Glass Packaging

By
Shailesh Jadhav

Contents
APPLICATION
ADVANTAGES
BASICS
MANUFACTURE
DESIGN FEATURES
TYPES & PROPERTIES
PERFORMANCE & TESTING

APPLICATION
Pharmaceutical
Cosmetics
Food
Beverages

ADVANTAGES
Chemically Inertness
Oxygen, Moisture barrier
resistance
Better visibility of contents
Better strength in
compression
Easy Cleaning, sterilizing,
reusability and recycling
Heat resistance
Impervious to odour and

LIMITATIONS
High tare weight
Fragile and Breakage due to
shock and impact
Thermal effect creating crack
Scuffing and Surface abrasion
Labels need to applied
It is not for load supporting

What is a Glass
SUPERCOOLED LIQUID
LIQUID WHICH IS COOLED TO A
STAGE WHERE ITS VISCOSITY IS
SO GREAT THAT THE MOLECULES
DO NOT MOVE FREELY ENOUGH
TO FORM CRYSTALS

What is glass made of ?

Sand 70%
Soda Ash 15%
Limestone 10%

Other Material Added

Silica and Sodium CompoundSodium silicate-Water glass

Calcium Carbonate-Substance
insoluble
Aluminium oxide(Alumina)Improves durability
Titanium, Al or ZirconiumIncrease surface strength make
thinner and lighter containers

Other Material Added

Boron compound(Borax and Boric
acid)-Low thermal expansion and
high heat shock resistance
Other additive-reduce the time
and temperature reqd. for melting
and presence of glass bubbles.
Nickel, Cobalt or Selenium-Decolouriser-to mask colour produce
by impurities such as iron
Lead compound-Clarity in glass

Colour of Glass
Fluorides White Opal
Cobalt Oxide Blue
Selenium, Cadmium and
Antimony Sulphide-Red
Chromium compound-Green
Iron, Sulphur, and CarbonAmber or Brown

Types of Glass
The European Pharmacopoeia (EP) , USP has stipulated three
types of specialist glass for pharmaceutical applications with
specific limits to the level of titratable alkalis:
T ype 1: a borosilicate glass which meets the most stringent
extractable standard. A disadvantage is the higher melting
point of this glass type, requiring a furnace temperature of
1750C, which increases the cost of the glass.
T ype 2: a soda lime glass formula that has been sulphated at
500C in the annealing oven (lehr) to reduce alkali solubility
at the glass surface. The treatment produces a discoloured,
hazy appearance.
T ype 3: a conventional soda glass that has been tested and
shown to meet a specified extractives level. In North
America, soda glasses not meeting type 3 qualifications are
classed as USP type.

TYPE I BOROSILICATE (neutral) GLASS

ADDITION OF 6% BORON REDUCES LEACHING ACTION

Least reactive glass available for containers.

It can be used for all applications and is most

commonly used to packaged water for

injection, UN-buffered products, chemicals,
sensitive lab samples, and samples requiring
sterilization.
All lab glass apparatus is generally Type I
borosilicate glass.
Type I glass is used to package products which
are alkaline or will become alkaline prior to
their expiration date

TYPE II DE ALKALIZED SODA LIME

GLASS
Has higher levels of sodium

hydroxide and calcium oxide.

It is less resistant to leaching than
Type I but more resistant than Type
III.
GOOD ALKALI RESISTANCE
It can be used for products that
remain below pH 7 for their shelf life

TYPE III SODA LIME GLASS

Acceptable in packaging some dry

powders which are subsequently

dissolved to make solutions or buffers.
It is also suitable for packaging liquid
formulations that prove to be
insensitive to alkali.
Type III glass should not be used for
products that are to be autoclaved, but
can be used in dry heat sterilization

GLASS MELTING
Cullet + SAND + OTHER RM MELTED in furnace (15000C)

GOB FORMATION
Gobs ---to form blank mold

Furnace draw-off orifice and gob

shears

Orifice 12 mm to 50mm

Gob is one individual mass of

molten glass which makes one
container
Molten glass flows depending on
the bottle size.
Mechanical shears snip off "gobs"
of molten glass. Each makes one
container.
Falling gob is caught by spout and
directed to blank molds.
Mass-production is made up of
several individual sections, each is
an independent unit holding a set
of bottle-making molds.
Large bottles consists of a blank
mold and a blow mold.
Higher production using double or
triple gobs on one machine. two or
three blank molds and similar blow

GLASS MOULDING

TWO TYPES OF PROCESSES

BLOW & BLOW

PRESS & BLOW

BLOW & BLOW

PRESS &
Press-and-Blow process
BLOW
for wide-mouthed jars

Press and blow forms

the parison by mechanical action

Gob delivery and

settle-blow steps are
similar to blow-andblow forming.
Parison is pressed
into shape with a
metal plunger rather
than blown into
shape
The final blowing
step is identical to
the blow-and-blow
process.
Used for smaller

DIFFERENCE IN PROCESSES
Difference of the two processes
Blow-and-blow used for narrow-necked bottles.
Press-and-blow used to make wide-mouthed jars
and for increasingly smaller necked containers.
Better control of glass distribution.
Typical production rates range from 60 to 300
bottles per minute, depending on the number of
sections in a machine, the number of gobs being
extruded, and the size of the container.
The blown bottle is removed from the blow mold
with takeout tongs and placed on a dead plate to
air cool for a few moments before transfer to a
conveyor that transports it to the annealing oven.

ANNEALING
to reduce internal stresses;
- Walls are comparatively thick and cooling will not be even.
- The inner and outer skins of a glass become rigid
- The still-contracting inner portion build up internal stresses
- Uneven cooling develop substantial stresses in the glass.
- Bottle passes through an lehr after removal from the blow mold.
LEHR is a belt passing through the controlled temperature oven at a
rate
of about 200mm to 300mm per minute. Glass temp is raised to 565 0 C
and then
gradually cooled to room temperature with all internal stresses
reduced to safe
levels in about an hour as they exit
Improperly annealed bottles are fragile and high breakage
Hot-filling also produce unacceptable breakage levels.

SURFACE COATINGS

Purpose : to reduce the coefficient of friction

Reasons: The inner and outer surfaces have different

characteristics
The outer surface comes in contact with the mold
and takes
the grain of the mold surface
Both surfaces are PRISTINE, MONOLITHIC, STERILE,
CHEMICALLY INERT.
Pristine glass has high COF, surface scratching and
brushing
can occur when surface rubs on high speed filling
lines.
Scratched glass has a breakage resistance

Methods--- hot-end coating ; cold-end coatings

The hot-end coating applied at the entrance to the annealing
lehr
to strength the glass surface
Cold-end coatings depending on the filling process and end
use.

INSPECTION & PACKING

Use mechanical and electronic means.

1) Squeeze testers-Force subject the container wall
2) Bore gauger - check height, perpendicularity,
inside and outside finish diameters.
3) Optical devices inspect for stones, blisters,
checks, bird swings, and other blemishes and
irregularities by rotating the container past a bank
of photocells.
Faulty containers crushing into cullet.
Transported in reusable corrugated shippers;
Shipped on pallets
Automatic equipment used to clear tiers off the
pallet and feed into the filling machine.

BOTTLE PARTS

Finish is that part

which receives the
closure
Smooth round shapes--easily formed
Suitable on filling lines
Labeled at relatively high
speeds
Accurately positioned in
spot-labeler
Greater strength-to-weight
ratios
Better material utilization
CSP TRG AIDS - AUG 2008

24

NECK & SHOULDER AREAS

The impact on filling, air displacement, and
dispensing.
Fill level in long narrow necks
Headspace for thermal expansion and facilitate
filling.
Manufacturing defect ---choke neck
Ridge on the sealing surface---over press
Upper shoulder --- below the neck.
Shoulder and neck blending ---important design
and production. lower shoulder--- the integration
point between the upper shoulder and the body.
Contact area

SIDES
The most generalized areas of the bottle.

Labeling styles and preventing scuffing must be

considered. Bottles designed with label panels to
prevent scuffing.

The panel may have prominent base and

shoulder ridges.
In angular bottles, rounded corners are preferable
for wraparound or three-side labeling.
Spot labeling is normally a one- or two-sided
application.
Labeling of non-round shapes is slower than for

HEEL & BASE

High-abuse area--- start high from the base curving into the base to a
suitable base diameter.
Body-to-base curve should combine 3 radii.
The largest blends body to heel, the smallest blends heel to base.
Diameter as large as possible as a good design.
Center of the base ensure a flat, stable bottom .
Stippled or knurled on the circular bearing surface to protect the
scratches not to weaken the body during handling and usage.
Ketchup bottles and other sauce bottles require:
heel and base be heavier and contoured when expelling the contents.
Wide-mouthed jar bases have designed-in stacking features.
Container base fits into recessed cap.
Indented container base fits over cap.
Heel tap --- excess glass distributed to the heel.

Closure For Glass Containers

Factor considered in selecting a
Closure:
Seal effectiveness
Easy opening and Closing
Recloure
Dispensing
Effect on Decorations
Packaging line problems
Product Compatibility
Cost

Closure For Glass Containers

Types of Closure:
Screw Closure
Lug Closure
Friction Fit Caps
Roll on Caps
Pilfer proof Caps
Crown Caps

DECORATIO
N

Frosting Etching by Hydrofluoric Acid (HF) /

Sand blasting Expensive

Ceramic Frosting spray with ceramic paint ( ground glass + oil mixture) fire
oil evaporates and ground glass fuses on surface.
LabellingWet glue labelling-Front/Back/Neck Label
PrintingScreen Printing inks are fired
Metallic Silver and gold effect can be achieved
CERAMIC Decal