Innovative lightweight and resistant corrugated cardboard

Environmental pollution is a growing and worrying issue worldwide. For this reason, there are always more indications and obligations from the European Union to producers and manufacturers to reduce their CO2 emissions. In the packaging industry, paper and cardboard constitute the highest quantity of waste, even more than plastics. The objective of this study was to investigate the reduction of weight of corrugated cardboard boxes and by consequence reducing the emissions that are generated not only by their production but also by their transportation. The strategy was to investigate the production of 100% biobased lightweight and reinforced liners, that are the external layers of corrugated cardboard. These liners were obtained by applying stiffeners based on paper fibers or MFC (micro fibrillated cellulose) during the production of the paper liners. Moreover, to further understand the influence of the reinforcing pattern, a study has been made by 3D printing a biopolymer to reinforce a liner and the surface a corrugated board box. Once obtained, the reinforced liners were tested as well as the corrugated boards obtained with them. The cellulosic reinforced liners showed some good properties of rigidity. The tensile test, however, proved how the paper fiber based stiffeners have a potentially brittle behavior. Finally, the 3D printed reinforced corrugated board boxes showed very promising results during the box compression test, thanks to the custom 3D printed pattern.