BARRIER FILM | MATERIALS
Recent developments in barrier film include a pan-European project for high-barrier pouches, an improvement for metallised structures and a ‘nanolayered’ film
Fresh ideas add value: barrier film technology
Barrier film is a critical product – especially in food packaging, where it helps to extend shelf life. However, there is growing pressure to shift away from traditional structures and boost sustainability. US-based Peak Nano has begun using its
NanoPlex metamaterials technology to design a new type of barrier film. The project is receiving financial support from the
Greater Akron Polymer Innovation Hub. It aims to replace traditional multi-layer packaging film, which can be difficult to recycle. Peak Nano’s equivalent films are nano-layered and biodegradable. The films contain thousands of polymer layers, allowing several polymer characteristics can be combined in one material. The coextrusion and biaxial orientation processes also boost oxygen and moisture resistance. “With NanoPlex, we can create nano-layers for
characteristics like barrier performance, mechani- cal strength and even degradability,” said Michael Ponting, chief scientific officer at Peak Nano. “We
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can now design biodegradable nanolayer struc- tures that give converters the barrier and mechani- cal properties they need.” In the current phase, Peak Nano and partners
will produce prototype biodegradable nanolayer film systems and evaluate them on commercial equipment used for food and medical packaging. Later phases include biodegradability testing, cost
and scale-up modelling, and a commercialisation roadmap for supplying nanolayered biodegrad- able films commercially.
Barrier boost German distributor Dreyplas is now offering Vivion – a new family of cyclic block copolymers (CBCs) from USI Corporation – which can be used in barrier applications. All grades provide low density, high transpar-
ency, low water absorption and a low amount of extractables. Depending on the microstructure, mechanical properties range from rigid to soft. It
March 2026 | FILM & SHEET EXTRUSION 19
Main image: Vivion 8210XT raises the stiffness of polymer substrates to improve metallisation
IMAGE: DREYPLAS
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