Moisture resistant packaging

All air contains moisture vapour. This moisture can only be seen when the air suddenly cools and releases tiny droplets of water as condensation, such as exhaled breath on a cold day or a mirror misting over after a bath or shower.

This ‘gaseous H²O’ can be transmitted through air and semi-porous materials and penetrate where water could not. The speed at which this happens is called the Moisture Vapour Transmission Rate (MVTR).

Moisture vapour transmission is one of the greatest problems facing the pharmaceutical industry, with potential to damage products inside otherwise‘watertight’ packaging. This damage is normally exhibited as powder caking, mould, softening of flakes or moistening of hydroscopic goods. Furthermore, moisture control is a two-way street that can also extend to stopping products drying out, resulting in desiccation.

The challenge becomes even more acute where pharmaceuticals or fine chemicals are moisture-sensitive, making them particularly prone to damage.

Scrupulous quality control at the manufacturing, preparation and handling stages becomes squandered effort if the stored products are not protected against airborne dampness that contributes to their deterioration, shortens their shelf life or renders them unfit for sale or consumption.

Moisture control

Conventional solutions to moisture control include using desiccants to control humidity or poly bag or inner liners. While reasonably effective at resisting or controlling moisture vapour ingress, these add extra handling costs and risks of contamination.

The ideal solution is a packaging seal that is truly resistant to moisture vapour transmission, confirmed by a reliably measured MVTR that is under 0.2 g/m2/day.

CurTec solutions

CurTec’s specialized range of plastic packaging solutions includes drums, nestable containers and small volume containers with screw top closure and (integrated) gasket that provide a seal against water vapour ingress and industry-leading MVT resistance. Carefully selected materials and components combined with solid construction keeps moisture under control without extra barriers, saving time and money.

All CurTec products are tested by a certified laboratory to rigorous American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standards. MVTR is fully registered after measurement ranging from gravimetric techniques that quantify the gain or loss of moisture by mass, to highly sophisticated instrumental techniques capable of measuring microscopic transmission levels.

CurTec International can also supply MVTR reports that demonstrate how its drums and containers can meet specific client moisture problems.

Resources

Click on moisture resistant packaging for other information.
Click on CurTec to contact the company directly.

Supplier Information
Supplier: CurTec International
Address: Spoorlaan Noord 92, P.O. Box 25, 5120 AA Rijen, Netherlands
Tel: +31 88 808 2000
Fax: +31 88 808 2260
Website: www.curtec.com