JP2005088522A - Heat sealable polyolefinic foamed film and package - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a stretched polyolefinic foamed film improved in heat sealing performance without curling. <P>SOLUTION: The film is a laminated polyolefinic foamed film having a layer structure of at least three layers basically comprising a foamed layer (A), an intermediate layer (B) and a sealing layer (C), wherein the intermediate layer (B) is not substantially foamed and contains at least an α-olefine copolymer having a xylene soluble fraction at room temperature of ≤ 3 wt.% and a melt flow rate of ≤5 g/10 min. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a polyolefin-based foam film imparted with heat sealability, and more specifically, when used as various packaging material components characterized by achieving both high heat seal strength and low specific gravity by foaming. The present invention relates to a heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film.

  In general, an appropriate material and configuration of a packaging material is selected in consideration of properties such as concealment, barrier properties, and aesthetics according to the purpose and use of the type of contents.

  One of the important characteristics as such a packaging material is heat sealability. Current heat-sealable films include: (1) Laminated films in which various stretched films (polypropylene, polyester, polyamide, etc.) are used as a base material and heat-sealable sealant films (non-stretched polypropylene, polyethylene, etc.) are laminated. (2) Laminated films obtained by co-extrusion and stretching of a sealant resin and polypropylene or the like are the mainstream. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-24980 introduces a polyolefin-based low temperature sealing film comprising two or three layers of A / B, A / B / A, or A / B / C.

  Another important characteristic as a packaging material is concealment. Measures for concealing the packaging film include (1) printing, (2) kneading and adding pigments and colorants, and (3) using foaming during stretching by adding a foaming agent. In addition, the addition of a foaming agent is one of the mainstream methods that can provide thermal insulation.

In addition, in providing concealability by foaming at the time of stretching, it is already known that a special appearance such as pearl tone or matte tone can be formed by keeping the resin in an incompatible state. As described above, foaming of the film by adding a foaming agent is useful as a means for achieving concealing properties, cushioning properties, heat insulation properties, special appearance and weight reduction of the packaging film. For example, there is a biaxially stretched polypropylene film having pearly luster characterized by containing polypropylene, a polypropylene-based copolymer, and an inorganic filler (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent No. 3281410

  As described above, as a packaging material, imparting heat sealability and imparting characteristics by adding a foaming agent are one of the most important characteristics, but it is difficult to design a film that achieves these at a high level. That is, in the heat-sealable foamed film, because of voids generated by foaming, the interlayer strength is lower than that of the non-foamed film. As a result, the seal strength is low.

We have provided an intermediate layer between the foam layer and the seal layer as a stretched polypropylene-based foam film having both high seal strength and low specific gravity, and at least a resin that forms the seal layer (C) on the intermediate layer (B). A film has been proposed which contains one type and is characterized in that the intermediate layer (B) is substantially unfoamed.
However, it has been found that the heat-sealable stretched polypropylene-based foamed film having the above composition is inferior in the ultimate strength of heat-seal as compared with the foamed film coated with the heat-sealable coating agent.
Further, in order to obtain a sufficient heat seal strength, if the thickness ratio of the intermediate layer and the heat seal layer is increased, there is a problem that the film curls and the workability at the time of film processing decreases.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the above-described circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a stretched polyolefin-based foamed film having improved heat sealability without curling.

The stretched polyolefin film according to the present invention that has solved the above problems is a laminate composed of three or more layers based on a foam layer (A), an intermediate layer (B), and a seal layer (C). It is a polyolefin-based foamed film, the intermediate layer (B) is not substantially foamed, the intermediate layer (B) has a cold xylene soluble content of 3% by weight or less, and a melt flow rate of 5 g / 10 minutes or less. A heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film comprising at least one kind of α-olefin copolymer and having an apparent specific gravity of 0.66 or more as a whole film determined by the following formula (1).

Apparent specific gravity (g / cm ³ ) = weight (g) / (area (cm ² ) × thickness (μm)) (1)

  As described above, the heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film according to the present invention can have a high interlayer strength and a high heat seal strength without curling. Here, the apparent specific gravity is used as an index representing the foaming degree of the film.

  In this case, it is preferable that the intermediate layer (B) contains at least one kind of resin forming the sealing layer (C).

  In this case, the film is preferably biaxially stretched.

  Furthermore, in this case, a package using the film is preferred.

  The heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film of the present invention is a film that achieves both a high level of heat-sealability and low specific gravity, and is a base for various packaging materials that have no curling and good workability during film processing. It can be usefully used as a material.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the heat-sealable polyolefin foam film of the present invention will be described.
The base polymer used for the foam layer (A) of the heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film composed of three or more layers of the foam layer (A), the intermediate layer (B) and the seal layer (C) in the present invention is propylene. In addition to propylene homopolymer, α-olefin copolymerizable with propylene, that is, ethylene, butene, pentene, hexene, 4-methylpentene-1, and the like are copolymerized. Copolymers can be used. In the copolymer, propylene is preferably a polymer having 90 mol% or more. The polypropylene resin preferably has a melt flow rate (MFR, JIS-K-7210; 230 ° C., 2.16 kg load) of 0.5 to 40 g / 10 minutes, particularly 1 to 15 g / 10 minutes. Moreover, melting | fusing point is 120-180 degreeC generally, Preferably the thing of 150-170 degreeC can be illustrated.

  As the foaming agent used in the foamed layer (A) of the heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film, inorganic fillers such as calcium carbonate and silica, and organic fillers such as polymethyl acrylate are preferable. Particularly preferred is calcium carbonate. Further, the blending amount of the foaming agent is preferably 5% by weight to 30% by weight, and particularly preferably 10% by weight to 20% by weight. If the foaming agent is less than 5% by weight, good foaming may not be obtained, and it may be difficult to lower the specific gravity. If the foaming agent is more than 30% by weight, the void ratio may be too high, and the interlayer strength deteriorates. It tends to be unfavorable.

As long as the foamed layer (A) of the heat-sealable polyolefin-based foamed film does not impair the effects of the present invention, inorganic or organic fine particles are used as means for improving the concealing property, slipping property, productivity and the like. It is also possible to mix. Examples of inorganic fine particles include silicon dioxide, calcium carbonate, titanium dioxide, talc, kaolin, mica, zeolite, etc., and these shapes are not limited to spherical, elliptical, conical, indeterminate, and types, The desired particle size can be used and blended depending on the purpose and usage of the film.
As organic particles, cross-linked particles such as acrylic, methyl acrylate, styrene-butadiene, etc. can be used, and various shapes and sizes can be used in the same manner as inorganic fine particles. is there. In addition, various surface treatments can be applied to the surface of these inorganic or organic fine particles, and these can be used alone or in combination of two or more.
In addition, known stabilizers, antistatic agents, ultraviolet absorbers, processing aids, and plasticizers that are usually blended in polyolefin films can be blended as appropriate.

  As the polymer used for the sealing layer (C) of the heat-sealable polyolefin-based foamed film, polypropylene and α-olefin having a melting point lower than that of isotactic polypropylene, that is, ethylene, butene, pentene, hexene, 4 -It is preferable to use a copolymer obtained by copolymerizing methylpentene-1 or the like, or a terpolymer. These copolymers and terpolymers are not necessarily one type, and two or more types may be mixed depending on the application and purpose. In this case, if the melting point of the copolymer or terpolymer used is equal to or higher than that of polypropylene, an increase in the sealing start temperature, a decrease in the sealing strength, and the like occur, and the good sealing property mentioned as one of the objects of the present invention. Cannot be achieved.

  As a polymer used for the sealing layer (C) of the heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film, an atactic polypropylene resin may be used. In this case as well as the above copolymer and terpolymer, if the melting point is equal to or higher than that of isotactic polypropylene, an increase in the sealing start temperature, a decrease in the sealing strength, and the like occur, which is one of the objects of the present invention. The good sealability mentioned cannot be achieved.

  The polymer used for the intermediate layer (B) of the heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film is a propylene α-olefin copolymer having a cold xylene soluble content of 3% by weight or less and a melt flow rate of 5 g / 10 minutes or less. It is necessary to contain at least one polymer. Here, when the intermediate layer is formed with only the resin having a cold xylene-soluble content exceeding 3% by weight, the intermediate layer has few crystal components, so the intermediate layer is not loose and the film curls. Similarly, when the melt flow rate exceeds 5 g / 10 min, the polymer layer in the intermediate layer is short and the intermediate layer is lost, causing curling of the film.

  In order to obtain high interlayer strength, it is preferable that the intermediate layer (B) is blended with at least one polyolefin resin species of the resin forming the seal layer (C). The preferred range is 10 to 80 parts by weight, and if it is 10 parts by weight or less, the interlayer strength tends to be weak, and the desired seal strength may not be obtained. On the other hand, when the amount is 80 parts by weight or more, film strength is insufficient and film blocking may occur. Further, it is essential that the intermediate layer (B) is not substantially foamed. If the intermediate layer is foamed, the interlaminar strength is lowered, and the good sealing property mentioned as one of the objects of the present invention cannot be achieved.

  In the intermediate layer (B) of the heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film, inorganic or organic fine particles are used as a means for improving the concealing property, slipping property, productivity, etc., as long as the effects of the present invention are not impaired. It is also possible to mix. Examples of inorganic fine particles include silicon dioxide, titanium dioxide, zeolite and the like, and these shapes are not limited to spherical, elliptical, conical, indeterminate, and types, and their particle sizes are also used and used for films. The desired compound can be used and blended according to the method.

The film thickness at this time varies depending on the application and usage method, but the polypropylene-based foam film as a packaging film is generally about 10 to 200 μm, and more preferably 20 to 200 in terms of mechanical strength and handling. It is about 150 μm. Moreover, each layer thickness of a foam layer (A), an intermediate | middle layer (B), and a sealing layer (C) may be 20-70%, 10-70%, 5-30% with respect to the whole film thickness. preferable. In this case, if the thickness of the foamed layer (A) is thin, foaming may be insufficient, and the desired cushioning property may not be obtained. On the other hand, if the thickness is thick, the foaming rate will increase and the interlayer strength will decrease. In some cases, the sealability may not be obtained. In addition, if the thickness of the intermediate layer (B) is thin, the adhesion between the foam layer and the seal layer may be weak, and the desired sealability may not be obtained. If the thickness is thick, the foaming degree of the entire film decreases, The cushioning property may not be obtained. When the thickness of the sealing layer (C) is thin, the target sealing property may be insufficient. On the other hand, when the thickness is thick, the foaming degree of the entire film is lowered as in the intermediate layer, and the desired cushioning property is obtained. There may not be.
As an index for defining the foaming degree of the present invention, it is necessary to satisfy that the apparent specific gravity calculated by the following formula (1) is 0.66 or more.

Apparent specific gravity (g / cm ³ ) = weight (g) / (area (cm ² ) × thickness (μm)) (1)

When the apparent specific gravity is less than 0.66, foaming increases, resulting in a problem that the sealing strength is reduced when the bag is formed. The preferred apparent specific gravity is 0.7 or more. On the other hand, when the apparent specific gravity exceeds 0.85, the intended cushioning property may not be obtained, and the attractiveness as a foamed film tends to decrease, which is not preferable.

The method for forming a heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film composed of three or more layers of the foam layer (A), the intermediate layer (B) and the seal layer (C) with the resin composition in the present invention is particularly limited. The material is not lowered, but can be formed into a film using an ordinary extruder, such as a T-die method, and can be appropriately stretched at a desired temperature and magnification. For example, it is not different from the film forming conditions in the case of a general polyolefin, and a resin composition obtained by melting and extruding at an extrusion temperature of 150 to 300 ° C. is stretched to a sheet solidified by a cooling roll of 10 to 100 ° C. It is obtained by applying.
However, the film of the present invention is required to laminate three or more kinds of resin layers, and the laminating method is that each of the foam layer (A), the intermediate layer (B) and the seal layer (C) is a separate extruder. It is a preferable embodiment to extrude after being melt-kneaded and laminated in a T die.
In the stretching step, the film can be stretched at an area magnification of about 8 to 50 times, preferably about 10 to 40 times. Further, the stretching method is not limited to uniaxial stretching or biaxial stretching. In the case of biaxial stretching, it can be carried out by simultaneous biaxial stretching method, sequential biaxial stretching method, inflation method or the like. Axial stretching is common.

Next, contents and effects of the present invention will be described with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited to the following examples without departing from the gist thereof. In addition, the measuring method of the characteristic value in this specification is as follows.

(Heat seal strength)
The seal strength was measured according to JIS Z1707. The specific procedure is briefly described below. Adhere the seal layer surfaces of the sample together with a heat sealer. The adhesive sample was measured for T-peel strength using a tensile strength tester (manufactured by Toyo Keiki Co., Ltd .: trade name Tensilon UTM). At this time, the sealing pressure is 10 N / cm 2, the sealing time is 1 second, the sealing temperature is 130 ° C., the tensile speed is 200 mm / min, and the specimen width is 15 mm. The unit is N / 15 mm.

(Specific gravity: Index of foaming degree)
The sample is cut into a size of 280 mm × 400 mm, and the weight is measured with an analytical balance. Then, the thickness is measured using a dial gauge. These results are calculated by fitting into the following equation (1). The smaller this value, the greater the degree of foaming.
Apparent specific gravity (g / cm ³ ) = weight (g) / (area (cm ² ) × thickness (μm)) (1)

(Curl property)
A 100 mm square sheet-like test piece was prepared, and the degree of curling was visually measured.
○: No curling △: Slightly curling ×: Remarkable curling

(Cold xylene solubles)
After 1 g of sample is completely dissolved in 100 ml of boiling xylene, the temperature is lowered to 20 ° C. and left for 4 hours. Thereafter, this was separated into a precipitate and a solution, and the filtrate was dried and dried at 70 ° C. under reduced pressure. The weight was measured to determine the weight percent, and this was taken as the cold xylene soluble content.

(Melt flow rate: MFR)
It measured based on the polypropylene test method (230 degreeC, 21.18N) shown by JISK6758.

(Example 1)
From one extruder, 65 parts by weight of a polypropylene homopolymer (MFR = 2.5 g / 10 min, cold xylene soluble content 3.3% by weight) as a foamed layer (A), a calcium carbonate-containing masterbatch (polypropylene (MFR = 2.5 g / 10 min, cold xylene soluble content 3.3% by weight) 25%, polystyrene (Denkastyrol 525-52N) 25%, calcium carbonate (Bihoku Flour Industry PO150B-10) 50%) 20 parts by weight, After mixing 15 parts by weight of HDPE (Japan Polyolefin Co., Ltd. KL285A) and 2 parts by weight of titanium dioxide masterbatch (Daiichi Seika Kogyo T73195), it was melt extruded at a resin temperature of 250 ° C., and an intermediate layer ( B) Polypropylene homopolymer (MFR = 2.5 g / 10 min, cold xylene soluble content 3.3 wt%) 5 Parts by weight, propylene-ethylene-butene copolymer (MFR = 3 g / 10 min, ethylene component 2.5%, butene component 7%, cold xylene soluble content 1.6 wt%), 50 parts by weight, titanium dioxide masterbatch (Daiichi Seika Kogyo T73195) 3 parts by weight was melt extruded at a resin temperature of 260 ° C., and propylene-ethylene-butene copolymer (MFR = 5.8 g) as a sealing layer (C) from the other extruder. / 10 min, ethylene component 2.6%, butene component 5.4%, cold xylene soluble content 3.6% by weight), propylene-butene copolymer (MFR = 8.0 g / 10 min, butene 70 parts by weight of 25% component and 14.0% by weight of cold xylene soluble component) are melt extruded at a resin temperature of 260 ° C., and in a T-die, a foam layer (A), an intermediate layer (B), and a seal layer (C) order Laminated, to obtain an unstretched sheet was cooled and solidified at 30 ° C. of the cooling roll. Subsequently, the metal roll heated to 130 ° C. was stretched 4.5 times in the vertical direction using the difference in peripheral speed, and further introduced into a tenter stretching machine, and stretched 9.5 times in the horizontal direction. A three-layer film having a foam layer of 17 μm, an intermediate layer of 10 μm, and a seal layer of 3 μm in total of 30 μm was obtained.
This film was a curl-free film having both high sealing strength and low specific gravity. Table 1 shows the characteristic values of the film.

(Comparative Example 1)
In Example 1, 30 parts by weight of a polypropylene homopolymer (MFR = 2.5 g / 10 minutes, cold xylene soluble content 3.3%) blended in the intermediate layer (B), and a calcium carbonate-containing masterbatch ( Polypropylene (MFR = 2.5 g / 10 min, cold xylene soluble content 3.3 wt%) 25%, polystyrene (Denkastyrol 525-52N) 25%, calcium carbonate (Bihoku Flour Industry PO150B-10) 50%) A heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that 20 parts by weight was added. Compared with the film of Example 1, this film had a low apparent specific gravity value and a weak seal strength. The characteristic values of the film are shown in Table 1.

(Comparative Examples 2 and 3)
In Example 1, a heat-sealable polyolefin foam film was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the type of propylene α-olefin copolymer blended in the intermediate layer (B) was changed as shown in Table 1. The film was more curled than the film of Example 1, and the workability during film handling was poor. The characteristic values of the film are shown in Table 1.

(Example 2)
In Example 1, a heat-sealable polyolefin foam film was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the type of propylene α-olefin copolymer blended in the seal layer (C) was changed as shown in Table 1. As shown in Table 1, this film was a curl-free film that achieved both high sealing strength and low specific gravity.

  The results are shown in Table 1.

  The heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film of the present invention is a film that achieves both a high level of heat-sealability and low specific gravity, and is a base for various packaging materials that have no curling and good workability during film processing. It can be usefully used as a material.

Claims (4)

It is a laminated polyolefin-based foam film having a layer structure of three or more layers based on a foam layer (A), an intermediate layer (B) and a seal layer (C), and the intermediate layer (B) is substantially foamed. The intermediate layer (B) contains at least one propylene α-olefin copolymer having a cold xylene soluble content of 3% by weight or less and a melt flow rate of 5 g / 10 minutes or less. A heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film, characterized in that the apparent specific gravity of the entire film obtained by the formula is 0.66 or more.

Apparent specific gravity (g / cm ³ ) = weight (g) / (area (cm ² ) × thickness (μm)) (1)
  2. The heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate layer (B) contains at least one kind of resin forming the seal layer (C).   The heat-sealable polyolefin foam film according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the heat-seal polyolefin foam film is biaxially stretched.   A package comprising the heat-sealable polyolefin-based foam film according to claim 1, 2 or 3.