1. Processing raw materials: changing the fiber and improving the formula
The choice of raw materials for packaging home appliances has a direct effect on how strong they are. The most common solutions right now are:
Technology for fiber compounding: You can enhance the tensile index by 22% and the burst index by 65.8% by mixing broad-leaved wood pulp (which makes it more flexible) with bagasse pulp (which makes it stronger when compressed) in a 1:1 ratio. For instance, a certain manufacturer made a pulp tray for air conditioning that could hold 20% more weight by adding 20% mineral fibers.
Adding a chemical additive: Adding aluminum sulfate (a waterproofing ingredient) and nano silica (a hydrophobic covering) to the slurry preparation process can cut the rate at which water is absorbed from 15% to less than 3%. Through nano coating technology, a certain type of refrigerator packaging keeps 85% of its original strength in a room with 90% humidity.
Enhancer that is good for the environment: Cationic starch makes fibers stick together better by forming hydrogen bonds. Adding 1% can make the tensile strength go up by 30%. Epoxy-coated sodium bicarbonate microcapsules generate a microporous structure by releasing gas, which makes them lighter and better at compressing.
2. The process of forming involves vacuum suction and making the structure stronger.
When making packaging for home appliances, you need to find a balance between accuracy and speed. Some of the most common tools and methods used today are:
Method of vacuum suction molding:
Drum-type machines are good for making large, standardized products like refrigerator base trays. They make things more efficient by rotating them continuously, but they cost more to make molds.
Round trip lifting equipment: a set of concave molds and a set of convex molds work together to lift things. This doesn't require CNC center processing. It's good for packing small batches of home appliances that aren't standard (like washing machine liners). The production cycle is limited to 10 days.
Molding with help from compressed air: By speeding up the deposition of fibers using positive pressure, the molding time is cut by 30% and the density of the product is more even.
Design for structural reinforcement:
Honeycomb structure: This design looks like the hexagonal unit organization of a honeycomb. In a 1-meter drop test, it cut the peak acceleration of the washing machine packing by 27%.
Gradient density structure: By adjusting the density of the fiber deposition, the packing surface density is high to withstand impact, while the inside density is low to absorb energy. With this technique, Apple has made phone packaging 20% thinner while keeping the same level of protection.
Making ribs and cavities stronger: Using high-temperature and high-pressure composite to make multi-layer composite structures in TV packaging that are 30% to 50% stronger against compression.
3. Drying and shaping: hot pressing and controlling the parameters
The drying process has a direct impact on the packaging's mechanical qualities and dimensional stability:
Drying with mold: The product is dried inside the mold with a dimensional accuracy of ± 0.1mm. This is good for high-end home appliance packing, including liner for precision air conditioning. One company employs a fuel furnace to heat its buildings and adjusts the temperature of the machine head, tail, and center heating portions to make the drying process 40% more efficient.
Demolding and drying: Once the product is taken out of the mold, it is dried at a reduced cost but with a higher shrinkage rate. Adding 0.5% wet strength agent can cut the shrinkage rate from 5% to 1.5%.
Three parts of hot pressing and shaping:
Pressure: To make sure the fibers stick together well, the unit pressure of the projected area should be kept between 0.4 and 0.6 MPa.
The temperature within the mold cavity needs to be 180–200 °C to soften the hemicellulose and make hydrogen bonds.
Time: Change the time based on how thick the product is. It takes 30 to 50 seconds to shape it. By extending the hot pressing period to 60 seconds, a certain type of refrigerator packaging made the corner compressive strength 15% stronger.
4. Post-processing: making it more useful and better
Treatment of the surface
Waterproof coating: The container is sprayed with a water-based polyurethane or acrylic lotion, which makes it IPX4 waterproof.
Anti-static treatment: The graphene conductive coating keeps the surface resistance between 10 ⁶ and 10 ⁹ Ω/sq, which protects electronic parts from harm.
Etching and relief technology: Adding value to packaging by processing fine sand patterns or brand logo relief on the surface of the mold cavity. Three-dimensional relief technology has made the unboxing experience 30% better for high-end TVs.
Cutting and folding edges:
Ring cutting process: Cut 2 to 4 items at once, using a single-sided spacing of 10 to 15 mm to keep burrs to a minimum.
V-groove folding: When you use V-groove fixtures to process grooves with a "V" shape cross-section, the two sides of the folded groove fit together securely, making the structure more stable.
Checking the quality:
Use a universal material testing machine to put 500 kg of pressure on the packing and see if it deforms by less than 3 mm.
Drop test: Check for functional damage to the product by dropping it from a height of 1 meter.
Passed the EU EN13432 biodegradable standard and the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certification to meet export criteria.
