Comparative analysis of crosslinked film and PEF heat shrink film packaging applications

With the increasingly intense demands for environmental recycling in the market and the growing popularity of environmental protection concepts, the Non-crosslinked Recyclable PEF Heat Shrink Film (hereinafter referred to as PEF heat shrink film or PEF film) emerged. With the characteristics of recyclability with a mono material, as well as outstanding properties such as high shrinkage rate, high transparency, low haze, strong toughness, and small and delicate corners, it has gradually emerged in the industry.

In the field of heat shrink films, there is another type of film that has always been well-known and favored by industry practitioners, that is the crosslinked film. Relying on its excellent protection and display effects, the crosslinked film has once been a common choice for high-quality packaging for a considerable period of time in the past.

Then, in terms of packaging applications, can PEF heat shrink film compete with the crosslinked film and perform as well as it? Next, let's further reveal the answer through the comparison experiment between crosslinked film and PEF heat shrink film.

The following conclusions are based on the tests conducted on the company's internal packaging production line. The shrinkage furnace temperature is strictly controlled at 145°C, and the speed is set at 24.6 packs/minute. It should be particularly noted that these conclusions are only for this test result, for reference only, and the final interpretation right belongs to Mingca Packing.

ⅠDaily Chemical Packaging

In the field of daily chemical packaging, irregular products with "wide bottom and narrow top" are common. This type of product have always been a difficult problem faced by many manufacturers in the shrink packaging process, which are usually manifested as "edge wrinkles", "hard corners", etc. In this test, both the PEF heat shrink film and the crosslinked film produced wrinkles at the shrinkage edge. However, the degree of wrinkles of the PEF film was significantly less than that of the crosslinked film. In addition, the shrinkage corners of the PEF film showed a flexible texture, and the touch was significantly better than that of the crosslinked film.

For the packaging of regular shaped products, it is generally considered to be relatively easy to  shrink. With the correct selection of shrink film and the synergy of packaging machinery, the ideal shrinkage effect can generally be achieved in most cases. However, surprisingly, in this test, the crosslinked film still had problems of edge wrinkles and uneven shrinkage.

Ⅱ Food Packaging

In food heat shrink film packaging, the characteristic of low-temperature shrinkage is of crucial importance. Low-temperature shrinkage can avoid adverse effects of high temperature on food quality, ensuring effective packaging while maintaining the original quality and flavor of food to the greatest extent and guaranteeing food safety and quality. One of the major characteristics of the PEF shrink film is low-temperature shrinkage. Under low-temperature conditions, the PEF film can show packaging effects close to that of the crosslinked film, with relatively fewer edge wrinkles.

Conclusion: At an air oven temperature of 145°C, PEF heat shrink film has excellent packaging performance and is a cost-effective packaging solution comparable to cross-linked film.