Molded article, container and a method for the molding and recycling thereof
Disclosed herein, amongst other things, is a molded article, such as a preform that is blow moldable to form a container, and a related method of forming and recycling a container. The structure and steps includes injection molding a molded article having tubular body.
1 . A molded article for providing a container, the molded article comprising:
a body configurable to define a storage vessel of the container;
wherein the body includes a carrier layer along at least a part thereof that is encapsulated by an outer skin layer and an inner skin layer, wherein the outer skin layer and the inner skin layer are formed from a first thermoplastic that is stable in contact with water and the carrier layer is formed from a second thermoplastic that is unstable in contact with water,
wherein a colorant is dispersed within the carrier layer, and
wherein the outer skin layer and the inner skin layer formed from the first thermoplastic are devoid of any colorant.
2 . The molded article of claim 1 , wherein the body is a preform at least a portion of which is re-moldable to define the container.
3 . The molded article of claim 2 , wherein the body of the preform is one of hollow or a solid block, at least in part.
4 . The molded article of claim 3 , wherein the body is a hollow body, and wherein one or more surfaces of the hollow body are one or more of cylindrical, conical, rectangular or ovoid in shape.
5 . The molded article of claim 3 , wherein the body is a hollow body, and wherein surfaces of the hollow body are one of concentric or non-concentric for remolding into the container having an offset neck.
6 . The molded article of claim 3 , wherein the body further includes an open end and a closed end.
7 . The molded article of claim 6 , wherein the open end defines a neck portion and the closed end defines a base portion, wherein the neck portion is configured to define a neck part of the container and is also configured to be capped to enclose a volume defined within the container, wherein a body portion and the base portion are blow moldable to provide a body part and a base part of the container, respectively.
8 . The molded article of claim 3 , wherein the preform includes a neck portion having a wide mouth and a body portion that is conical.
9 . The molded article of claim 3 , wherein the preform is configured for blow and trim molding into the container.
10 . The molded article according to claim 1 , wherein the first thermoplastic is one of polyethylene terephthalate, high-density polyethylene, or polypropylene.
11 . The molded article according to claim 1 , wherein the second thermoplastic is one of a water-soluble polymer or a hydro-degradable polymer.
12 . The molded article of claim 11 , wherein the water-soluble polymer is selected from the group consisting of: ethylene vinyl alcohol, poly vinyl alcohol, poly ethylene glycol, dextrans, pullulan, poly vinyl pyrrolidone, poly acrylic acid, poly acrylamide, poly oxazoline, poly phosphates or cellulose.
13 . The molded article of claim 11 , wherein the hydro-degradable polymer is selected from the group consisting of: sugar/polysaccharide starch, polyglycolide, polycaprolactone, poly lactic acid, or polyhydroxyalkanoates.
14 . The molded article according to claim 1 , further comprising an additive configured to provide a visual indication responsive to one or more of stress induced strain of the body beyond a predetermined limit and temperature change of the body.
15 . The molded article of claim 14 , wherein the visual indicator is configured to provide a prominent change in appearance upon a selected container dimension of the container having crept beyond a pre-determined bound with dissolution or degradation of the second thermoplastic.
16 . The molded article according to claim 1 , further comprising a chromic indicator that is configured to change color responsive to a change in a characteristic of the body.
17 . A container, comprising:
a body configured to define a storage vessel;
wherein the body includes a carrier layer along at least a part thereof that is encapsulated by an outer skin layer and an inner skin layer, wherein the outer skin layer and the inner skin layer are formed from a first thermoplastic that is stable in contact with water and the carrier layer is formed from a second thermoplastic that is unstable in contact with water,
wherein a colorant is dispersed within the carrier layer, and
wherein the outer skin layer and the inner skin layer formed from the first thermoplastic are devoid of any colorant.
18 . The container of claim 17 , wherein body includes a neck part at an open end, a base part at a closed end and a body part defined therebetween.
19 . The container of claim 18 , wherein the neck part is offset with respect to at least one of the body part and the base part.
20 . The container according to claim 17 , wherein the first thermoplastic is one of polyethylene terephthalate, high-density polyethylene, or polypropylene.
21 . The container according to claim 20 , wherein the second thermoplastic is one of a water-soluble polymer or a hydro-degradable polymer.
22 . The container of claim 21 , wherein the water-soluble polymer is selected from the group consisting of: ethylene vinyl alcohol, poly ethylene glycol, dextrans, pullulan, poly vinyl pyrrolidone, poly acrylic acid, poly acrylamide, poly oxazoline, poly phosphates or cellulose.
23 . The container of claim 21 , wherein the hydro-degradable polymer is selected from the group consisting of: sugar/polysaccharide starch, polyglycolide, polycaprolactone, poly lactic acid, or polyhydroxyalkanoates.
24 . The container according to claim 17 , further comprising an additive which provides a visual indicator responsive to one or more of stress induced strain beyond a predetermined limit and temperature change of the body.
25 . The container according to claim 17 , further comprising a chromic indicator that is configured to change color responsive to a change in a characteristic of the body.
26 . The container of claim 24 , wherein the visual indicator is configured to provide a prominent change in appearance upon a selected container dimension of the container having crept beyond a pre-determined bound with dissolution or degradation of the second thermoplastic.
27 . The container of claim 17 , further comprising an indicator panel that is configured to provide a visual indication responsive to one or more of stress induced strain of the body beyond a predetermined limit and temperature change of the body.
28 . The container of claim 24 , wherein the visual indicator is configured to provide a prominent change in appearance upon a selected container dimension of the container having crept beyond a pre-determined bound with dissolution or degradation of the second thermoplastic.
29 . The container of claim 24 , wherein the visual indicator is provided by one or more of an ink, film or coating.
30 . A method for forming and recycling a container, comprising:
molding a molded article having a body that is configurable to define a storage vessel of the container;
wherein the body includes a carrier layer along at least a part thereof that is encapsulated by an outer skin layer and an inner skin layer, wherein the outer skin layer and the inner skin layer are formed from a first thermoplastic that is stable in contact with water and the carrier layer is formed from a second thermoplastic that is unstable in contact with water,
wherein a colorant is dispersed within the carrier layer, and
wherein the outer skin layer and the inner skin layer formed from the first thermoplastic are devoid of any colorant.
31 . The method of claim 30 , wherein the molding of the molded article further includes injection molding the body with:
injecting the first thermoplastic into a molding cavity that is defined by an insert stack in a mold that is closed and clamped to form one or more of a neck portion, a base portion and a body portion at least in part; and
injecting the second thermoplastic into the molding cavity to form the carrier layer along at least a part of one or more of the neck portion, the base portion and the body portion wherein the carrier layer carries the colorant therein.
32 . The method of claim 30 , further comprising blow molding the molded article into the container.
33 . The method of claim 30 , further comprising grinding the container into pieces, processing the pieces in a water solution to induce selective dissolution or degradation of the second thermoplastic and separating the colorant and degradation products of the second thermoplastic from the first thermoplastic.
34 . The method of claim 30 , wherein injecting the first thermoplastic and the second thermoplastic is performed one or more of sequentially or simultaneously, in whole or in part, whereby the first carrier layer formed from the second thermoplastic is encapsulated by the outer skin layer and the inner skin layer that are formed from the first thermoplastic.
35 . The method of claim 30 , wherein the first thermoplastic is one of polyethylene terephthalate, high-density polyethylene, or polypropylene.
36 . The method of claim 30 , wherein the second thermoplastic is one of a water-soluble polymer or a hydro-degradable polymer.
37 . The method of claim 36 , wherein the water-soluble polymer is selected from the group consisting of: ethylene vinyl alcohol, poly vinyl alcohol, poly ethylene glycol, dextrans, pullulan, poly vinyl pyrrolidone, poly acrylic acid, poly acrylamide, poly oxazoline, poly phosphates or cellulose.
38 . The method of claim 36 , wherein the hydro-degradable polymer is selected from the group consisting of: sugar/polysaccharide starch, polyglycolide, polycaprolactone, poly lactic acid, or polyhydroxyalkanoates.
39 . The method of claim 30 , further comprising an additive which provides a visual indicator responsive to one or more of stress induced strain beyond a predetermined limit and temperature change of the body.
40 . The method according to claim 30 , further comprising a chromic indicator that is configured to change color responsive to a change in a characteristic of the body.
41 . The method of claim 39 , wherein the visual indicator is configured to provide a prominent change in appearance upon a selected container dimension of the container having crept beyond a pre-determined bound with dissolution or degradation of the second thermoplastic.
42 . The method of claim 30 , further comprising arranging an indicator panel on the container, wherein the indicator panel is configured to provide a visual indication responsive to stress induced strain beyond a predetermined limit.
43 . The method of claim 39 , wherein the visual indicator is configured to provide a prominent change in appearance upon a selected container dimension of the container having crept beyond a pre-determined hound with dissolution or degradation of the second thermoplastic.
44 . The method of claim 39 , wherein the visual indicator is provided by one or more of an ink, film or coating.
45 . A non-transitory computer readable medium, the non-transitory computer readable medium storing computer executable instructions, which computer executable instructions when executed can cause a controller of a molding machine to execute the method according to claim 30 .
46 . The molded article of claim 1 , wherein the molded article comprises a neck with a threaded portion, wherein at least a section of the threaded portion is devoid of the carrier layer.