Coated container, use thereof and process for its manufacturing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Polyolefin containers have low gas barrier properties, leading to issues with gas permeability, which complicates food and beverage storage, and existing coatings face challenges with adhesion, cracking, and complexity in application, especially on three-dimensional shapes.
Innovation Solution
A polyolefin container is coated with a thin film of hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride followed by a layer of hydrogenated amorphous carbon using plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition, providing a robust gas barrier without the need for multi-layer coatings, which reduces the risk of cracking and simplifies the coating process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If a polyolefin container is used for food packaging, then it provides lightness, low cost and flexibility, but it has low gas barrier properties allowing oxygen or carbon dioxide to easily penetrate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies composite materials by depositing a thin film coating of silicon oxide and hydrogenated amorphous carbon onto the polyolefin container surface. This creates a composite structure where the polyolefin base material provides mechanical properties (lightness, flexibility, low cost) while the deposited coating layers provide the gas barrier function, preventing oxygen and carbon dioxide penetration.
2Quantity of substance
If a multi-layer coating is applied to improve gas barrier properties, then gas barrier properties are improved, but the risk of cracking and environmental impact increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses thin film deposition to create a flexible coating layer that conforms to the container surface without cracking. The thin film structure of silicon oxide and hydrogenated amorphous carbon maintains flexibility while providing effective gas barrier properties, avoiding the cracking issues associated with thicker or multi-layer coatings.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical and chemical parameters of the coating by using plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition to create a dense, cross-linked hydrogenated amorphous carbon layer with high gas barrier properties. This parameter optimization allows effective barrier performance with minimal coating thickness, reducing cracking risk.
3Quantity of substance
If a thin film coating is deposited on polyolefin container, then gas barrier properties are improved with minimal material consumption, but adhesion and susceptibility to pin-holes and cracks remain problematic
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses plasma treatment as an intermediary step before coating deposition. The plasma treatment modifies the polyolefin surface by creating reactive groups and improving surface energy, which enhances the adhesion of the subsequently deposited silicon oxide and hydrogenated amorphous carbon layers, preventing pin-holes and coating defects.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical adhesion methods with chemical bonding through plasma-enhanced deposition. The plasma process creates strong chemical bonds between the coating layers and the polyolefin substrate, eliminating adhesion problems associated with mechanical or physical coating methods.
4Quantity of substance
If PET is used instead of polyolefin for carbonated drink bottles, then gas barrier properties are improved, but the environmental impact and recycling difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the necessary gas barrier function from PET by applying a thin film coating to polyolefin containers. This separates the gas barrier requirement from the need to use PET throughout the entire container structure, allowing the container to remain predominantly polyolefin (easy to recycle) while gaining PET-level gas barrier properties through the deposited coating.
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
This approach achieves improved gas barrier properties with a thin film, reducing the risk of cracking and environmental impact, while allowing for easy recycling and effective sealing, maintaining the quality of contents by minimizing oxygen transfer.
Implementation Method 1
depositing a layer of hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride on a polyolefin container by plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition
Implementation Method 2
depositing a layer of hydrogenated amorphous carbon on the hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride layer by plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition
Data Source
Figure 1~3
AI summary
The present invention relates generally to the field of polyolefin containers. One aspect of the invention is a polyolefin container coated with a gas barrier coating. In particular, the present invention relates to a polyolefin container coated with a gas barrier coating comprising a first layer of hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride and a second layer of hydrogenated amorphous carbon. The hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride layer may be deposited on the container, and the hydrogenated amorphous carbon layer may be deposited on the hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride layer. A further aspect of the invention is a process for coating a polyolefin container comprising the steps of depositing a layer of hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride on a polyolefin container by plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition and depositing a layer of hydrogenated amorphous carbon on the hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride layer by plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition. A subject matter of the invention is the use of the polyolefin container coated with a gas barrier coating for the storage of food or beverage materials.