OSU Study (CONT’D FROM PAGE 42)
Board Converting NEWS INTERNET DIRECTORY
and processing, has studied apple pomace and other by- products from processing fruit and vegetable juice and winemaking as an alternative for recycled newspaper in molded pulp manufacturing. She and the team received a patent for this research. “Right now, apple pomace is typically just composted or used for animal feed,” said Zhao, whose research aims to reduce food loss and waste across the food supply chain. “We thought why not turn it into an environmentally friendly product that meets an industry need.” Zhao envisions apple pomace being the main ingre- dient for molded pulp packing products such as take-out containers, flower pots, beverage cartons and bottles and clamshell packaging used for fruits and vegetables. She is focused on apple pomace, in part, because it is readily available in the Pacific Northwest. When apples are processed for juice about 70-75 percent of the apple goes into the juice, leaving the remaining 25-30 percent as pomace. One of the key problems to solve in creating pomace and paper-based packaging is improving water resistance so that it could withstand high moisture, liquid food or non-food items and products stored under high humidity conditions. In a just-published paper in Food and Bioproducts Pro- cessing , the team sought to create eco-friendly, bio-based, compostable and cost-effective solutions that would im- prove the hydrophobicity, or water resistance, of the apple pomace-based molded pulp products. They used two strategies: incorporating polymers and compounds with characteristics to improve water resis- tance into the pulp formulation and applying superhydro- phobic coatings on the product surface. The polymers and compounds studied include lignin, chitosan and glycerol. Lignin is a polymer that forms key structural materials in the support tissues of most plants. Rhubarb pomace, which is particularly lignin rich, was used in this study. Chitosan is a bio-based polymer commonly used in the papermaking industry. A previous study from Zhao’s team found that chitosan reduced water absorption of cellulose nanofiber (CNF) films significantly through adsorption of chitosan onto CNF fibers via hydrogen bonds. Finally, glycerol is an organic compound often added to a material to make it softer and more flexible. Previous studies had shown that at low levels glycerol decreased water absorption. The researchers determined the optimal amounts of those polymers and compounds while also adding a small amount of cardboard fiber for stability of the molded pulp packaging products. Zhao’s team has a long history of studying food coat- ings as a barrier to water and gases. The team had previ- ously created a two-step preparation of superhydrophobic coating that is heat, cold and water resistant. They applied a simplified, one-step coating on the surface of the apple pomace-based product to enhance water resistance.
SAUER SYSTEM www.sauersystem.com
Sauer provides intelligent solutions for scoring, slitting, slit-scoring, and perforating on corrugators and floor slitters; and glue tab cutting, creasing, slotting, trimming and scrap chopping on presses. New, featured offerings include FRX Adjustable Folding Rail System and G3 Scoring System: the latest proven creasing technology on the market.
STAFFORD GROUP www.go2stafford.com
Interactive website for Stafford Corrugated Products and Stafford Cutting Dies. Featuring online ordering of replace- ment parts. Also, visitors can automatically calculate sheet size for most die-cut standards.
SUN AUTOMATION GROUP ® www.sunautomation.com
SUN Automation Group is the global leader in providing innovative solutions to the corrugated industry. SUN engi- neers and builds the SUN625 Rotary Die Cutter, provides sales, service and support in North and Central America for Latitude Machinery Corporation, manufacturer of Mini to Jumbo FFG and RDCs. Additionally, SUN is the North Amer- ican, UK and Ireland sales and service provider for Para Machinery’s line of equipment, and is the North American sales provider for Highcon. SUN also powers the corrugat- ed industry’s premier IIoT platform, Helios, and is the OEM source for Langston/Staley equipment parts and service. THACKER INDUSTRIAL SERVICE COMPANY www.thackerindustrial.com Specializing in corrugated machinery, T.I.S.CO. offers quali- ty-made products, support services, and more. T.I.S.CO. has a reputation of dependability, not only in the product, but in service and support. With more than 25 years’ experience, T.I.S.CO. installs equipment and machinery, moves or sets up entire plants, rewires and rebuilds - all over the world. VT GROUP www.vtgrouponl ine.com VT offers prepress services for the POP display and corru- gated shipping container industry including graphic design, optimized digitally imaged printing plates and innovative pre-mounting solutions. Our large-format digital printing fa- cility (Digital Impact) is a leading short-run manufacturer of distinctive POP displays and signage where litho-like graph-
ics are preferred. WPR SERVICES www.wprservices.net
WPR Services was established in 2016. What originally start- ed as a technical services company expanded its product offerings to include a machine center learning platform POWtalk™. Our analysis of video, audio, machine metrics, employee ergometrics, and person to person conversation provides a way to identify safety and process inefficiencies.
44
www.boardconvertingnews.com
February 28, 2022
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online