what is thermal lamination film
Thermal Lamination film is a decorative&protection film that has been extrusion coated with a thermal adhesive so that a heated lamination nip roll will activate the adhesive layer causing the film to adhere to a printed paper surface. The decorative & protection film can be a biaxially oriented polypropylene film (BOPP), a biaxially oriented polyethylene terephthalate film (PET), or a bixially oriented nylon-6 film (Nylon). The decorative & protection film can also be glossy, matte finish, or have a special modified surface for foil stamping or special adhesives such as those used in making case bound books.The different lamination film types are generally suitable for wet bonding and thermal lamination film applications.
In the paper and packaging industries, laminating film is applied to surfaces such as paper, cardboard, aluminum foil and biofilm. The purpose of laminating film is to provide food,non-food packaging and printing with barrier properties, improved appearance and haptic properties which contribute to the “feel” of a surface.
Thermal lamination films are surface coated with resin or a thermal adhesive that melts even in low temperature. This feature ensures that the lamination of paper products is possible simply by applying pressure and heat. There are three types of thermal films that come in two or three finishes.
Biaxially oriented polypropylene film (BOPP)
Biaxially oriented polyethylene terephthalate film (PET)
Biaxially oriented nylon-6 film (Nylon)
What is thermal lamination film used for?
Thermal lamination film is a decorative film that has been extrusion coated with a thermal adhesive so that a heated lamination nip roll will activate the adhesive layer causing the film to adhere to a printed paper surface.
Made of plastic, laminating film protects printed materials from scratches, spills, smudges, and UV light. It also protects colors and reduces fading. Laminating a paper material helps avoid damage from water/moisture or from it being handled with oily or dirty hands.
Thermal lmainting film & plastic film
The process of pre-coating and rewinding plastic film and then laminating it with paper prints. Pre-coated film refers to the process of pre-gluing and rewinding plastic film and then laminating it with paper prints. It is first applied by the pre-coated film processing plant according to the specifications and width, and then coated on the film and rewound for the use of manufacturers to choose, and then laminated with printed materials. Laminating, or laminating, is a processing technology in which plastic film is coated with adhesive and bonded with paper printed materials after heating and pressure to form a paper-plastic product. By the lamination of printed materials, due to the surface of a thin and transparent plastic film, the surface is smoother and brighter, thereby improving the gloss and fastness of the printed materials, the graphic color is more vivid, three-dimensional, while more waterproof, stain-resistant, wear-resistant, folding, chemical corrosion resistance.
Structural Features(1)
BOPP film has the characteristics of high transparency, good brightness, non-toxic and tasteless, water resistance, heat resistance, low price, soft texture, etc. It is the ideal material for laminating process, and its thickness is about 12-20um. Therefore, from the perspective of material cost and processing technology, most of the pre-coated film substrates use BOPP film. The adhesive layer of pre-coated film has two types: melt type and solvent volatile type, and according to the different processing equipment and process conditions, different thicknesses of adhesive layer are used. The adhesive layer of domestic pre-coated film is mainly composed of hot melt adhesive or organic polymer low temperature resin. The hot melt adhesive is modified by the main adhesive resin and several kinds of materials such as adhesion enhancers and modifiers.
Structural Features(2)
Organic polymer resin is a single polymer low-temperature copolymer. Since the hot melt adhesive is a mixture of several materials, the transparency of the laminated film is significantly lower than that of the low-temperature pure resin-based precoated film. The production process of solvent-volatile pre-coated film is similar to that of ready-to-coat film lamination, in which organic solvents are used to dissolve the colloid and then coated on the film substrate, so there may be problems such as incomplete evaporation of organic solvents, odor and harm to the operator during the lamination operation (compared to the ready-to-coat film lamination process, the harm is much smaller), and solvent evaporation after lamination, which also tends to form bubbles on the printed surface.
Features of thermal laminating products
(1) The laminating products with melt type pre-coated film will not have blistering and de-filming phenomenon, and the products have a longer service life. (2) The lamination products with solvent-volatile precoated film will also experience blistering and blistering when the printing ink layer is thicker, where the folding, die-cutting and creasing pressure is higher, or in an environment where the workshop temperature is higher. (3) Solvent-volatile pre-coated film is very easy to adhere to dust and other impurities during production, thus affecting the surface effect of laminated products. (4) The laminated products basically do not have curling phenomenon.
Advantages of thermal laminating films
Pre-coated film process because the laminating equipment does not need adhesive heating and drying system, greatly simplify the laminating procedure, and the operation is very convenient, can be used with the machine, production flexibility, while no solvent odor, no environmental pollution, more importantly, can completely avoid bubbles, delamination and other failures, the finished product transparency is very high, has a broad application prospects and promotion value. Pre-coated film structure consists of base material and adhesive layer, the base material is usually PET and BOPP film, from the consideration of material cost and processing technology, most of the pre-coated film base material uses BOPP film, the thickness is 12-20 microns, the thickness of the adhesive layer is 5-15 microns. According to the different processing equipment and process conditions, different thicknesses of adhesive layer are used, and the adhesive layer is divided into hot melt adhesive and organic polymer low temperature resin.
Features of pre-coated film laminating products
(1) The laminating film products with melt type pre-coated film will not have blistering and de-filming phenomenon, and the products have a longer service life.
(2) The lamination film products with solvent-volatile precoated film will also experience blistering and blistering when the printing ink layer is thicker, where the folding, die-cutting and creasing pressure is higher, or in an environment where the workshop temperature is higher.
(3) Solvent-volatile pre-coated film is very easy to adhere to dust and other impurities during production, thus affecting the surface effect of laminated products.
(4) The laminated products basically do not have curling phenomenon.
From the above, it can be seen that the pre-coating film lamination process, especially the melt-type pre-coating film lamination process has the advantages that the coating film lamination process can not be compared, is the inevitable choice of the future lamination industry.
Features Of BOPP Thermal Laminating Film,pet thermal film and NYLON THERMAL FILM
Features of BOPP thermal laminating films
In this type of thermal laminating films biaxially oriented polypropylene is the base material. The process used to combine the layers of BOPP film and thermal laminating adhesive is extrusion coating. Therefore, the film has the properties of BOPP film on one side and the other side is heat sensitive and is used for dry lamination.
The BOPP films are available in various decorative shades. People use this type of film to give an aesthetic look and feel to their products.
The density of this film is approximately 0.90 g/m3 and is therefore cost effective when compared to polyester films.
There is a myriad type of BOPP films for various purposes ranging from Silky matte, Matte to Glossy finish.
It can be used for lamination purpose too.
The other features include high transparency, superior moisture barrier, amazing chemical resistance and excellent gloss.
Applications of BOPP thermal laminating films include diaries, cosmetics, leaflets, brochures, textbook covers, leaflets, shopping bags and so on.
BOPP thermal lamination film is an environmental material for paper printing Industry. It is constructed with BOPP basic film and low melt copolymer (EVA glue) adhesive with the following advantages: easy to operate on the laminating machine, shorter operation time and labor savings; suitable for ordinary hot Laminating.
BOPP Thermal Lamination Film has two classifications: Glossy and Matt
(1)Glossy film: good at transparency.
(2)Matt film: good for spot UV and hot stamping.
Applications:Widely used in picture albums, book covers, posters, magazines, paper box, brochures and food packaging.
Soft Touch Film/Velvet film is a film with high haze and special matt effect base on bopp thermal lamination film, it is outstanding lustre even after laminating, with special feeling of smooth Velvet and leather touch.Applications:Wide product application field, suitable for advertising prints, digital prints and luxury packaging.Any ordinary hot laminating machines.
Holographic BOPP film can be used exactly the same way as plain varnishing film. But in addition to the protection benefit, holography brings its own refractive and kinetic effects to enhance the visual appeal. As a cost-effective material, holographic OPP can also be used to laminate to cardboard. It can also replace plain OPP film to make flexible packages to boost the shelf appearance of products.
BOPP WHITE FILM,It is a Bopp+Eva base film. Different technology in glue coating with normal bopp thermal film, which make this film super white in color and not change to yellow color after long time.Applications:Widely used in picture albums, book covers, posters, magazines, paper box, brochures and food packaging.
Features of Polyester Thermal Film (PET)
Though it’s a popular thermal film, it comes with a high price. It is generally used for two-sided printing.The thickness of this thermal film ranges between 1mil up to 10-15 mil.Its most sought after because it’s not easily breakable.PET film comes in both gloss and matte finishesThis is used to laminate the menu cards in restaurantsThe identification cards with magnetic strips can also be laminated using PET films.
Features of Nylon Thermal Film
Compared to the polyester thermal film, Nylon films are expensive. However, it’s used as book jackets as it has strong abrasion resistance. This thermal film is also known as a breathable laminate as it allows moisture inside the laminate.
These are three types of superior quality thermal films that are easily available in the market. You have to choose them wisely from a reputed vendor and brand for your business purposes.
COATING PROCESS
EVA hot melt in high temperature, linear extruded though T-die extruder, with stretching attached to the surface of base layer (film,paper,woven fabric etc.) , with quick cooling and forming pressure to be a composite material.
CHIOOSE
Choose the best laminating film for your product
adhesive
Adhesive: the adhesive of laminating film affects the appearance of the finished products. It is also the substance in direct contact with the substrate. Therefore, the adhesive should be chosen based on the desired looks and the requirements of the substrate.
USING OF CONDITION
The laminating film will be directly exposed to the environment in the finished product, whether it is the laminate paper cover of a book or an adhesive lamination for a package. Therefore, for example the exposure to sun, chemicals and heat should be considered.
laminating PROCESS
When it comes to ease of lamination, the thickness of the lamination material plays a great role. Thick films are often used for laminating graphics which need to lay flat and remain so. In turn, thin films are preferred on curved and uneven surfaces.
Quality of the laminating film
It goes without saying that investing in good quality is costly. However, in any type of lamination, high quality is worth every penny, as a poor quality film can damage the product rather than protecting it.
