene chloride combined with other polymers) to maintain processability and elasticity while eliminating harmful halogen-containing substances.
3Reliability
If the sealing insert material is made very soft to compensate for uneven bottle mouth openings, then the sealing performance on irregular surfaces is improved, but the material may deform permanently under pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses composite polymer materials that combine the benefits of softness for conforming to uneven surfaces with the stability needed to resist permanent deformation. The specific combination of barrier polymers with other polymers creates a material that has sufficient elasticity to adapt to irregular bottle mouth openings while maintaining structural integrity and resistance to permanent deformation under the pressure conditions of sealed containers.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides a reliable and long-lasting seal for containers with uneven mouth openings, effectively preventing gas penetration and maintaining the quality of beverages over several years or decades without compromising taste or increasing production costs.
Implementation Method 1
a polymer compound which contains at least two different barrier polymers
Implementation Method 2
its hardness, together with its elasticity, results in sealing. In this case, a good sealing insert compensates for the always-present unevenness of the container mouth opening.
Data Source
AI summary
A closure made of metal or plastic for a container for accommodating beverages or food has a mouth opening which is to be closed by the container closure. The container closure has a sealing insert which is arranged such that it closes the mouth opening with sealing action when the container closure is fitted on the container. The container closure, including the sealing insert, does not contain any halogen-containing material, and the sealing insert comprises at least two different polymers, of which at least one is a barrier polymer with a Shore D hardness of at most 40 and oxygen permeability of at most 1000 cm3·100 μm/m2·d·bar and, without the Shore D hardness being limited, with oxygen permeability of at most 10 cm3·100 μm/m2·d·bar.