Energy requirements packaging

Table 1-3. Energy requirements for beverage packaging material (adapted from Guillet 1997, courtesy of Wiley-VCH).

Packaging processes Packaging sometimes requires specialized systems that can generate wastes. Therefore, such processes must also he audited if waste generation or energy consumption is high in such processes. 

Packaging materials use energy in their manufacture and distribution, and contribute to the energy required for transporting products. Energy input is required... 

Table III indicates some interesting statistics. After pipe and conduit wire and cable, packaging film and siding are the next in high-volume use. In addition, there are widely divergent uses ranging from baby pants to automobile upholstery to credit cards. PVC has remained a versatile, safe, functional plastic that is strong, lightweight, and moderate in energy requirements for its manufacture.

Medical devices and their packagings often require heat sealing. The packaged medical devices are also being sterilized by exposure to high-energy radiation [Williams, 1992 Morrissey and Phillips,... 

Shrink wrap materials include PE, PP, and PVC, among others. Some shrink wrap is used for pallet-loads of goods, but that market is dominated by stretch him, due in part to its lower energy requirements. Most shrink-wrap is used for individual packages or small bundles of products. A nonpackaging use of shrink film is window insulation, where the film is placed on the inside of a window and then shrunk using a hair dryer. 

Table 2.1 Energy requirements for the production of materials used in packaging...

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