Design criteria for recycling compatible pressure-sensitive products
| Authors: | Steven J. Severtson, Jihui Guo, Larry Gwin, Carl J. Houtman, Mark Kroll |
| Year: | 2008 |
| Type: | Miscellaneous Publication |
| Station: | Forest Products Laboratory |
| Source: | Proceedings of the Pressure-Sensitive Tape Council’s tech XXXI meeting, 2008 May 7-9, Baltimore, MD. Northbrook, IL: Pressure Sensitive Tape Council, 2008. [10] pages. |
Abstract
Pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) contaminates post consumer waste impeding its processing and limiting the use of recovered cellulose fiber. An approach for reducing the impact of PSA on recycling operations is to redesign label systems to inhibit fragmentation of adhesive films. This results in residual PSA particles that are more easily removed from the process with conventional mill contaminant control equipment. In this presentation findings are reviewed from research aimed at the development of adhesive films that have little or no negative impact on recycling operations. Both hot-melt and water- based formulations were examined, which combined, account for much of the PSA paper label market. For both types of PSAs, properties of the base polymer or polymer blend govern, to a great extent, fragmentation behavior during processing, but via very different mechanisms. Also discussed will be the role of laminate design and processing aids in determining the fragmentation behavior of adhesive films.