Milliken reinvents the pharmaceutical bottle
By Canadian Packaging staff
Design & Innovation Food Safety Bottling high-density polyethylene Hyperform HPN-20E agent Milliken & Company nutraceutical bottles pharmaceutical bottlesAdvanced Hyperform HPN Hyper-Nucleating Agent from Milliken boosts barrier performance by 30 percent in new HDPE bottle design.
ORLANDO, Fla.—Milliken & Company has announced a breakthrough in over-the-counter pharmaceutical and nutraceutical bottles.
The development of a high-density polyethylene (HDPE) resin hyper-nucleated with Milliken’s Hyperform HPN-20E agent enables a 30 percent improvement in moisture and oxygen barrier performance vs. conventional HDPE.
Using injection blow molding (IBM), this enhanced HDPE resin produces standard-gauge bottles that deliver longer product shelf life; or thinner-gauge bottles that are 15 percent lighter; or even broader options when these benefits are combined.
This innovative application, using Hyperform HPN-20E hyper-nucleating agent, is expected to drive greater sustainability and quality in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical bottles, and appeal to manufacturers and consumers alike.
Milliken’s Hyperform HPN-20E hyper-nucleator raises the barrier properties of HDPE resins to a new level by altering crystal orientation to create a tortuous path that inhibits passage of moisture and oxygen.
In effect, a permeant (able to pass through) molecule must move through a maze of crystals that are linear and encircle the side walls of the bottle – a process that slows down permeation significantly. In contrast, HDPE that does not incorporate the Hyperform HPN-20E hyper-nucleating agent typically forms large, spherulitic crystals that do little to inhibit the transport of oxygen and moisture across the bottle.
“The proven safety and performance of our Hyperform HPN hyper-nucleating agent in FDA-compliant food packaging have been leveraged to achieve this noteworthy success for high-demand pharmaceutical applications,” says Milliken & Company business development and marketing manager for plastics additives Reed Walker. “Our advanced technology is helping drug and nutraceutical companies capitalize on new opportunities to increase the performance and sustainability of their packaging. At the same time, we have expanded the possibilities for the use of polyethylene for an entirely new class of packaging applications.”
Injection blow molding is the industry standard for manufacturing small pharmaceutical bottles. It is very economical because a large number of parts can be produced simultaneously, helping to reduce energy usage per part.
Injection blow molding also delivers a high-quality finish in the bottle neck for a superior seal, and provides excellent part-to-part consistency. Injection blow molding avoids the cost and effort of handling regrind because there is no flash produced at the top or bottom of the container.
Further, because it is used for small bottles, IBM machinery is compact, which is particularly important when space is at a premium, such as in a clean room environment.
Milliken’s Hyperform HPN hyper-nucleating agent enhances the economic benefits of IBM by raising manufacturing productivity through faster cycle times and offering the option to down-gauge bottle designs.
The combination of improved barrier performance to sustain product quality and the potential for thinner-wall designs that use less plastic – and thus reduce processing emissions – provides even greater value to customers in the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries.
Milliken is an innovation company, creating coatings, specialty chemicals, and advanced additive and colorant technologies that transform the way we experience products from automotive plastics to children’s art supplies.
With expertise across a breadth of disciplines that also includes floor covering and performance materials, the people of Milliken work every day to add true value to people’s lives, improve health and safety, and make this world more sustainable.
For more information, visit www.millikenchemical.com or www.milliken.com.
Caption: HDPE resin, hyper-nucleated with Milliken’s Hyperform HPN-20E additive, can now be used to produce pharmaceutical and nutraceutical bottles.
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