BASF at Emballage Fair: to Present Epotal Eco, 1st Compostable Water-based Adhesive & much more

For the 4th consecutive year, BASF will participate in the Emballage fair taking place in Villepinte, Paris from the 19th to the 22nd of November 2012. With more than 90 000 international visitors, this fair is the occasion for BASF to present packaging related product materials and innovations for the packaging industry. This year, under the key message "We create chemistry for a sustainable future", BASF present - at Booth 6 B 047, Hall 6 - packaging solutions for the food and cosmetic industries.

♦ Hexamoll DINCH: The alternative plasticizer giving you the highest level of safety in packaging materials. Packaging films can be used for food as well as for technical applications. So called stretch or cling films are widely used in consumer areas. BASF offers the ideal plasticizers, which turn rigid PVC into soft and flexible material and enables their use in packaging material. Many of our plasticizers meet the requirements for food packaging and can therefore be used for the production of soft PVC films that come into contact with food.

♦ Clean and friendly functionality
Joncryl water-based resins for functional packaging coatings BASF developed Joncryl products for functional packaging coatings to formulate water-based lacquers and coatings, offering substrate enhancement and packaging functionality.

♦ Joncryl ADR - High-performance additive for recycled PET Joncryl ADR plastic additives improve the elasticity, foaming behaviour, ageing resistance and tensile strength of polyesters. They are mainly used to improve the performance of recycled PET. Joncryl ADR makes it possible to restore the properties of the recycled PET to equal those of the virgin PET. Apart from being used to improve the mechanical properties of polymers, Joncryl ADR additives are also used as reactive compatibilizing agent for immiscible polymers. They make it possible for stable polymer blends to be manufactured from various immiscible polycondensates.

Recycled PET from homogeneous returned PET bottles is used in the textile industry in the production of polyester fibers, in the automotive industry in the production of plastic components and in the packaging industry in the production of tape, film, bottles and packaging for foodstuffs. It also has applications in household and electrical goods and in the construction industry.

♦ Joncryl FLX Line - Water-based technology for medium-duty film printing BASFs continuous development efforts have resulted in new products that make the next step in water-based film printing possible. High lamination bond strengths in film structures, even comprising of PET films, can now be achieved with water-based inks that are formulated with Joncryl FLX Line products. Our Eco-Efficiency Analysis shows that water-based ink systems have a lower environmental impact and lower life cycle costs in comparison with solvent-based ink systems.

♦ Biodegradable plastics for food packaging Biodegradable plastic bags provide a hygienic and energy-efficient means of converting organic waste to valuable compost using industrial composting plants. BASF will be presenting shopping bags and organic waste bags made of its biodegradable plastics, ecovio F and ecovio FS. The new type of film, ecovio FS, contains an even higher proportion of renewables than the established ecovio F film type. The exhibition also shows paper cups featuring ecovio FS Paper, the new ecovio type created specially for coating paper. With ecovio FS Paper, conventional PE processing machines can be used to apply a thin inline coating of biodegradable film to paper in the extrusion process. The method produces drinking cups with a robust waterproof coating that is easily recycled along with the paper.

♦ Pigments for sustainable solutions - Heliogen Blue D 7940 As an example of its contribution to eco-friendly applications such as compostable plastic bags, BASF will present Heliogen D 7940, a copper-free phthalocyanine pigment. In contrast to standard copper phthalocyanine pigments neither disposal of special waste is necessary nor are additional costs generated for water treatment at printing ink customers and printers. Heliogen Blue D 7940 has a unique color shade and is characterized by high chroma and high fastness to light and weathering and is suitable for aromatic-free solvent-based inks and offset inks. It is mainly used for food packaging and labels, biodegradable bags and paper bags.

♦ Epotal Eco for biodegradable packaging Epotal Eco by BASF is the first compostable water-based adhesive certified by the German Technical Inspection Agency TUV. It is particularly suitable for the production of multi-layer films for flexible packaging such as bags for potato chips. Epotal Eco is compatible with all commonly used biodegradable plastic films. Tests have shown that after 70 days 90 percent of the adhesive is broken down - without leaving any toxic residues and without any negative impact on the environment. This means that Epotal Eco meets the European EN 13432 standard for biodegradable plastics and allows, for the first time, the production of fully compostable packaging. Apart from this, Epotal Eco offers all benefits of waterbased adhesives.

BASFs water-based adhesives are an environmentally friendly and efficient alternative to solvent-based and solvent-free products: They are free from toxic components and consequently, they are particularly suitable for food packaging. In addition, multi-layer films that have been specifically produced based on these BASF adhesives can be processed immediately after lamination. This way, the adhesives help the packaging industry to save time and money.

Aurora special effect film opens up a variety of optical effects for product designers, packaging and label manufacturers. The film is high-luster with intriguing reflections and comes in a wide range of colors. Aurora can be used for a variety of applications and in combination with a range of matrix materials such as paper and carton. The effect design options - from subtle to striking and sophisticated to playful - open up a wealth of opportunities for unusual pac