Common Laminating Techniques & Associated Adhesives

Lamination represents a major process used to produce flexible packaging products. The list below features lamination techniques, adhesives used, and examples of selected applications.

Flexible packaging represents approximately 20% of the total US $170 billion North American packaging market and is the third largest packaging segment after paperboard packaging and rigid plastic (source: Smithers Pira 2012). The fundamental processes used to make packaging film structures are blown film, cast film, and orientation.

These films can be used as is, or further converted through a variety of techniques with an even wider variety of adhesives to produce a structure with unique and useful properties. The common laminating techniques used today are shown below in table form.Ideas for further development of future blogs are welcome.

Type of Lamination Adhesive Examples of Selected Applications
Extrusion Lamination

LDPE

Multilayer/multi-material packaging (combination of plastic or aluminum foil with paper or paperboard→e.g., fruit juice cartons)

Extrusion Lamination EVA Bonding PE to PVC
Extrusion Lamination

Acid-containing adhesive: EAA or EMAA

Ionomers

Terpolymers of ethylene, acid and acrylate (e.g., methyl acrylate or isobutyl acrylate)

Used to bond with aluminum foil

Extrusion Lamination

Anhydride modified polyolefins: terpolymers of ethylene, maleic anhydride and acrylates (e.g., ethyl acrylate, butyl acrylate)

 

Dry-Bond Lamination

Solvent-based PUR adhesives

Flexible packaging→lamination of plastic films (bags, pouches, wraps for snack food, meat, and cheese packs, boil-in-bag food pouches)
Wet-Bond Adhesive

Poly (vinyl acetate) emulsion (or copolymers of vinyl acetate and ethylene or acrylic esters)

 

Wet-Bond Adhesive

Crosslinking acrylic-vinyl acetate copolymer emulsions

Snack packages (e.g., potato chip bags)
Wet-Bond Adhesive

Acrylic emulsion pressure-sensitive adhesives

Pressure-sensitive labels
Wet-Bond Adhesive

Polyurethane dispersions

Lamination of plastic films in medium-performance flexible packaging where some chemical resistance is required

UV-Curing

Acrylics and acrylates, epoxies, polyurethanes, polyesters, silicones, and vinyl and vinyl esters

Flexible plastic packaging (at least one of the webs must be transparent to allow UV penetration)

EB-Curing

See UV-curable adhesives

 

Solventless Lamination

Polyurethanes

 

Hot-Melt Lamination

EVA

 

Ethylene-butyl acrylate

 

LDPE For paper bonding constructions, case seaming, bag seaming and sealing
Block copolymers of styrene, butadiene or isoprene Hot-melt pressure-sensitive adhesives for tapes and labels, attachment of PE-base cups to polyester soft-drink bottles, sealing of film-laminated frozen-food cartons
Moisture curing PUR hot melts
Hot-Melt Lamination EVA
Hot-Melt Lamination Ethylene-butyl acrylate
Hot-Melt Lamination LDPE For paper bonding constructions, case seaming, bag seaming and sealing
Hot-Melt Lamination Block copolymers of styrene, butadiene or isoprene Hot-melt pressure-sensitive adhesives for tapes and labels, attachment of PE-base cups to polyester soft-drink bottles, sealing of film-laminated frozen food cartons
Hot-Melt Lamination Moisture curing PUR hot melts

 

Remember, your timely suggestions for follow-up articles are welcomed by writing me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..


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