Solvay has presented Diofan® Ultra736, a new polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) coating solution with an ultra-high water vapor barrier allowing reduce carbon footprint by pharmaceutical blister films. As an aqueous dispersion, Diofan® Ultra736 is fluorine-free, meets regulatory requirements for direct pharmaceutical contact, and supports the design of sustainable films with thinner coating designs.
“Consumers and policymakers are calling for greater efforts related to reducing the carbon footprint of the packaging industry, and one of the most effective means to this end is to reduce the size and weight of packaging products,” he says. Federico Baruffi, global packaging marketing director. Solvay special polymers. “Our new Diofan® Ultra736 coating solution can help packaging film manufacturers achieve superior barrier properties with thinner structures, leading to a significant reduction in the carbon footprint of blister film.”
Diofan® PVDC coatings are widely used in pharmaceutical blister packaging to protect sensitive drug preparations in solid doses, as well as in the packaging of delicate foods and other similar consumer goods. They can be applied to both plastic and paper substrates and are often preferred for their unique combination of water vapor and oxygen barrier.
Diofan® Ultra736 PVDC coating was custom designed to maximize water vapor barrier without sacrificing its high oxygen barrier, chemical resistance or transparency. The product also exhibits excellent thermoformability, enabling smaller pack sizes with higher tablet density compared to existing alternative coating solutions.
Thanks to its ultra-high barrier performance, Diofan® Ultra736 allows the reduction of coating thickness compared to current medium to high barrier PVDC coatings, without affecting functionality. In particular, it has been shown that for duplex barrier structures, Diofan® Ultra736 allows the number of base course layers to be halved while providing the same water vapor barrier. This approach can help reduce the overall carbon footprint of the final blister film structures by up to 13%.
Diofan® is a registered trademark of Solvay.
