Sun Chemical has launched its SunLam de-seaming adhesive for shrink-labeled containers. This new de-seamable adhesive helps recyclers improve recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) yield without process changes.
Developed in partnership, Sun Chemical and Eastman extensively tested SunLam on labels made with Eastman Embrace LV copolyester. It has received a Responsible Innovation Acknowledgment by the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) after passing stringent testing outlined by the APR.
By changing from a traditional solvent to SunLam, shrink labels de-seam and release during the whole bottle wash step of the wet recycling process, without sacrifice of label performance. The label removal occurs prior to colour, infrared and manual sorting, thus preventing shrink-labeled PET bottles being removed from the rPET stream due to misidentification.
The efficacy was tested on bottles with shrink sleeves made from Eastman Embrace LV copolyester. The tests utilised whole bottle wash equipment at commercial recycling facilities and yielded results of greater than 95% label removal, with results typically exceeding 99%.
