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Manufacturing bottles by thermoforming film material is not new. Thermoforming is a generic term for the manufacturing of plastic components through the vacuum and / or pressure forming processes. A simplistic overview of the single-sheet thermoforming process consists of heating extruded plastic sheet and forming the sheet over a male mould or into a female mould. (For a detailed explication of the thermoforming process see the end of this article).

The first attempts to create bottles by thermoforming were in the 1930s, but, although a number of projects has been pursued, they all were without commercial success.
The recent years, however, have seen successful developments in thermoforming bottles, closed with a pre-punched round aluminium seal, especially in the sector between 50 – 200 ml bottles used for yogurt, juice and isotonic drinks.

The Illig Technology
For this market segment Illig Maschinenbau GmbH & Co. KG, in Heilbronn / Germany introduced its Bottleform BF 70 process in 2008. The material is drawn from the reel, heated and deep drawn in the forming station, mechanically pre-stretched, and subsequently formed by using sterile pressure air. However, due to the bottle design with its significant undercuts, it is necessary to have movable tool parts to enable de-moulding of the bottles. In addition a forming procedure has to be found, which enables an absolutely uniform wall thickness distribution despite reduced initial area and high depth of draw. With the use of specific tools in combination with a servo plug assist and control of the forming air it is possible to deep draw bottles at a stability in line with market conditions even out of a material only 1.4 mm thick (top load)!
The stability of the bottle is a decisive feature for further procedures like filling, sealing and transport. This applies for both the vertical load and the stability of the side walls.
The bottle rims have always to be absolutely even round for sealing. The quality of the sealing rims is decisive for the exact sealing. The secure lock between round plate and bottle guarantees longer durability.
Products do not show a middle seam that is a typical characteristic of blow moulded bottles.

Illig claims that a comparable bottle made by blow moulding has an average weight up to 8.5 gram. A thermoformed bottle stays far below this weight, as the average weight is 4.5 gram.

The Agami ‘Roll N Blow’ Technology
It is obvious that this system has its limits in terms of dimensions (50 – 200 ml). Furthermore they have a sealed top and not a screw closure as blow moulded bottles have. But more recently we have seen the solution for both problems with the development of Agami in France by blow moulding / thermoforming plastic bottles from the reel. I wrote about this development in my article “Highlights of Interpack 2011 – The Second Day”.

The Bottle Thermoforming machine ‘Roll N Blow’ of French company Agami, is based on an innovative technology of tubular thermoforming from a plastic sheet in reel. This sheeting is cut into strips, and each strip is shaped into a tube around a blow pipe. Each strip is then welded lengthwise and the resulting plastic tube is heated and blown into a mould, in order to create the bottle. This technology authorizes high and round shapes for a volume from 100 to 500 ml.

The Hol-Pack Technology
The world of thermoforming bottles is getting much more interesting since a mainly unknown Rudolf Holzleitner, of Hol-Pack Verpackungen from Piberbach in Austria, patented (EP2091829) his invention.

Hol-Pack patented the thermoformed, welded plastic bottle for filling non-carbonated liquids for larger bottles, up to 1.25 litres. The Hol-Pack process involves thermoforming two sheet halves, joined in such a way that the parting line forms a flange-shaped undercut within the bottle. The flanges are welded together at the end of the bottle forming process. The parting line can be arranged along or across the bottle vertical axis.

The lengthwise version allows for production of multi-chamber bottles. Sleeves and labels can be used to conceal the weld line, which is visually unappealing but adds stiffness to finished bottles.

Bottling companies have the option whether to manufacture the entire bottle from a film reel, or buy pre-made semi-finished halves and only carry out the welding of the delivered items on their own machines.

As it is possible to thermoform such semi-finished products in a stackable version, the stackable semis also allow for a commercially interesting modular system. Easily changeable, various bottle shapes are achieved by the fusion of different parts. This technology allows bottlers to a great variety of options and flexibility in bottle shapes as well as in material.

Technically the welded sheet thermoformed bottles feature, compared with blow-moulded bottles, a higher stiffness, due to the welding of the undercuts.

Up till this moment the thermoformed, welded plastic bottles only are suitable for filling non-carbonated liquids, but I am sure that future development will eliminate this restriction and that we will see quite some new applications for this technology, due to its economic prizing, its flexibility in processing, the almost unlimited choice of material, and the almost unlimited free-hand of the designer.

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What is Thermoforming?
For my readers who want to know in more detail about the thermoforming technology. Here are the principles.
Thermoforming is a generic term for the manufacturing of plastic components through the vacuum and / or pressure forming processes. A simplistic overview of the single-sheet thermoforming process consists of heating extruded plastic sheet and forming the sheet over a male mould or into a female mould. Depending on what type of mould a customer selects, the thermoforming process allows the customer the ability to receive a part with the same aesthetic properties as an injection-moulded part at a fraction of the tooling expense involved in injection moulding.
There are 4 basic processes in the Thermoforming Technology: Vacuum Forming, Pressure Forming, Mechanical Forming and Pressure Diaphragm Forming.

Vacuum Forming – The most common method with the simplest mould. The sheets adhere to the mould using atmospheric pressure. Various other versions of the process are available, using pre-blowing (balloon), negative forming (plug assisted), reverse blow moulding, etc.

Pressure Forming – A blowing bell is combined with the mould, in order to increase, through the use of compressed air, the adherence of the sheet onto the mould. Indispensable for tenacious materials and clearer definition on the surface of the sheet in contact with the mould.

Mechanical Forming – Pre-cutting negative forming (plug assisted) is combined to the base mould in order to obtain areas precise details on the surface of the sheet opposite that facing the mould.

Pressure Diaphragm Forming – The sheet adheres to the mould through the use of an elastic diaphragm which is compressed by a high pressure fluid. Indispensable for extremely tenacious materials.

Some of these same principles apply to another thermoforming processes: twin sheeting. Twin-sheeting is heating two sheets of plastic and forming simultaneously on two opposing half-moulds, and then welded together under high pressure. Cavities can also be created with materials of varying colour and type.
In some cases, the twin-sheeting process produces parts that resemble a blow-moulded part, but the twin sheeting process allows the customer to receive 1) a higher quality, more aesthetic part, 2) a two colour part, and 3) a part with an assembly device trapped inside as the part is being formed.
source: Kenplas Industry Ltd.

Shatler's Caipirinha in a CartoCan

In June last year, I wrote that “the revolution in the bottling industry is on”. It seems to be working out that way, as recently we have seen some very interesting developments in beverage cans. No, not the well-known metal can, but beverage cans made from paperboard. These developments are pioneering in the aseptic can as well as in the paperboard packaging field.

After the, in Germany developed, Cartocan for 250ml energy drinks entered the market in 2010, a new Euro patent application (EP 2017178) emerged, relating to an identical drinks can made from paperboard. The third development, although not for beverages, but for motor oil, is from Sonoco UK.

Kirei no Susume, launched by Shiseido on July 21, 2010, is packaged in a Cartocan

Why these developments in paperboard cans for liquids? Beverage cans, traditionally made from metal, aluminium or tinplate, have become more expensive over the last years, whereas paperboard has remained consistently cheaper. But there is one more reason.
Paperboard cans are favoured by the European packaging laws. The paperboard can is classified as ‘Ecological Favourable Packaging’, a German typification in its “packaging laws”, which add 25 eurocents (a refundable packaging tax deposit) to the price of all metal cans sold by beverage resellers.

It is not surprising of course that all three are European developments. In the USA we don’t see a packaging tax, refundable or not, to protect the environment and stimulate recycling, and consequently we don’t see, as we see in Europe, the implementation of ‘packaging laws’ stimulating developments of more environmental friendly packaging formats.

Let’s have a detailed look at these three paperboard beverage cans.

The Composite Can
Paperboard hollow bodies aren’t new. Since ages we use the convulgated winded paperboard cans or tubes as we call them, but never for beverages. We all know the composite can or paperboard can used for dry products and sometimes for pastes, such as creams, balms and oil-based products.

The EcoPak made by Chicago Paper Tube & Can Co Inc

Although often seen as a simple packaging format for simple products (see my post: “EcoPak and Ecocentric – What’s in a Name?” ). there are some examples of brilliant design using the composite can in the upscale market. One of these examples is the Biznaga range of Spanish Gourmet specialties.

The composite can or paperboard can or tube is mostly a round container comprised of a body with two ends made from a variety of materials. The packaging can be produced in many shapes and sizes. The container body is made from paper, and various liner materials to achieve barrier requirements and often completed with a printed label for packaging graphics.

The CartoCan
The new paperboard can, which is made by Michael Hörauf Maschinenfabrik GmbH in Donzdorf / Germany and marketed under the brand name Cartocan, is a highly innovative and brand-appropriate take on the ubiquitous 250ml energy metal drink cans.
CartoCan is the new, high-quality packaging alternative to the tinplate and aluminium can. The slim, cylindrical, trendy format permits a clear positioning of the product at the point of sale.

With the CartoCan, as packaging format, Michael HörAuf offers a complete system for packaging production, sterilization and filling of beverages and food with a shelf life of 12 months. In addition to the aseptic filling of the CartoCan, the company ensures that the mild heat treatment retains the taste, texture, aroma and colour of the product as it undergoes, it claims, optimal processing.

Wood fibre is under ecological conditions a natural renewable and recyclable raw material. The properties of the material along with the environmentally friendly manufacturing and recycling process ensure that the CartoCan supports a brand’s environmental policies.
The CartoCan can be filled with from flavoured milk drinks to tea, from fruit juices to energy drinks.

Full system supplier IPI s.r.l. in Perugia/Italy is one of the system partners for CartoCan and provides the material, which is especially developed for this product. This ensures a full compatibility between equipment and material.

The multi-layer structure is designed in order to produce a protective barrier for the products to be filled. Its structural integrity guarantees preservation of the contents of the product during its entire shelf-life.

Cartocan cans (capacity 200 to 250 ml) feature carton barrier laminates (aluminium or EVOH layers inside and outside are optional), flexographic printing, sleeve material printed in 5 colours, and a wide choice of designs.
Cartocan can be recycled in the same manner as milk cartons.

The Keienburg Paperboard Can
Recently a new Euro patent application (EP 2017178 in German) emerged, relating to an identical drinks can made from paperboard. There is not yet an official brand name available for this can, so I call it, for the time being, after the inventor Günther Keienburg.

Let’s first look at the abstract of EP 2017178 (A2): “The casing comprises a parallelly coiled layer of cellulose-containing material in the form of cardboard and/or pasteboard, and a liquid-proof functional layer. An inner casing surface facing content of the container includes an ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer barrier layer with a weight of 10 grams per meter square. A container wall includes a four layer sulphate cardboard with a weight of 250 grams per meter square. The material comprises polyethylene and polyamide coatings”.

It’s a development of Keienburg Agentur für Verpackung GmbH in Rhauderfehn / Germany, which, alongside the cans, offers production units to erect the can body. This gives drinks manufacturers the ability to make the paperboard cans at source, eliminating the high costs for transportation and storage of empty metal cans.
To produce the cardboard can only board reels and can tops and ends are delivered to the fillers. One reel of 4 feet diameter and 0.5 feet width is equivalent to 4.000 cans. The production units offered by Keienburg are said to be capable of producing in excess of 40,000 paperboard cans every single hour.
Currently used filling lines only need simple modifications to process the paperboard cans as standard aluminium pull up can tops are used. This newly introduced production system is said to save up to 30% of the production costs.

The difference between the Cartoncan and the Keienburg can is that the Cartoncan uses an adhesive tape to cover and close the drinking hole in the paperboard top of the can, while Keienburg uses the standard original metal can ends, creating an almost identical beverage can as we know it. This difference in can construction is important as the Keienburg can is designed for carbonised beverages, just like its metal carbon copy.

The Sonoco rigid paperboard can for motor oils
Last month Sonoco, the world’s oldest and largest producer of paperboard cans, also entered, via its UK subsidiary, the market of paperboard cans for liquids. However not for beverages as the former two, but for motor oils.

Sonoco’s solution was a rigid paper container with metal ends that offers the same product appearance and protection for liquids, but at a lower cost and using far more sustainable materials. According to Sonoco, the screw-top, paperboard can is durable enough to last the required product’s four year shelf life.
Furthermore the company claims that the rigid paper container demonstrates significant economic and environmental improvements in its life cycle assessment when compared to the steel can that is generally used in the motor oil market. Not only does it result in a 27% reduction in material weight inputs and reduces the customer’s shipping and handling costs, it also results in a 34% reduction in energy inputs, a 20% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and a 2% reduction in chemical bad actors.

The Future
Now start thinking. Use your imagination.
Some months ago I wrote about the new Evero Aseptic paperboard bottle from Tetra. Although I think Sonoco is using its convulgated winded paperboard tubes, cutting them in the required sizes, HörAuf and Keienburg are rolling a paperboard sheet in a similar way as Tetra is doing for its Evero.

The Keienburg can uses aluminium ends as are commonly used for 3-piece metal tins. Tetra is using a plastic shoulder/neck which is glued into the paperboard body.
You can see that the Keyenburg paperboard can assembled with a shoulder/neck piece, results in a paperboard can with an aluminium or plastic bottom end and a shoulder/neck, emerging into a full bottle with screw cap facility.

Compare also the development of the Aisa can, I wrote about in my article “Tetra Evero Aseptic and AisaCan – The Revolution of Multi-Material Bottles”

A fascinating evolution in beverage bottles and cans is awaiting us.

Note: I couldn’t find a website of Keienburg, But for those interested here is the full address:  Keienburg Agentur für Verpackung GmbH, Rajen 21, 26817 Rhauderfehn, Germany.