Newsletter - April 7, 2001

Barrier Coating Consortium

The Department of Paper and Printing Science and Engineering at Western Michigan University hosted its first Barrier Coating symposium and consortium meeting on April 5- 6th, 2001. The symposium featured speakers from suppliers and mills with expertise in each of the barrier coating market segments. Presentations were given on the current technologies being practiced and open discussions were held on the various issues currently facing this industry. Fifty-five participants, representing 40 different companies were represented. The diverse mix of participants and speakers contributed serious and informative discussions on the current needs of this diverse industry. The open forum hosted by Charles Klass and Margaret Joyce resulted in a consensus by the participants on the research needs of the industry that they would like to see the consortium group to focus.

The consortium opened with a presentation from Dr. Margaret Joyce, which highlighted the facilities and resources of the Department of Paper and Printing Science and Engineering. During her presentation, Dr. Joyce explained the purpose of forming the research consortium was to perform pre-competitive research to gather data that can result in a better fundamental understanding of barrier coating technology which will result in economic and recyclability benefits for the consortium members as quickly as possible.

The guidelines for the establishment of the consortium were then reviewed. A copy of these guidelines can be obtained from the Department of Paper and Printing Science and Engineering, by calling Barb Vilenski at 616-387-2775. According to the guidelines, interested companies have the opportunity to join the consortium as either full or limited members. Full memberships are being offered to companies willing to commit to funding at a level of $25,000/years for a minimum of 3 years. Full membership entitles the participating company to a seat on the consortium board, which decides the allocation of funds for the sponsored research. Limited memberships are being offered to companies willing to commit to funding at a level of $5,000/year for a minimum of 3 years. Limited memberships provide access of all data generated to the participating company, but does not entitle them to a seat on the consortium board.

During the consortium meeting, the research needs of each market segment; OGR, MVTR, and WRG were discussed in an open forum. From these discussions, the following ten research topics were identified as being the most important:

1. Fundamental studies to determine the influence of coating additives on the performance of barrier coatings for specific end-uses (printability, glueability, heat sealability, and runnability).
2. Fundamental studies to examine the interaction between grade specific barrier coatings and different substrate materials.
3. A fundamental study to examine the mechanism of film formation for grade specific barrier coatings.
4. Development of new unbiased test methods for OGRWR grades.
5. Development of new MTVR grade specific test methods.
6. An in depth study to model the MVTR of grade specific barrier coating films.
7. A study of current application methods for controlling coat weight application and uniformity of coating film layer.
8. The impact of aging conditions (lighting, relative humidity, temperature) on the performance of grade specific barrier coatings containing various coating additives.
9. The influence of corona surface treatment on the glueability and heat sealability of grade specific barrier coatings.
10. A fundamental study of the influence of recycled materials on the performance properties of grade specific barrier coated paper grades.

The above research topics were selected based on their broad base appeal to all market segments. Companies interested in participating in the consortium are encouraged to call the Departmental Office for more information (616-387-2775) or to e-mail Dr. Margaret Joyce or Chuck Klass to arrange a follow-up visit.