Advanced food packaging for a sustainable future

概述改进新鲜食品包装的新的和先进的解决方案的开发是解决诸如提高可回收性、食品安全、保质期、减少变质和改善客户体验等重要问题的基础。现代、低环境影响的包装在发展长期、可持续和环境友好的供应链方面发挥着关键作用。这位研究工程师将与Klöckner Pentaplast(KP)合作，后者是一家处于塑料包装解决方案前沿的公司，致力于通过倡导循环经济方法来促进负责任的创新，在循环经济方法中，塑料是有价值的原材料的来源。它们是通过热成型挤出硬质板(聚丙烯和PET)、泡沫(发泡聚苯乙烯)并将这些片材热成型成食品包装来制造的。2)相关挤出薄膜。项目目的为完全循环经济的新鲜食品包装的发展需要新技术来提供环境友好的解决方案，同时通过提高食品安全性、保质期和任何新鲜产品的可取性来减少浪费。该项目旨在开发新的解决方案来解决这项研究的重要元素：1)单材料热塑性包装的密封和阻隔性能：薄膜盖和托盘之间的密封对于产品的安全性和保质期至关重要。朝着资源循环的方向发展，传统的方法受到了质疑，传统的薄膜和托盘由不同的材料制成，这就带来了与可回收性相关的挑战。该项目将专注于开发新的解决方案，用于在生命周期结束时进行完整的包装回收，与现代和未来的环境需求相兼容。2)防雾：在透明食品包装中，包装内部的雾化是废品的重要来源，影响可见度，并从根本上降低消费者对产品的期望。通过对这一现象的探索，该项目旨在为这一问题提供和测试可扩展的可行解决方案。

OverviewThe development of new and advanced solutions for improved packaging of fresh food is fundamental to tackle important issues including the likes of improved recyclability, food safety, shelf lifetime, reduction of spoilage, and improved customer experience. Modern, low environmental impact packaging plays a key role in the development of a long-term, sustainable, and environmentally friendly supply chain. The research engineer will work in collaboration with Klöckner Pentaplast (KP), a company at the forefront of plastic packaging solutions and committed to promoting responsible innovations by championing a circular economy approach where plastics are a source of valuable raw material.For the fresh food packaging sector, core product groups include:1) Thermoformed trays. These are manufactured by thermoforming extruded rigid sheet (Polypropylene and PET), foam (expanded polystyrene) and the thermoforming of these sheets into food packaging.2) Associated Extruded films.Project AimsThe development of fresh food packaging for a fully circular economy requires new technologies to provide environmentally friendly solutions while reducing waste by enhancing food safety, shelf life, and product desirability of any fresh product.The project aims to develop new solutions addressing important elements of this research question:1) Sealing and barrier properties for mono-material thermoplastic packaging: Sealing between film lid and tray is critical for safety and shelf-life of the product. Moving towards a circular approach for resources, conventional approaches are questioned, with films and trays traditionally made of different materials which then cause challenges associated with recyclability. The project will focus to develop new solutions for complete package recycling at end of life, compatible with modern and future environmental needs.2) Antifogging: In transparent food packaging, fogging inside the packaging is an important source of waste product, affecting the visibility and essentially reducing product desirability for the consumer. Through exploration of the phenomenon, the project aims to provide and test scalable viable solutions to this issue.