Manon Boulven (CTCPA)
3 oct. 2023
The Work Package 5, Quality and Safety, started in month 6 of the BUDDIE-PACK project and will last for 30 months. The WP5 aims to develop the approach for risk assessment and management of reusable packaging after use. The functional properties and safety (presence of contaminants, chemical migration, microorganisms…) of reusable packaging will be assessed after multiple cycles of reuse/cleaning.
Over the last 6 months, the WP5 work has been focused on the development of an accelerated ageing protocol representative of the different business cases. To date, several steps has been initiated :
- the design of preliminary tests for mechanical ageing and the realisation of migration kinetics on 5 substances (slipping agents, antioxidants and its breakdown products).
- the setting up of accelerated ageing protocols for 4 of 6 use-cases (in worst-case conditions)
- and the beginning of the first accelerated ageing tests (up to 20 cycles of use according to the first loop draft – Diagram 1) for PP trays from Knauf and Ausolan.
Diagram 1 : 1st draft of accelerated ageing protocol
Linked to the accelerated ageing protocol, the durability of key functional properties (Picture 1) will be assessed. A first reflexion about performance tests in adequation with the first accelerated ageing tests set up has been carried out by considering the length of analysis per sample. A tool has therefore been developed by IPC to define the partners abilities to realize the analytical post-use functional properties with the aim of having a standard strategy function to:
- the use-case,
- the chemical nature,
- and the properties targeted.
Picture 1: key functional properties
Regarding the 2 other use-cases (Bags-in-box as refill stations for cosmetic care goods and Home care goods), CTCPA carried out first experiments on ASEVI packaging to understand the behavior of current ASEVI packaging in a single life cycle before to study contaminations by development of a challenge test for reusable life cycle.
Microplastic release will be quantified throughout the life cycle. For this purpose, the recruitment of an 18 month post-doctoral is planned for 2024 in order to work on the instrumented bench and microplastic measurements.
Cleaning technologies will be optimised and integrated in a cleaning pilot line which will demonstrate the capacity of packaging developed in WP3 and tested in WP5 to remain functional after at least 20 cycles of reuse up to 300 cycles.
The partners involved in this work package are: ACTIA, as French Network of Technical Institutes (with CTCPA & LNE as affiliated entities); AIMPLAS and IPC, as Technological Centers; VYTAL, DAWN MEATS, AUSOLAN, UZAJE, ASEVI and SMURFIT KAPPA, as End-user; CHRISTEYNS, as expert in cleaning equipment and technologies; TUS as Technological University; ETERNITY SYSTEMS, as expert in industrial washing for reusable packaging and containers and PLASMION, as expert in sniffing technologies.