News
Kuraray Co., Ltd. (Head Office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Hitoshi Kawahara; hereinafter “Kuraray” or the “Company”) hereby announces that it developed EVAL SC, a new grade of EVAL gas barrier resin products that boast greater stretchability and shrinkability. EVAL SC is currently being exhibited via the Kuraray Online Packaging Exhibition 2021 run by the Kuraray Group from February 24 to March 9, 2021.
1.Background of Development
With today’s material manufacturers being called upon to develop products with stronger emphasis on eco-friendliness, gas barrier packaging materials are garnering rising public interest as a means of addressing issues arising from plastic waste as well as food loss problems. In response, Kuraray developed EVAL SC series, building on the success of EVAL, which enjoys widespread use in food packaging materials thanks to its superior gas barrier property, a property that contributes to the long-term preservation of food and thus reduces food loss. Through the marketing of EVAL SC boasting new features supporting the design of innovative food packaging materials, Kuraray will contribute to further reduction in the volume of packaging materials and thereby help curb the environmental burden arising from such materials.
2.Features of EVAL SC
・While it maintains gas barrier property comparable, or even superior, to that of conventional EVOH products, EVAL SC boasts greater stretchability and shrinkability.
・Used in combination with polyethylene and other olefin-based materials to form a multilayer structure, EVAL SC provides better support for biaxially oriented multilayer films for food packaging use, including shrink bags and skin packaging materials.
・The release of EVAL SC is therefore expected to accelerate Kuraray’s development of applications and markets for its gas barrier packaging materials. For example, Kuraray intends to propose its use as an alternative meat packing material to replace polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC).
3.Potential Applications
Shrink bags, skin packaging materials and other food packaging materials
About EVAL
In 1972, Kuraray became the first company in the world to develop and commercialize a highly functional resin with superior gas barrier properties (approximately 10,000 times that of general-purpose polyethylene) with the release of EVAL. Today, EVAL is employed for a variety of applications, including as an excellent material for packaging and containers that helps preserve food, cosmetics and chemicals. Reflecting increasingly strict gasoline fuel emission controls in recent years, EVAL’s use as a material for automotive fuel tanks has been expanding, as it facilitates weight reduction and is easy to mold. Furthermore, thanks to the widespread use of EVAL in home and everyday products, such as wall coverings, floor-heating pipes for floor heating systems and vacuum insulation plates for refrigerators, it has seen expanding demand on a global basis.
