Currently, most laundry detergent products on the market are packaged in flexible packaging bags. LDPE is a film made by polymerizing ethylene monomers, which eventually forms an economical and efficient flexible packaging bag. Flexible packaging is now more likely to replace rigid containers such as plastic or glass jars because such flexible packaging bags can be more convenient and stable during transportation and distribution. In addition, more patterns can be printed on the packaging bags, including brand and sales information.
As a well-known flexible converter located in Qingdao, China, we are making the best use of the packaging filmc materials in the market, listed below.
- fossil chemical polymer films
- vacuum metalized film materials
- Ceramic film substrates
- plant-based biopolymer materials
- biodegradable film materials
- compostable substrate films
- Fully recyclable substrate films
We are committed to creating laundry detergent powder soft packaging bags with stories to increase product sales and establish a good brand image.
In this post, we will analyze the exact foil materials of this 252g laundry detergent bag, hoping it could serve as a reference for your products.
Ok, let’s get into the details of this laundry detergent powder bag pouch.
Packaging Foil Materials
The figure below shows the composition structure of the materials used to convert this soft packaging laundry detergent bag.
It consists of a two-layer structure, the out layer is PET film as the printing substrate, finally LDPE film as the inner sealing layer. The thickness of the LDPE film can be adjusted according to the requirements of 250g washing powder.
Next, let’s get into a deeper understanding of each substrate film material.
PET Film
PET Film, is one of the most commonly used printing substrates in flexible packaging sachets. With great optical clarity, high gloss, good chemical resistance, stable mechanical strength, excellent dimensional stability, and great printability, it can present the customer artwork print in great quality, and also provide great mechanical strength to the final package.
The most commonly used thickness of PET film applied in the flexible packaging industry is 12 microns, which equals 0.48 gauge. So whenever you see PET12 or 0.48 g PET, you will know they mean the same thing.
LDPE Film
LDPE refers to low-density polyethylene film, which is the most commonly used inner seal layer for flexible packaging bags. LDPE has a lightweight, easy to manufacture, and has good chemical and impact resistance. LDPE can be recycled, making it a popular alternative to traditional plastics. LDPE is non-toxic, non-polluting, and highly resistant to rupture. Most importantly, LDPE film can be modified according to the needs of specific products, ultimately giving the packaging excellent sealing strength and protection. The thickness of LDPE film will be determined according to the specific application.
The performance of LDPE film needs to be improved to resist alkaline corrosion from detergents.Different formulations of laundry detergent may require different special modifications to the LDPE film. If necessary, please contact us for further assistance.
The 2 layers are bonded together using a dry or solvent-free lamination process to form the final composite material. Typically, we describe the final composite foil material as PET12/LDPE.
Thickness
As you can see from the below picture, the overall thickness of this spout pouch is 0.278 mm, which equals to 139 microns for this laminated foil.
So, how does this structure perform when used in laundry detergent bags? Will it break during transportation?
Wonderful Printing Effect
PET material has high printing precision, and can print more product knowledge, making the packaging look more assured.
Mechanical Property
Pillow bag packaging will protect the product during filling, transportation and distribution. High tensile strength and impact resistance, the products are durable, can withstand certain external force extrusion and collision, and are not easy to break.You can trust that the packaging is strong enough to protect the detergent from production to sales. In the event of an emergency such as an accidental impact during transportation or the package falling off the shelf, the packaging will never break.Can you ever imagine the laundry detergent powder contaminating the cartons or the floor?
We put the mechanical property of this 252g laundry detergent powder sachet on our top priority in our manufacturing plant. Serious measures are taken in our QC system, to assure each order is finalized with the expected result.
In short, drop testing a filled package is one of the most reliable ways to check whether a package will break under sudden, severe force.
Here, we are going to fill 750g salt into this bag, perform the drop test from 1.6 meters high, 3 times, and check if it breaks.
Barrier Performance
Generally, The essential formulas of a laundry detergent powder should include but not be limited to the list below.
- surfactants
- builders
- bleaching agents
- enzymes
- optical brighteners
- ph regulators
- fragrances
- bleach activators
- corrosion
- fillers
- defoaming agents
The outer layer of PET provides an ultraviolet blocking rate of ≥95%, the inner layer of LDPE realizes anti-pollution sealing, and the oxygen permeability of composite structure is less than 0.5 cm/m 24h ATM, which can effectively protect the substances in the washing powder.The following is the protection of PET appearance for this product.
The barrier properties of multi-material laminates were evaluated by WVTR (abbreviation of water vapor permeability) and OTR (oxygen permeability). The following table shows the typical values of WVTR and OTR of common basement membrane materials.
With the continuous updating of packaging, some packaging with better barrier properties and more beautiful appearance are more popular with consumers.
Technical Data Sheet of 252 grams laundry detergent powder pouch
Here, we attach the specification sheet of this 252g laundry detergent powder pillow bag, which is made of foil laminated matte PET/LDPE.
More tests are included in this specification sheet with items available listed as below.
- Yield (grams per square meter)
- Tensile Strength (Mpa)
- Elongation Rate (%)
- Coefficient of friction, short as COF
- Solvents Left (mg/m2 )
- Sealing Strength (N/15mm)
- Sealing Conditions
- Bond Strength (N/15mm)
- Burst Strength (J)
- Anti-Puncture ability (N)
- Drop Test Ability (cm)
- Anti-pressure ability (kgs)
- Water Vapor Transmission Rate (g/m2/24hr)
- Oxygen Transmission Rate (cc/m2/24hr)
If you want to know more about this kind of PET/LDPE, you can read it here.
More Sustainable Materials Options
In recent years, with the increasing burden of fossil chemical polymer materials discarded into our environment, people pay more and more attention to more sustainable use of renewable materials. The demand for sustainable packaging is unprecedented, which leads to more environmentally friendly activities of enterprises. According to a recent survey of laundry detergent powder market, more and more consumers are more likely to buy products that are conducive to environmental protection and sustainable use of recycled materials.
Compostable Packaging Materials
Some of our customers are trying to replace their traditional film materials with compostable items. You can see the roll in below picture is actually made of 100% compostable materials, for one of our customers in New Zealand.
The below graphic shows clearly the foil structure for this laminated compostable foil.
The artwork is printed reversely on the inner side of plant-based cellulose film, with another layer of metallized cellulose working as the light-shielding and barrier layer, and PLA+PBAT biodegradable film works as the inner sealing layer.
However, it did not meet customer expectations.
As explained previously, it is crucial for the laminated foil to protect the formulas of the liquid detergent in the sachet. However, for this compostable foil, the ingredients of the liquid detergent can easily penetrate into the PLA+PBAT film, which is in full touch with the liquids for all the time. When a certain amount of ingredients passes through the PLA+PBAT film, it will inevitably damage the adhesive between PLA+PBAT film and metallized cellulose, which leads to the delamination of this foil.
For this customer, compostable foil did not meet his requirements.
Based on this situation, the compostable foil materials will never be allowed to hold products in large volumes, like 1 litre, 2 liters, or 3 liters. That is different from the traditional polymer film materials explained above. You may us for further ideas if you need.
Fully Recyclable Mono Materials
Some of our customers are actually moving towards fully recyclable mono-material bags that tolerate liquid detergent formulations very well. They can hold liquid detergents up to 250 ml very well, as the mechanical properties of such recyclable bags lag far behind conventional material bags.
Well, that’s it. If you have any questions about juice bags, please feel free to contact us. Have a nice day.
