Extrusion International 6-2021

50 Extrusion International 6/2021 PACKAGING FILM, RECYCLING The approach uses a multi-stage process to contribute to a circular economy for digitally printed pouches. Starting with a polyethylene (PE)-based barrier food pouch de- signed for recyclability, the project team have used me- chanical recycling and deinking to create a high-quality dishwasher MDO-PE pouch containing 30 percent recycled contents and being itself suitable for recycling. In a next step, the team is working on the digital product passport R-Cycle to allow for recycling-relevant packaging properties to be recorded and to make the pouch identi fi - able for high-quality recycling within post-consumer waste management. Optimal recycling output Delivering the high-quality PE-pouch has required several steps in a coordinated process with each team member applying their experience and capabilities collaboratively: “The requirements for plastic packaging products have never been more complex than today. And we have modi- fi ed and enhanced our Reifenhäuser production lines to enable fi lms and packages not just to be economical and functional, but to meet the vast demand for recyclable packaging based on mono-material structures”, com- mented Ralf Wiechmann, Head of Film Innovation at Rei- fenhäuser. “For this project we’ve broadened our machin- ery expertise to co-extrude the new resins on our highly fl exible EVO 9-layer blown fi lm line and produce PE-based packaging fi lms at fast line speeds. This project shows that we can successfully both produce recyclable packaging, according to Recyclass and CEFLEX guidelines, and use re- cycledmaterials in high value applications if we collaborate effectively along the value chain.” Next step: closing the loop for traceability As a further evolution of the project, the companies are working to add digital traceability to the pouches in line with R-Cycle, a cross-company initiative to develop an open and globally applicable traceability standard for sustain- able plastic packaging. The aim of this initiative is to au- tomatically record recycling-relevant packaging properties during production by providing a digital product passport and to pass them on through the value chain. Using special markings, recycling-friendly packaging can then be iden- ti fi ed in the recycling process and sorted into single-type fractions. This is the key to obtaining high-quality recycla- tes in order to continue efforts to close the loop. R-Cycle is being driven by several major stakeholders in the plastics industry, including Reifenhäuser, which is contributing the technology to the pouch-to-pouch concept. Reifenhäuser Group Spicher Str. 46, 53844 Troisdorf, Germany www.reifenhauser.com Pioneering Proof of Concept to Help Close the Loop for Digitally Printed Pouches Within a cooperation project the key industry players Dow Packaging and Specialty Plastics (P&SP), a business unit of Dow, HP Indigo, Cadel Deinking and Karlville together with Reifenhäuser, announced the successful delivery of the fi rst-of-its-kind pouch-to-pouch mechanical recycling concept