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Article

The Influence of the Production Stages of Cardboard Pharmaceutical Packaging on the Circular Economy

by
Mia Klemenčić
1,
Ivana Bolanča Mirković
2,* and
Nenad Bolf
3
1
Naklada Ljevak d.o.o., Ulica Grada Vukovara 271, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
2
Faculty of Graphic Arts, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
3
Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Technology, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Sustainability 2023, 15(24), 16882; https://doi.org/10.3390/su152416882
Submission received: 9 November 2023 / Revised: 13 December 2023 / Accepted: 14 December 2023 / Published: 15 December 2023
(This article belongs to the Section Sustainable Engineering and Science)
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Abstract

:
Packaging appearance is important in a competitive market. Designers strive to create products that attract customers and often use laminated packaging, due to the attractive appearance and quality characteristics of the material. The circular economy in the recycling of cardboard packaging helps to reduce waste, saves natural resources and increases the quality of the environment. All of the above contributes to sustainable production, but the quality and properties of the obtained recycled paper materials should not be ignored. Recycling of laminated cardboard packaging often has a negative impact on the quality of recycled paper, due to the formation of sticky particles that can affect the optical properties of recycled paper and the efficiency of the recycling process. This article provides insight into the influence of each stage of production of packaging intended for pharmaceutical products on the properties and characteristics of recycled paper. The standard INGEDE 11 deinking method was used to remove dyes and other impurities from the pulp. The obtained optical results of the characteristics of recycled laboratory sheets obtained from laminated and non-laminated cardboard samples were compared in order to determine the impact of each stage of box production on the quality of the paper pulp. The acquired knowledge can be applied in the design phase of a more sustainable product, and laminated materials can be used in luxury products or to increase the functionality of the packaging. Designing for recycling will contribute to an increase in the quality of the obtained paper mass, which is directly related to an increase in the productivity of recycling and the sustainability of the packaging production process.

1. Introduction

The circular economy is based on the economic advantages created by reducing the impact on the environment and reducing resources. Such an approach can be achieved by passing circularity through the 9R Framework’ extended classic 3R concept [1]. The 9R Framework’ includes recover energy, recycle, reuse, remanufacture, restore, repair, reuse, reduce, rethink and discard. The premise of discarding in a circular economy should be kept to a minimum, but one must not forget to mention the existence of that phase. To reduce the negative impact of the rejection phase, it is possible to combine this phase with the energy recovery phase [2]. The mentioned phase does not contribute primarily to the circular economy (due to the impossibility of uninterrupted energy consumption without major losses), so waste could become a raw material for obtaining energy. The methodology “Circular Economy Product Strategy and Business Model Framework” suggests design and business model strategies to be implemented together [3]. The ReSOLVE framework (regenerate, share, optimize, loop, virtualize, exchange) is a basis for some of the best frameworks as backcasting and eco-design for a circular economy (BECE) [4]. Retrospective planning methodology is useful for complex problems in which current trends are incorporated. Such a planning method can increase the probability of solving ecologically complex issues and predict changes with a strong economic impact [5]. Through a holistic approach, BECE (backcasting and eco-design) introduces the postulates of the circular economy into corporate decision making based on conclusions reached by combining operational and systemic premises [4,6]. The ReSOLVE framework emphasizes technology as the driver of key transformations that will provide new incentives for the adoption of new technologies.
The production of high-quality paper requires a high-tech and specific process. Cellulose is the most important biorenewable, biodegradable and natural biopolymer and an excellent raw material for the development of various sustainable and functional materials, including paper [7,8]. Paper cannot be endlessly recycled because the fibres lose their quality after a certain number of recycling cycles and become unusable [9]. More than 40% of the total paper production is based on the use of secondary fibres [10]. One of the most important prerequisites for quality paper recycling is the paper collection system. The supplied paper must be free of impurities, moisture, etc., in order to produce recycled paper of superior quality [11]. The fractions of waste that are introduced into the paper production process should have as high a proportion of cellulose fibres as possible [12]. There are several methods of collecting paper and packaging waste (PPW); however, the choice of methods can affect the efficiency of recycling and the quality of materials in the further process [13]. Doshi et al. suggested improving communication and collaboration throughout the paper production line, including suppliers, manufacturers and chemists [14]. The end result should be more cost-effective and economical production using inks, coatings and adhesives to facilitate the recycling process. The COLLECTORS project (CP) collected data on separate waste collection systems (WCSs) across Europe [15]. An additional 18 million tons of waste could be collected annually in Europe if best-practice collection strategies are implemented, resulting in a 13% reduction in greenhouse gas production associated with packaging and packaging waste [16].
Extending the lifetime of materials through recycling has become a priority [17,18]. Research by Rahimi et al. [19] aimed to achieve savings by improving the environmental profile of packaging and life cycle assessment (LCA) combined with eco-design. Excessive packaging still leads to excessive consumption of materials and energy, which affects the impact of production and transportation processes [20,21]. Manufacturers and recyclers of paper packaging are committed to using the best environmental practices [22,23,24]. Recovery efficiency must also be achieved through improvements in sorting and recycling (e.g., replacing mechanical recycling with chemical recycling) [25]. It is also important to reduce the demand for paper and packaging materials (PPMs) by implementing ambitious waste control strategies and prevention campaigns [26].
Paper and cardboard are substrates based on cellulose microfibres that have large surface pores, resulting in a poor barrier effect [8,27]. It is important to ensure the user safety and structural stability of paper-based products by impregnation, lamination or additional top layers of conventional materials (e.g., metal plates or mineral plates). The structure of multi-layer packaging consists of two or more substrates that are joined together with adhesive, usually based on polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) [28]. Biobased coatings and adhesives for paper and cardboard are being developed to improve the barrier potential of these substrates [8,29,30]. In the recycling process of laminated packaging, it is important to choose appropriate adhesives because they can cause problems in the recycling process, which will contribute to the competitiveness of the recycled material [31,32,33]. Unlike laminated paperboards, mixed office paper waste (MOW) is an excellent source of low-cost, high-quality fibres for the paper industry [34].
In order to avoid problems with the quality of finished paper products, such as stains and holes, non-fibrous components, also known as sticky, should be removed as much as possible in the recycling process. These components may originate from the paper or may be added during the processing or use of the paper to prevent paper breakage [35]. In the paper machine, sticky substances clog fabrics and piles, slowing down the drainage of water from the fibre suspension and, thereby, reducing the efficiency of the process [36]. Various chemical and mechanical methods have been proposed to improve the control of sticky particles, and a new approach has been developed using esterase-like enzymes to break down sticky particles into smaller, less sticky particles [37]. Minimizing the impact of these disturbances on the machine, as well as machine downtime, is one of the most difficult problems in paper production. Putz et al. determined the potential for various applications presented [38]. The importance of adhesive selection is indicated by the fact that there is no definitive way to determine the range of contamination because the variable depends on the sample processing conditions (duration, temperature and applied pressure) [39]. Canellas et al. investigated the migration of adhesive compounds from multilayer layers with the structure of the paper-adhesive film and six potential migrants [40].
In addition to the importance of separating sticky particles from paper pulp, many studies conclude that colour removal is the most important step in wastepaper recycling [41,42]. Currently, paper mills use a chemical process to remove ink from wastepaper, which is generally more efficient and economical in terms of ink removal. The severity of ink removal mainly depends on the type of ink, fibre and printing process [43]. Bolanča and Bolanča concluded that the press model affects the particle size and optical properties of laboratory hand sheets of paper [44]. Runte et al. investigated the recyclability of packaging on a laboratory scale, and a method was developed based on a standard stock preparation system for packaging products. Ink removal by flotation plays a key role in the product quality and cost of the wastepaper recycling process [45].
Designing for recycling involves designing a product that is adapted to a quick, easy and efficient recycling process while minimizing the environmental impact [46,47]. The advantage of this design model over other forms is the possibility of designing a product that adapts to an efficient design process, rather than adapting or designing new efficient recycling processes for specific products. Designers in the aforementioned creative processes use materials that are widely accepted in recycling programs, such as paper, cardboard, glass, aluminium and certain types of plastic [48]. An important design paradigm for recycling is the use of mono-materials or those materials that are easily separated [49,50]. To reduce the impact on the environment, it is best to consider the life cycle of the product, that is, to assess the impact of the material on the environment from extraction to production, use and disposal. The analysis will contribute to the circular economy [51].
This study investigates the influence of drug packaging production stages on the characteristics of recycled laboratory paper. The obtained results can provide guidelines for the model design for recycling. Guidelines in the product design phase help design products that will be recycled more efficiently. The mentioned progress enables the use of usual recycling technologies, which would reduce financial expenses for production due to the introduction of new technologies, but, at the same time, production would become more sustainable with higher-quality raw materials produced. This paper will examine how certain stages of production affect the optical characteristics of sheets of recycled laboratory paper, that is, how the use of non-laminated, laminated, printed, non-printed, glued and non-glued cardboard products affects it. The circular economy in the field of cardboard recycling can be implemented in several ways, the basic one being recycling, i.e., establishing a closed circle of materials. Recycling of packaging products can contribute to the circular economy because, from 1991 to 2020, the consumption of paper and cardboard for packaging products grew from 42.1% to 60.1% [24]. For cardboard packaging, manufacturers and distributors can work with recycling companies to ensure a continuous supply of cardboard material and contribute to the sustainability of cardboard production [52]. The process of recycling cardboard materials is not possible indefinitely due to the shortening of the cellulose fibre in each recycling process until it can no longer be used. Usually, recycling is possible up to seven times. An additional reason for the reduced usability of the cardboard material is the presence of glue in the pulp, the source of which occur during the production of laminated material and the application of glue for binding the packaging, which contributes to the formation of sticky particles. By researching the impact of each stage of cardboard packaging production on the quality of the paper pulp, i.e., the recycled sheet of paper, we aimed to apply another circular economy method, design for recycling. The design for the recycling method was used with the premise of designing a product that would yield the highest-quality pulp possible so that it could be used in as many cycles as possible. All methods used in this research are based on the idea that materials and products should move through the system of economic value without creating unnecessary waste.

2. Materials and Methods

Unlaminated and laminated printed packaging, printed quire and substrates were used in this research (Table 1). The same basic printing substrate GC2 cardboard was used for all samples. For the laminated samples, a biaxially oriented polyethylene terephthalate film (BoPET metallized) with plasticizer-free acrylic polymer adhesive or APEO was applied to the basic printing substrate. The APEO compounds can affect the environment, aquatic organisms and humans. The data show that short-chain compounds have a much smaller impact than long-chain compounds [53].
The standard prints were produced on a five-colour offset machine: Roland 705 with standard UV offset colours from a European manufacturer, white cover offset printing ink, CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) inks and dark purple-blue Pantone ink. For rub resistance, VP 1038 high-gloss (product code), UV-cured VergamGH varnish (labelled L2) was used, a highly reactive, photopolymerisable, VOC-free acrylic system with reduced odour and optimal wetting properties. The adhesive used for the assembly of the pharmaceutical packaging was suitable for food packaging and food contact materials. The above materials and equipment were used to prepare samples according to the described packaging stages for further experimentation (Figure 1).
The samples were disintegrated into cellulose pulp according to ISO 5263-2:2004 [54] standard. The standard flotation deinking method INGEDE 11 [55] was used for the separation of the ink particles from the cellulose pulp. The prints are converted in alkaline conditions to pepper pulp, which is subjected to a single flotation process to remove the ink particles. Usually, the sizes of the resulting fragments of printing inks are suitable for separation from cellulose fibres based on their hydrophobicity and hydrophilicity. The handsheets were produced according to the INGEDE 1 procedure [56] and the standard ISO 5269-2:2004 [57]. The standard handsheets for this study were produced using a Rapid-Köthen sheet former. Some of the optical properties of the laboratory handsheets were measured according to the standards listed in Table 2.
Spec*Scan Apogee System image analysis software (v2000) was used to determine the count and surface area of the remaining dirt particles. A scanner digitised the images with the following settings: Threshold (100), White Level (75) and Black Level (65) [62].
The spectrophotometer Technidyne Color Touch 2 was used to analyse the effective residual ink concentration (ERIC number) and CIE L*, a*, b* chromatic coefficients on laboratory handsheets, before and after deinking flotation [59,60,61]. The effective residual ink concentration on samples is measured according to standard methods ISO 22754:2008 and TAPPI T 567: 2009 [59,60]. The standards according to which the chromatic coefficients were measured are shown in Table 2.

3. Results and Discussion

Brightness is defined as the diffuse reflectance of a thick stack of paper when visible light has a wavelength of about 457 nm and a bandwidth of about 40 nm. Such an average wavelength of visible light can be defined as blue light; the human eye perceives a bluish shade as whiter than neutral white in the colour spectrum. The highest brightness is 100, higher brightness is associated with brighter papers and brighter papers are considered premium papers. The brightness parameter does not describe the measurements of other wavelengths of light; samples of different colours can have identical brightness. That is why the colour coefficients were examined in the continuation of the research. The brightness of the paper can affect print quality.
Paper whiteness measures the reflectance of all wavelengths, making it more in line with how the human eye perceives paper. The measurement parameter has a subjectively perceived property, and most people consider it to increase when the material has a slightly blue tint (ISO 11475:2017) [63]. The highest print quality is determined by high whiteness, especially ISO with whiteness from 140 to 175 [64]. Yellow hue is defined as a measure of the degree of change in surface colour from the preferred white (or colourless) to yellow. White titanium dioxide ink is applied to recycled papers to achieve optical properties equal to those of commercial papers recommended in ISO 12647 [65,66].
The measurement under the described conditions is shown in Figure 2. The values determined for the ISO for the brightness of the laboratory paper sheets were lower for the laminated samples. The paper pulp of laminated samples contains a larger number of ink particles and dirt, which negatively affects the brightness of the paper. The described trends of higher ISO brightness values are 0.5% before and 3.5% after flotation for packaging and 0.5% before and 0.3% after flotation for printing substrate. Although lower brightness values were obtained for the laminated samples of laboratory sheets, the values obtained are satisfactory for reuse by making new packaging products. It should be emphasized that in this research, cardboard was recycled, which has lower brightness values than office paper or paper intended for printing representative books. There is a deviation from the described trend in the research results for the printed quire: the brightness of the unlaminated sample increases compared to the laminated sample but it is still higher than the unprinted printing substrate. In the described example, a decrease in the brightness value of 1.5% before and 0.5% after flotation can be observed. In addition to the aforementioned ink and dirt particles that affect the brightness of the paper in the measurement area, the measured values are affected by some other factors. In the mentioned area, the obtained paper reflectance values can be based on chromophores that are usually found in cellulose fibres such as lignin and its by-products [67]. These organic compounds usually absorb the strongest blue wavelengths, resulting in a yellowish colour to the cellulose pulp. The colour of the pulp depends on the life cycle of the pulp, i.e., bleaching, exposure to light, exposure time or ageing, raw material, fibre formation, etc. It can be assumed that some of the above reasons affected the brightness of the sample, especially because the printing pad is made of fifteen layers of paper (Figure 3). It should also be emphasized that these are small value increases of 1.5% before and 0.5% after deinking flotation.
CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) colour models were used in the production of the samples. To obtain absolute data that are independent of the measuring device, the CIELAB model/system is used. The CIELAB colour characterization system is used in graphic technology and art. In the CIELAB colour characterization system, three basic dimensions of the perceptual colour attributes, hue, saturation/chroma and lightness, or the three dimensions also known as tristimulus data, are defined [68].
The lightness of a colour laboratory sheet describes its relative brightness, apropos its luminous intensity. The lightness value of samples indicates how light or dark a sheet of paper is, and this indicator is achromatic [69]. One of the parameters affecting the lightness is the printing substrate.
Lightness L* was highest for the substrate samples, both laminated and non-laminated cardboard, which is to be expected as there were no ink particles on the samples. The values obtained are related to the cream-coloured back of the printing substrate and the layers from which the aforementioned substrate is made Figure 4.
The study of the influence of printing on the quire of the sample shows that the laminated samples have a lower difference in the absolute value of the brightness, but the results for the brightness of the substrate of the samples are lower due to the agglomeration caused by the adhesive application. When considering this stage of packaging product manufacture, it should be noted that the adhesives act in the first stage of sample manufacture, and the ink particles only further contribute to the agglomeration effect.
The greatest changes in brightness values occur at the stage when the paper laboratory sheets are produced from the packaging, indicating the effect of adhesive on the packaging ends. In laminated packaging, the larger surface area is coated with the adhesive due to the applied foil than the surface at the edge due to the assembly of the packaging, but Figure 4 shows that the assembly has a greater influence. It can be concluded that the composition of the applied adhesive is extremely important for the properties of recycled paper sheets and their optical characteristics. The resulting sticky particles, together with the ink particles already present in the pulp, form accumulations that contribute to the reduction in brightness for both laminated and non-laminated samples [36,70]. The difference in brightness for the non-laminated samples at this stage is 2.5-times less than for the quire samples, which only confirms the importance of the impact composition of the adhesive applied to the edge of the packaging.
A colour space system is a sequential or continuous representation in which the colour coefficients a* and b* are represented as a* green/red colour component and b* blue/yellow colour component (Figure 5a) [71]. The obtained measured values of chromatic coefficients a* and b* show that they are in the yellow-green area, where the green component is not significantly expressed. Considering the producer’s description of the printing substrate mentioned in the methodical part of the paper, it can be concluded that the colour of the printing substrate significantly affects the colour of laboratory sheets of paper that have a yellow tint.
Since paper pulp originated from packaging products and can be used again to make the same products, it was not necessary to add additional bleaches to the pulp after the deinking-flotation process. The paper pulp can also be used for packaging pharmaceutical products, so bleaching is not even desirable. Raw materials for manufacturing packaging for pharmaceutical products should be treated with as small an amount as possible of chemicals so that they do not affect the product inside the packaging (migration processes). It is considered that the pulp is of higher quality if it is not bleached with chlorine and its compounds. The use of molecular chlorine for bleaching results in the formation of chlorinated organic compounds that are a risk to the environment and the food chain. Chlorine dioxide releases smaller amounts of organochlorine [72]. In recent times, bleaching has been done bycarried out using oxidizing agents, such as oxygen, ozone, sodium hypochlorite and hydrogen peroxide. As this research studies the raw materials for making packaging that do not need and usually are not of great whiteness, there is no need to apply bleaching procedures.
When examining the properties of the sheets after the deinking-flotation process of the prints produced by offset printing with CMYK inks and dark purple-blue Pantone ink, it is obvious that the dye particles were separated from the paper pulp. The laboratory sheets do not contain a large amount of dominant dark-purple-blue dirt particles that would give the sheets the colour mentioned. The description of the green hue on the sheets corresponds to the residual ink particles, over which there are cellulose fibres. This results in yellow-green colouring. The mentioned hue is more pronounced on the samples before the deinking flotation process when the ink particles have not yet been separated from the paper pulp from which the laboratory paper sheets are made (Figure 5a). Therefore, the relationship between the colour and the sign of coefficients a* and b*, or −a* degree of greenness and +b* degree of yellowness, is easy to read [71].
Figure 5b shows that the values of the chromatic coefficient a* are lower for the laminated samples. These results explain that particles of blue-purple printing ink remaining on the sheet before and after flotation impart such a tone to the handsheet, as the separation of the dye particles from these handsheets is less efficient. The substrate samples have a higher coefficient a*, while the laminated samples were yellower and became even yellower after the flotation-deinking process. All non-laminated samples also showed a stronger yellow colouration after the flotation-deinking process.
Laboratory paper sheets made from the laminated sample before and after the deinking-flotation process have higher values of effective residual ink concentration (ERIC) compared to the values of non-laminated samples. Residual ink particles are more efficiently removed from unlaminated paper pulp samples (packaging 22%, sheet 52%) than from pulp made from laminated samples (packaging 16.7, sheet 18.9%). From the results, it can be concluded that the presence of adhesives in the pulp has a significant effect on reducing the extraction of ink particles from the pulp. The greater amount of adhesive in the pulp originates from the lamination of the cardboard material; however, the stage of applying the adhesive to the packaging additionally affects the reduced extraction of ink particles. Earlier measurements of this lightness research in Figure 4 also indicated the importance of the composition of the adhesive on the separation of titanium particles, that is, on the formation of sticky particles. By studying both optical parameters, it can be concluded that the application of adhesive on the edge of the packaging has a greater effect on ink separation (Figure 6) [73].
Image analysis of the handsheet surfaces of the laminated samples before the flotation-deinking process showed a higher number and larger surface area of dirt particles in all classes compared to the non-laminated classes. Figure 7 shows that the higher number and larger surface area of particles were particularly evident in the process before flotation, as already noted in the analysis of the optical properties of the handsheets. It is assumed that stickies with a larger surface area are formed, which are more difficult to separate by flotation deinking, as can be seen in Figure 8 [74]. Understandably, the unprinted substrate samples had a lower number of particles, but it should be noted that large particles still formed in the laminated samples due to the adhesive on the board. The deinking process is more efficient in the non-laminated samples than in the laminated samples, which shows up in the image analysis as a significant difference in the number and surface area of particles on the handsheets before and after flotation deinking.

4. Conclusions

The circular economy in the production of cardboard packaging products is most evident through the recycling of cardboard products. Sustainably obtaining raw materials reduces the negative impact on the environment. Designers of cardboard packaging products in the product design phase can additionally contribute to increasing sustainability with the Design for Recycling (DfR) method [75,76]. The mentioned method is a way of approaching engineering and product design through design, which aims to facilitate the recycling process and increase the utilization of materials in the product. By studying the influence of individual stages of the production of pharmaceutical packaging on the optical properties of recycled paper sheets, insights are gained that can be applied in the product design phase. Pre-consumer post-press waste materials come into the recycling process before glueing the packaging, giving quality raw materials. Post-consumer packaging cardboard has an adhesive applied for glueing the package, which affects the quality of the paper pulp, that is, the formation of sticky particles in the pulp. Laminated materials can contribute to many functional and visual aspects of packaging, but they can reduce the quality of the raw material. It would be good for designers who respect the DrR premise if they have knowledge about the influence of the stages of the lamination process, printing and finishing processes on recyclability.
The research results showed, before the removal of ink particles by deinking flotation, a greater number of ink particles in laminated samples compared to non-laminated samples. The described trend affected the decrease in measured values of ISO brightness and chromatic coefficient L*. The sources of these impurities are probably agglomerated ink particles that are collected due to the presence of glue in the paper pulp that creates sticky particles. Laminated pulp samples could contain foil fragments, which could increase the values of the optical parameters. However, such foil fragments were successfully separated before making sheets of laboratory paper.
Lower efficiency in separating dirt particles in laminated samples is due to the presence of glue in the paper suspension, which leads to particle agglomeration. ERIC numbers and image analysis carried out in this research confirm the aforementioned behaviour of ink and glue particles within the paper stock. By studying the stages of packaging production and their recycling, it can be concluded that the composition of the glue significantly affects the formation of agglomerate particles, i.e., sticky particles. Such a process is additionally encouraged by applying glue to the assembly of the packaging.
Considering all aspects studied, production can be optimized by packaging design for the production of paper pulp of optimal quality, that is, by the production of high-quality recycled cellulose fibres. It would be good if, in addition to other properties of the material, recyclability is mentioned so that designers can come up with a more sustainable product. In the mentioned way, the maximum number of recycling cycles can be enabled for paper pulp, that is, it can contribute to the circular economy. Our further research plans include investigating the opacity and L*a*b* values with a fluorescent filter to gain insight into the loss of cellulose fibres and optical brighteners.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, M.K. and I.B.M.; methodology, I.B.M.; validation, I.B.M.; formal analysis, M.K.; investigation, M.K.; data curation, M.K. and N.B.; writing—original draft preparation, M.K. and I.B.M.; writing—review and editing, M.K. and I.B.M.; visualization, M.K. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

This research received no external funding.

Institutional Review Board Statement

Not applicable.

Informed Consent Statement

Not applicable.

Data Availability Statement

Data are contained within the article.

Conflicts of Interest

Author Mia Klemenčić are employed by Naklada Ljevak d.o.o. Other authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Figure 1. Packaging preparation stage in the experiment for non-laminated and laminated samples.
Figure 1. Packaging preparation stage in the experiment for non-laminated and laminated samples.
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Figure 2. The influence of flotation deinking of laminated and non-laminated samples on ISO brightness.
Figure 2. The influence of flotation deinking of laminated and non-laminated samples on ISO brightness.
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Figure 3. Multiply construction for Folding Packaging Board (FBB) GC2 cardboard.
Figure 3. Multiply construction for Folding Packaging Board (FBB) GC2 cardboard.
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Figure 4. The influence of flotation deinking of laminated and non-laminated samples on the lightness.
Figure 4. The influence of flotation deinking of laminated and non-laminated samples on the lightness.
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Figure 5. (a) Display of the measured values on the CIE ab graph. (b) The influence of the flotation deinking of laminated and non-laminated samples on the chromatic coefficients a* and b*.
Figure 5. (a) Display of the measured values on the CIE ab graph. (b) The influence of the flotation deinking of laminated and non-laminated samples on the chromatic coefficients a* and b*.
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Figure 6. The influence of flotation deinking of laminated and non-laminated samples on ERIC numbers, ppm.
Figure 6. The influence of flotation deinking of laminated and non-laminated samples on ERIC numbers, ppm.
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Figure 7. Count and area of particles on the handsheets formed from the laminated samples: (a) before deinking flotation, (b) after deinking flotation.
Figure 7. Count and area of particles on the handsheets formed from the laminated samples: (a) before deinking flotation, (b) after deinking flotation.
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Figure 8. Count and area of particles on the handsheets formed from the non-laminated samples: (a) before deinking flotation, (b) after deinking flotation.
Figure 8. Count and area of particles on the handsheets formed from the non-laminated samples: (a) before deinking flotation, (b) after deinking flotation.
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Table 1. Samples used for recycling and their labels.
Table 1. Samples used for recycling and their labels.
Type of SampleLabelSampleLabel
LaminatedLPrinted packagingP
Printed quireQ
Printing substrateS
Non-laminatedNPrinted packagingP
Printed quireQ
Printing substrateS
Table 2. Optical measurements performed on the laboratory handsheets and the standard methods employed.
Table 2. Optical measurements performed on the laboratory handsheets and the standard methods employed.
Optical PropertiesStandard
Diffuse blue reflectance factorISO 2470-1:2016 [58]
Effective residual ink concentration, ERICTAPPI T 567: 2009 [59], ISO 22754:2008 [60]
Determination of colour by diffuse reflectanceISO 5631-3: 2015 [61]
Image analysisISO 13322: 2014 [62]
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Klemenčić, M.; Bolanča Mirković, I.; Bolf, N. The Influence of the Production Stages of Cardboard Pharmaceutical Packaging on the Circular Economy. Sustainability 2023, 15, 16882. https://doi.org/10.3390/su152416882

AMA Style

Klemenčić M, Bolanča Mirković I, Bolf N. The Influence of the Production Stages of Cardboard Pharmaceutical Packaging on the Circular Economy. Sustainability. 2023; 15(24):16882. https://doi.org/10.3390/su152416882

Chicago/Turabian Style

Klemenčić, Mia, Ivana Bolanča Mirković, and Nenad Bolf. 2023. "The Influence of the Production Stages of Cardboard Pharmaceutical Packaging on the Circular Economy" Sustainability 15, no. 24: 16882. https://doi.org/10.3390/su152416882

APA Style

Klemenčić, M., Bolanča Mirković, I., & Bolf, N. (2023). The Influence of the Production Stages of Cardboard Pharmaceutical Packaging on the Circular Economy. Sustainability, 15(24), 16882. https://doi.org/10.3390/su152416882

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