Carton, Board & Paper
Identifying the best pumps for use in corrugated-box manufacturing
Cardboard boxes are recognised today as the world’s most widely used packaging material, saysTom Zuckett air-operated double-diaphragm business development manager, Americas and Jeff Peterson, rotating business development manager, Americas, both with PSG
I
ronically, while the demand for corrugated boxes has exploded due to a series of technological advances in product ordering, the roots for the corrugated-box manufacturing process stretch back to the 1880s. That’s when Swedish chemist Carl F. Dahl developed a method that took the raw wood from harvested tree trunks, such as fast-growing pines, and turned it into wood pulp consisting mainly of cellulose fibers, which are the foundational component in a piece of paper. He called his
invention the “kraft” process, with the word “kraft” meaning “strength” in German.
Once the kraft paper is produced, it is sent to the corrugating plant where it will be turned into a finished corrugated cardboard box. Most larger corrugating plants feature a facility that is unique to box manufacturing: the “starch kitchen.” It is in the starch kitchen that corrugated-box glue is created in a process that involves the mixing of cornstarch, some chemicals and boiling water, resulting in the formation of a thick, pasty liquid.
The benefits of using starch-based adhesives in the construction of corrugated boxes are many: good adhesion to wood-based papers, ready availability, easy to apply, inexpensive, resistant to heat, slow curing, non-toxic and insoluble when used with fats and oils.
Because a large amount of cornstarch is needed at a corrugating plant, it is typically shipped in the form of a dry powder to the plant via railcar. At the plant, it is stored in silos before being transferred to the mixing vessels where the glue is produced. Industrial
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July/August 2023
www.convertermag.com
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