Page 24 - Plastics News April 2017

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Labels impact PET bottle recyclability says a study

A new study says that while water bottles have become more environmentally friendly over the years through
lightweighting, factors such as labels and glue still can greatly impact their recyclability.

lastic Technologies Inc. of Holland, Ohio a firm that Design choices by brand owners continue to hinder
Pprovides package design, development and engineering plastics recovery
services to bottle manufacturers, explored this issue in A study has backed up a frequent message among plastics
a recent study analyzing how PET bottle weight affects
performance, cost, and environmental impact, as well as recycling companies: Successful recyclability starts in
how other design decisions influence recyclability. the product design phase. The new research was framed
as a response to the popularity of lightweighting among
Plastic Technologies Inc. of Holland, Ohio, is out with a PET water bottle producers. It also investigated the
new white paper after studying water bottles purchased recycling-related effects of innovations in labels and
in different parts of the world. “The big takeaway is that other areas.“Bottlers must look beyond the bottle itself
the bottles are probably reaching the technical limit of and include components such as labels, inks and closures
what the light-weight bottle could handle, but at the same to truly understand their impact on the waste stream,”
time, they could be better from a recycler’s point of view,” the researchers wrote in the report.
said Marcio Amazonas, one of three authors of the paper.
Amazonas is PTI’s director of Latin American operations The study found many container manufacturers do not
and involved with sustainability work at the company.“We meaningfully factor in recyclability during the design
thought PTI could be a neutral source to access the good, phase. In many cases, containers function well during their
the bad and the ugly design,” he said. “I think designers use but a number of traits leave them difficult to recycle
are bragging maybe a bit too much of the good things they at end-of-life. Containers
do and maybe they don’t have control over the whole investigated were half-litre
process, especially when it comes to labeling.” water bottles sourced from
PET recycling can become contaminated by using the wrong North America, Latin America,
label material or inks that bleed. Even the type of glue Europe and South Asia, which
used can have an impact, said Amazonas, who authored represent the largest markets
the paper with Greg Fisher and Wei Zhang.Water bottle where leading brands are
designers have lowered the weight of their containers sold. Recyclability was tested
to 7.5 to 8.5 grams in some low-priced products, about using the Association of Plastic
one-third of the 22 to 23 grams still found in premium Recyclers (APR) guidelines.
packaging tested by PTI. But using labels, inks and glues Bottle color, label design, glue or ink elements “had a
incompatible with plastic recycling can have a big impact significant impact on package recyclability,” the study
on sustainability, Amazonas said. noted. The most commonly observed problem was label
bleed, a situation in which ink from a label discolors wash
Paper labels, for example, can be more difficult to remove
in the recycling process. And bits of paper fiber and glue water and stains PET flakes. Every label that was studied
that remain on PET after the separation process can burn caused some degree of visual change in the wash liquid.
and cause black marks when flake is later heated. Cheaper Most samples problematic
inks, which will bleed while in the water-based separation
process, also can contaminate recycled flake and cause Overall, five out of seven bottle brands sourced from
discoloration of recycled plastic. Designers can pay more North America – and four out of six European samples
attention to these issues to create less problems for PET – experienced at least one design-related problem
recyclers, PTI said in the report. during recycling. The brands were not identified. “The
samples that had less-than-favorable ratings can be
PTI purchased the top-selling 500 millilitre water bottles improved by the proper choice of ink and adhesive,” the
from stores in the United States, Mexico, India and Europe researchers wrote. “The use of soluble inks and glues
to conduct the research.

Plastics News | April 2017 24