MXPA06004623A - A container for product with less packaging material - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention concerns a container comprising a body (1) formed by walls (2) and a bottom (3), having in his greater section a dimension d1 and a neck (4) with an internal diameter d2 , said container being made from a semicrystalline PET, the body of said container comprising at its bottom at least three feet spaced from each other and being integral with said body, wherein for the body, the ratio weight of the walls on weight of the bottom is comprised between 3 and 4 and wherein the ratio volume of the body of the container, expressed in ml, per gram of PET of the body is comprised between 80 and 120.

Description

A CONTAINER FOR PRODUCT WITH LESS CONTAINER MATERIAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to the field of the container of fluid products as liquids or pasty products, particularly that of containers that are intended to contain beverages and, more particularly, mineral water.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION A topic in the area of the container, especially water will reduce the weight of the plastic material used, and, more particularly to reduce the weight of the bottom of the container. In reducing the weight of the bottom, the first danger is that the bottom is less resistant due to the fact that the bottom is actually the part of the container, which is subject to more restrictions, due to the contact of the bottom with the place where deposit There are already some solutions to this problem, such as the container with petaloid bottom: FR Patent No. 2772720 is related to that container, where the bottom is thinner. Although this patent provides a solution for the bottom, there still exists a container with a very high amount of plastic material for the volume of product to be filled in the container.

THE INVENTION The object of the present invention is to have a container for a fluid product with a bottom that allows the container to sit and which for the same volume requires less plastic than a standard container, and which at the same time has comparable or superior mechanical properties. The object of the present invention is not a container comprising a body formed by walls and a bottom having in its larger section a di dimension and a neck with an internal diameter d2, the container being made of a semi-crystalline PET, the body comprising of the container in its bottom at least three legs separated between and being integrated with the body, where for the body, the weight ratio of the walls on the weight of the bottom is between 3 and 4 and where the volume ratio of the body of the container per gram of PET of the body is between 80 and 120. The volume is given in milliliters. - Under the background in the present description, we understand that all parts of the body that comprise the body space outside the leg, the leg being taken from its most external position. Under the body, we understand the container without the neck. As regards the weight ratio of the walls to the weight of the Fund for bottles on the market, such as bottles of 150 cl, the ratio is 31.5 g: 10.5 g (3), for a bottle of 50 cl, the ratio is 12.2: 3.3 (3.5) and finally for a bottle of 1 1, the ratio is 25.70: 6.80 (3.78). Semi-crystalline PET means in the present specification a PET having a crystallinity comprised between 10 and 60%. More preferably, the crystallinity is between 20 and 40%. A specificity in the invention is that the container has legs at the bottom, which are integrated to the body. The presence of three legs is a good solution, but for a larger volume the presence of 4 or 5 legs is preferred. The geometry of the legs is not critical. Preferably, those legs have a spherical geometry. As regards the bottom of the container, this preferably has a non-planar shape. The bottom has a convex shape, like a hemispherical shape. It is possible that the container of the invention has a neck with a small height, such as a couple of millimeters, or that has a neck with a greater height. In this case, the ratio of the height of the neck to the height of the body is between 1: 1 and 1: 4. This allows the consumer to better hold the container. Preferably, the walls of the body have a thickness less than 100 μm. The neck of the container preferably has a wall thickness comprised between 150 and 250 μm. Each leg of the bottom of the body has a thickness between 50 and 150 μm. In the container of the invention, the bottom part between the legs has a thickness greater than that of the walls, for example of around 100-200 μm. The present invention further relates to a container assembly comprising - a container comprising a body formed by walls having in their largest section a dimension di and a neck with the internal diameter d2, the container being made of semi-crystalline PET, comprising the body of the container in its bottom at least 3 legs separated from each other and being integrated with the body, where for the body, the weight ratio of the walls to the weight of the bottom is between 3 and 4 and where the volume ratio of the body of the container per gram of PET of the body is between 80 and 120, - a product in the container and closing means for closing or distributing the product from the neck, the filled container being substantially incompressible by the hand when filled with the product. This incompressibility applies to alltypes of products, even for a non-gaseous product. In the present specification, incompressible means that when compressed the filled container only deforms very slightly and then recovers its original shape. In contrast, a standard bottle will buckle and deform. It is also possible according to the invention to have to gasify the space in the upper part, for example at a relative pressure comprised between 0.2 and 1.5 bar. Preferably, the space in the upper part is gasified at a relative pressure comprised between 0.4 and 0.7 bar. The gas used is nitrogen or carbon dioxide. According to a feature of the invention, the container comprises on its external side a printing made by printing with bearing. The advantage of this solution is that it eliminates the need to have to stick paper around the container. The volume of the container used according to the invention can have any type of capacity, comprised between a capacity of 5 cl and 20 1. The container is intended to contain all kinds of products, such as pasty, liquid, semi-liquid, granulated or pulverized products. Under liquid products, we understand water or a non-carbonated liquid drink, particularly non-carbonated mineral waters, carbonated water or a liquid carbonated drink, particularly soda water. They are also possible other types of liquid products, such as chemical products, oil, essences, perfumes, pharmaceutical products. Under pasty products, we include food and non-food products, such as mayonnaise, cosmetic compounds and others. The closure means is a layer, or sealed membrane. The caps can be used for any neck opening diameter. In contrast, sealed membranes are preferred with a smaller diameter of the neck, for example in the area of 10 mm. In this case, the container can withstand high compressions, for example, by storage and by transport. For diameters of about 10 mm, the container can withstand an internal pressure of the order of 5 bars. It is also possible to close the container by sealing or welding the neck, where a cutting object or the like is provided for the opening. As a preference, the container has a total ovoid or substantially ovoid shape. This natural form derived from an egg that represents a structure whose resistance to vertical and / or transverse loads is optimized, being thus possible, for a given volume and the amount given in material, to achieve mechanical properties that are equivalent to or even better than those of the cylindrical or approximately cylindrical forms commonly found in this domain. In another embodiment, the container according to the invention has a three-dimensional shape suitable for fastening, a total spherical shape, substantially spherical or cylindrical. This is because the geometry with symmetry of revolutions particularly easy and therefore economical to manufacture and has the advantage of allowing the container to be filled with products that can emit gaseous substances, such as carbonated drinks (sparkling or soda water, sodas , etc.) in particular, which are widely consumed throughout the world today. This form is therefore particularly well suited to these liquids since the release of carbon dioxide or another gas has a tendency to form the bodies of the bottles that do not have symmetry of revolution, having a negative impact on their stability, subjection and ease of handling, appearance, etc. In a preferred feature of the invention, the ratio of d2 to di of the container is between 1: 3 and 1:10. According to a preferred embodiment of the container assembly, the weight ratio of the walls to the bottom weight is between 3.4 and 3.8. According to a further preferred feature of the invention, the volume ratio of the container body per gram PET of the body is between 90 and 110. According to another feature, the plastic used to form the wall or walls is a semi-crystalline plastic with a slow crystallization rate, the glass transition temperature (Tv) of which is 70 ° C or greater and the crystallization temperature of around 140 ° C. It should be understood that a slow crystallization rate means a speed that makes it possible to have an amorphous state by rapidly cooling. Advantageously, the plastic used to form the wall or walls is chosen from the group consisting of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) and PEN (polyethylene naphthalate). It has been noted that the drawing of the PET has no negative influence on the water barrier properties of the obtained container and that also a thickness of approximately 50 μm and less guarantees a good security to the container itself and of the storage. In order to guarantee the necessary flexibility for the deformation mentioned above and sufficient mechanical strength, the container according to the invention is further characterized in that the thickness of the wall or walls forming the container body is between 30 and 100 μm, preferably between 50 μm and 70 μm. As already mentioned, areas or portions of the walls of small thickness can also be provided in the body of the container, particularly very close to the neck and / or bottom, to reinforce those parts locally. These reinforcements can in particular be useful to facilitate the filling of the containers or to implement their stability during storage. Preferably, the container is further characterized in that the body and the neck of the container are made as a single piece. This makes it possible to avoid any bonding or welding that may constitute a region of greatest weakness. In fact, according to another characteristic, the container according to the invention is characterized in that it has a high resistance to vertical and / or transverse loads providing good transport resistance. For example, for a working volume of 5 liters, the amount of PET used to produce the container is approximately 30 g to provide resistance to a vertical load of approximately 65 kg. This represents a significant saving in plastic, the few containers of 5 liters that are currently on the market require a quantity of polymer which, for a comparable mechanical resistance, is of the order of two times greater than the amount needed to manufacture a container according to the present invention. When containers of smaller volumes are used, for example of the order of 33 cl, the amount of the plastic material is of order of 3-4 g, compared to a bottle of the same volume, where the amount of plastic is of the order of at least 12 g. This type of container supports a vertical load of more than approximately 100 kg. The container supports a vertical or transverse load means that the weight will not deteriorate the integrity of the container, which does not lead to the risk of breaking the container. These simple shapes also allow the container according to the invention to be used as a filler or refill for water coolers, for which the flat bottom is not necessary, those fillers are generally used by inserting the container, with the head (neck) down, in the water cooler accommodation device. In addition, this type of surface geometry also makes it possible to increase the heat exchange area of the container and the cooling device usually present in the water coolers. According to another alternative form, the container according to the invention is characterized in that the neck is equipped with a closure and / or distribution means produced in the form of a dispensing tap that can be operated with one hand. Those distribution taps, which are known per se, advantageously allow the distribution of the fluid product contained in the container is regulated in a particularly convenient manner, for example when this container is stored horizontally on the shelves of a refrigerator, the other hand holding the container in which the fluid product is to be transferred, for example with a view to consuming it. Due to its flexible nature, the geometry of the container can also adapt more quickly to that of the storage place, as opposed to the currently available rigid cans which need to observe very specific dimensions to be stored in restricted spaces such as the internal compartments of refrigerators . In addition, the space released when a container according to the invention is empty can also be put into use to store objects of varying size or shape, which is not the case with rigid containers in which the volume of liquid removed is systematically replaced with air. In this type of container, the volume initially occupied remains until the empty container is. removed from the refrigerator. Another object of the present invention is the use of the container as a container of large capacity, capacity of at least 5 liters, which is intended to contain water or a non-gaseous liquid drink, particularly non-gaseous mineral water. Another object of the present invention is the use of the container according to the invention as a large capacity container, capacity of at least 5 liters, which is intended to contain carbonated water or a liquid carbonated drink, particularly soda mineral water. Of course, the containers of the present invention are not in any way limited to simple or soda mineral waters, but are intended to contain all kinds of fluid products, edible or inedible liquids of greater or lesser fluidity, for example, juices of fruits, milk-based beverages, etc. and also sauces or condiments (catsup, mustard, dressings, etc.) or non-food liquids (deionized water, cleaning products, detergents, etc.). The package assembly according to the present invention may also contain a functional component. The functional component is taken from the group consisting of a fiber, plant extract, fruit extracts, vitamins and flavors. The assembly is pasteurized or sterilized at a temperature exceeding 60 ° C. Finally, another objective of the present invention is a method for manufacturing a body of a container according to the invention, characterized in that the body is obtained by forming by stretch blow a PET preform with a high stretch index compared to the classic stretch of a preform. The Blow molding can also be a blow molding. Compared with the blowing of plastic bottles, where the blowing pressures are comprised between 30 and 40 bar, according to the process of the invention, it is sufficient to blow at a pressure of approximately 2 times lower. This reduces the cost of the process and also of the machine that is used. In relation to the stretch index, this depends on the volume of the final container. For example, in the case of a container having a volume of 100 cl, the stretch index is between 100 and 300 cm. In the case of a container having a volume of 500 to 1000 cl, the stretch index is between 500 and 700 cm. In the case of a container having a volume of 2000 cl or more, then the stretch index is approximately and more than 1000 cm. The stretch index is defined as follows: stretch index = internal volume of the stretched container * x 1 internal volume of the preform before the f stretch * f = internal surface of the container * (cm-1) internal volume of the stretched container * * with the exclusion of the neck. In the embodiments of the containers according to the invention, for volumes of 33 cl, 1 liter, 5 1, 10 1 and 20 1, the different S2 or SI ratios are between 1: 4: 5 and 1:15. Due to the substantial incompressibility of the filled container of the invention, there is no need to have reinforcing structures. The consequence is that it is possible to have simple forms, which have the advantage of providing transparency and purity. This is particularly important for the consumer in the case of a drinking water container. Another advantage of this container is that it can be emptied without air entering and this reduces the risk of contamination or product odors that may cause changes in taste or degradation. The crystallinity measurement was made in a Loyd-Davenport density column, according to the following procedure. The column was filled with a saline solution (calcium nitrate) having a density gradient. The column was calibrated with spheres that had a known density of between 1,335 and 1,455. Then the small pieces of the container of the invention were impregnated in the column after a certain time, they remained at a certain height of the column corresponding to a certain density. The measurements were made at 23 ° C. The following table of correspondence with pc of 1455 gives the crystallinity.

Density (g / car1) Crystallinity (%) (pc = 1.515) (pc = 1.453) BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description, given by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a side perspective view of the container according to the invention, Figure 2 is another perspective view of the container of the invention, seen from the bottom and Figure 3 is a graph comparing the invention with the state of The technique.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED MODALITIES OF THE INVENTION In the modality described and described in the Figures 1 and 2, the container for a raw product, particularly for a beverage and, in particular, for mineral water, consists essentially of a body 1, formed by walls 2 and a bottom 3 and a neck 4. The body is made up of a semi-crystalline PET. The neck has a thread 5 for receiving a lid (not shown). The bottom 3 has three legs 6 integrated to the body. The volume of the container is 1000 ml. In this specific example the weight ratio of the walls to the weight of the bottom is 3.5 and the volume ratio of the container body per gram of PET is 100. This means that for the volume of 1000 ml, there are 10 g of PET for the body (excluding the neck). The thickness of the walls is around 70 μm. The neck has a height which is minimized and the neck has a wall thickness of approximately 200 μm.

In the area 7 of the legs, ie around the middle part of the legs, the thickness of the wall is approximately 150 μm. The legs have a hemispherical shape. With reference now to the limits of the wall and the bottom to calculate the weight ratio of the walls to the weight of the bottom, this is for and within the circle 8 of Figure 2. In relation now to the graph of Figure 3, the x-axis represents the volume of the container in me and the y-axis represents the volume ratio of the container in me per g of plastic material of the container. Figure 1 shows a bottle used in the market for soda water. Graph 2 shows a bottle used in the market for non-carbonated water and graph 3 shows a container according to the invention. This graph shows very clearly the specificity of the invention, which is that less plastic material is necessary to condition the same volume of product. Taking an example of the graph: according to the invention 1 g of plastic material per 100 ml of product is necessary, while for products now on the market 1 g of plastic material is necessary for only approximately 40 to 60 ml of product . This means that according to the invention, the necessary plastic material is divided by 2.

Claims (17)

1. CLAIMS 1. Container comprising a body formed by walls and a bottom having in its greater section a dimension dx and a neck with an internal diameter d2, being
2. 5 made the container of a semicrystalline PET, the body of the container comprising at least three legs separated from each other and being integrated with the body, where for the body, the weight ratio of the bottom is between 3 and 4 and where the volume ratio of the container body per gram of PET of the body is between 80 and 120. Container according to claim 1, wherein the walls of the body have a thickness of less than 100 μm.
3. 3. Container according to any of claims 1 or 2, wherein the neck has a wall thickness comprised between 150 and 250 μm.
4. 4. Container according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein each leg has a wall thickness comprised between 50 and 150 μm.
5. 5. Container according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the bottom part between the legs has a thickness greater than that of the walls.
6. 6. Container assembly comprising - a container comprising a body formed by walls having in their greater section a di dimension and a neck with
7. an internal diameter d2, the container being made of a semicrystalline PET, the container body comprising in its sheath at least three separate kicks and being integrated to the body, where for the body, the weight ratio of the walls to the weight of the bottom is comprised between 3 and 4 and where the volume ratio of the body of the container per gram of PET of the body is between 80 and 120, - a product in the container, and - closure means for closing or distributing the product of the neck , the filled container being substantially incompressible by the hand when it is filled with the product. Packaging assembly according to claim 6, wherein the product is taken from the group consisting of a pasty, liquid, semi-liquid, granular or pulverized product.
8. 8. Packaging assembly according to any of claims 6 or 7, wherein the assembly has a high resistance to vertical and / or transverse loads providing good transport resistance.
9. 9. Packaging assembly according to claim 8, wherein the assembly supports vertical and / or transverse load of more than about 100 kg for a container having a weight of approximately 4 g.
10. 10. Assembly of container according to any of the

    claims 4 to 9, wherein the body of the container has a shape taken from the group consisting of a three-dimensional shape suitable for being clamped, an ovoid, spherical, elliptical or cylindrical shape.
11. 11. Packaging assembly according to any of claims 4 to 10, wherein the thickness of the body wall, substantially in the middle part of its body is between 30 and 70 μm.
12. Packaging assembly according to any of claims 4 to 11, wherein the container comprises on its external part an impression made by impressions with cushion.
13. 13. Packaging assembly according to any of claims 4 to 12, wherein the ratio of d2 to di is between 1: 3 and 1:10.
14. 14. Packaging assembly according to any of claims 4 to 13, wherein the ratio of the height of the neck to the height of the body is comprised between 1: 1 and 1: 4.
15. 15. Assembly of packaging according to any of claims 4 to 14, the weight ratio of the walls to the weight of the bottom is between 3.4 and 3.8.
16. 16. Packaging assembly according to any of claims 4 to 15, wherein the volume ratio of the body of the container per gram of PET of the body is between 90 and 110.
17. 17. Process for manufacturing a container according to any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the container is obtained by forming by blow-stretching a PET preform with a high stretch index compared to the conventional stretching of a preform.