The Effects of Corona and Flame Treatment: Part 1. PE-LD Coated Packaging Board, 2007 European PLACE Conference

Please Note: This document will be available in PDF format in the "My Electronic Documents" link on the home page once your order has been completed. Please make sure you have the latest version of Acrobat Reader. Click on the Acrobat Reader icon to check for the latest version, it’s FREE. To print a hardcopy of a PDF file correctly you must have a postscript printer. If you are not sure if your printer is a postscript printer please refer to your owner’s manual.



The most important function of a packaging material is to shield the product inside the package. Extrusion coated paperboard is generally used in food, medical and cosmetic packages. Extrusion coatings give a barrier against water, water vapour, aroma, grease, oxygen, etc. In addition to barrier properties, heat sealability and printability are important properties in packaging applications. From point of view of printing, the dense and impervious structure of extrusion coatings is challenging: printing inks and toners do not penetrate into the coatings. The durability of the printed image is significant, because the image must withstand various converting operations when the package is constructed.

The most common method for obtaining good ink adhesion is to oxidize the surface. Surface treatments are used to change the chemical composition, increase the surface energy, modify the crystalline morphology and surface topography, or remove the contaminants and weak boundary layers. Two widely used methods are electrical corona discharge treatment and flame treatment. These processes generally cause physical or chemical changes in a thin surface layer without affecting the bulk properties. Treatments will increase surface energy and also provide polar molecular groups necessary for good bonds between ink and polymer molecules. In addition to printability, surface treatments also affect the heat sealing properties of extrusion coatings.