PETpla.net Insider 06 / 2020

MATERIALS / RECYCLING PETplanet Insider Vol. 21 No. 06/20 www.petpla.net 24 New masterbatch offers “circular economy” design and zero TiO 2 High opacity, low TiO 2 In early 2018, white opaque PET bottles for milk narrowly escaped being banned in France, on the basis that they were “non-recyclable”. The issue attracted a lot of negative media coverage and became a high-profile political topic. Ultimately, the bottles were allowed to remain on the French market, conditional on the industry driving a drastic reduction of TiO 2 (titanium dioxide) content. The following year, Penn Color introduced pennaholt, a white masterbatch containing 50% less TiO 2 . The company says that it enabled the design of white PET bottles with very low TiO 2 but, at the same time, maintaining the highest levels of opacity and whiteness for maximum shelf-life and shelf appeal. The original pennholt enabled typi- cal 8% TiO 2 content in a PET bottle for long life white milk to be cut to below 4% in monolayer PET bottles and below 2% in multilayer packages. This helped to improve white opaque PET’s compatibility with the non-clear recycled PET stream, where high content of TiO 2 had previously been identified as hindering both the recy- cling process and the manufacture of end-products using non-clear rPET content. A changed approach to reduce TiO 2 Opacity drives consumer’s experi- ence of the quality and safety of the product, as light blocking protects organoleptic properties and nutrients. High opacity (>99.5% at 550 nm) and premium whiteness (>87L) are required to package longlife white milk. Whiteness, with its implications of cleanliness, freshness, purity and safety, sends a message that plays a critical role in the success of the product. Conventional white masterbatch technologies exploit the light scatter- ing property of TiO 2 , dispersed in a plain package wall, to provide opacity and whiteness. Pennaholt uses a dif- ferent mechanism. Its patent-pending technology generates micro-struc- tured interfaces within the PET bottle wall, using high reflective character- istics to create a barrier to light. High opacity and premium whiteness result from a synergistic effect between the micro-structured wall and the light scattering effect of inert particles. Compliance with new legislation TiO 2 now faces another critical challenge. In February 2020, the EU CLP (classification, labelling and packaging of chemical substances) classified it as a suspected car- cinogen (level 2), by inhalation of powders or dust. The effective date of restriction is confirmed as Octo- ber 2021. As the classification is “by inhalation”, it does not apply to packages, where TiO 2 is “locked” in the polymer. Packagers should, however, be aware that it is the combination between the CLP and the EU waste directive that is a concern. Any waste containing more than one per cent of a carcinogenic substance is considered hazardous. The waste directive applies regardless of the form of the substance so it means any recycled PET bottle with more than 1% TiO 2 is hazardous waste. The EU has recently published its “new circular economy plan” with even stricter regulations on the pres- ence of hazardous substances in the recycling streams. White opaque PET will face a challenging situation from October 2021, additional to its technical com- patibility with the recycling stream and the Single Use Plastic directive. Penn Color says that it can help customers with its technological development of pennaholt. Its latest variants are now available with only one per cent or even zero TiO 2 but Recycling Special