Laser Microperforated Banana Packaging for Controlled Gas Transmission
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current banana and plantain packaging technologies are either expensive or insufficient in controlling ripening and maintaining quality, leading to uneven ripening and increased susceptibility to post-harvest diseases, while also being inefficient in extending shelf life and preventing dehydration.
Innovation Solution
The use of laser microperforated bags with registered microperforation arrays that allow for controlled transmission of oxygen, carbon dioxide, and ethylene gases, enabling optimal preservation of fruit quality and extending shelf life, while preventing post-harvest diseases and maintaining fruit weight.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Duration of action of stationary object
If oxygen content is drastically decreased to extend green life, then green life is greatly increased, but ripening cannot be initiated without opening the bags
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies porous breathable film material that allows selective gas transmission. The film contains micropores that permit ethylene gas and other respiratory gases to pass through while maintaining modified atmosphere conditions inside the bag. This enables ripening initiation without opening the bag, as ethylene can penetrate the porous film to trigger uniform ripening throughout the banana load.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical parameters of the packaging material by using film with specific micropore sizes and gas transmission rates. The breathable film has controlled permeability characteristics that allow different gases (oxygen, carbon dioxide, ethylene) to pass at different rates, enabling simultaneous maintenance of low-oxygen conditions for green life extension and ethylene transmission for ripening initiation.
2Ease of operation
If easy tear bags are used to facilitate ripening, then operation is simplified, but adequate modified atmospheres cannot be maintained due to leaking
Solution Approach 1:
The breathable film uses porous material with controlled micropore structures that prevent macroscopic leaking while allowing gas transmission. The micropores are sized to maintain seal integrity and prevent fruit movement or moisture loss, yet permit free passage of respiratory gases including ethylene, carbon dioxide, and oxygen. This eliminates the need to open the bag for ripening while maintaining reliable modified atmosphere conditions.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional packaging is used, then manufacturing is simpler, but uniform ripening and quality control are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent specifies precise parameter ranges for the breathable film including micropore size (0.01-10 micrometers), oxygen transmission rate, carbon dioxide transmission rate, and ethylene transmission rate. These controlled parameters ensure uniform gas distribution throughout the package, enabling consistent modified atmosphere maintenance and uniform ripening across all bananas, while the film itself remains a simple single-layer structure that is easy to manufacture.
4Reliability
If non-breathable bags are used to maintain modified atmosphere, then atmosphere control is improved, but dehydration occurs and susceptibility to post-harvest diseases increases
Solution Approach 1:
The breathable film uses porous material with micropores that allow water vapor transmission while maintaining modified atmosphere gas composition. The porous structure permits moisture vapor to escape, preventing condensation and dehydration of the bananas, while the overall film structure maintains the low-oxygen, high-carbon-dioxide atmosphere that suppresses post-harvest diseases and extends shelf life.
5Manufacturing precision
If microporous membrane technology is used to control ripening, then ripening control is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses breathable film with microporous structure that can be manufactured using conventional plastic extrusion and orientation processes. The micropores are created during film formation through controlled addition of fillers or porogens that are later removed, creating a porous network. This approach allows production of large quantities of breathable film at costs comparable to conventional plastic bags, making the technology economically viable for commercial banana packaging operations.
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 even ripening, extended shelf life, and reduced susceptibility to diseases, maintaining fruit quality and weight, with improved control over ripening and storage conditions, addressing the limitations of existing technologies.
Implementation Method 1
laser microperforated bags with registered microperforation arrays that allow for controlled transmission of oxygen, carbon dioxide, and ethylene gases
Implementation Method 2
laser microperforated bags with registered microperforation arrays
Data Source
AI summary
A packaging apparatus suitable for containing and transporting a specified quantity of bananas or plantains includes a vented box and a plastic bag that includes laser microperforations located in target areas separated from each other by distances greater than their largest dimensions. When the bag is placed within the box, filled with bananas or plantains, and hermetically sealed, the microperforations and box vents allow for limited transmission of gases into and out of the bag to establish a modified atmosphere within the bag, and to allow ethylene ripening of the bananas or plantains. The target areas are located at the top of the bag, and also at the bottom of the bag, so that they are not occluded when the bananas or plantains are placed within the bag with their concave sides facing down.