In-Vacuum Flexo Top-Coating on Metallized Film: An Update on the State of the Art

By Dante Ferrari, Celplast Metallized Products Limited

This paper reviews the state of the art of Celplast's patented single-pass, in-line metallizing and top-coating technology, in which a flexo coating is applied immediately after metallization inside the vacuum chamber and then cured with an electron beam (E-beam). The process delivers a Barrier Improvement Factor (BIF) of 6 to 8x over a typical metallized substrate, with performance comparable to high-barrier metallized films in lamination studies.

Top-coated metallized films were evaluated in demanding applications, including retort packaging. Three-ply structures containing top-coated metallized PET film performed comparably to standard four-ply foil-based laminates for most food-packaging needs. The paper also documents scale-up of the process from pilot production (2 m/s at 1320 mm width) to commercial operation at speeds up to 6 m/s and a maximum width of 2450 mm.