Steve Katz, Associate Editor03.07.22
Corona. We’re all familiar with the iconic Mexican beer, and now we’re way too familiar with the virus. But long before the word became associated with the life-altering pandemic, those of us in the labels and package printing industry have known the term to be synonymous with air plasma and surface – or substrate – modification. In fact, if you’re using search engines to find information on the corona treatment we’re about to discuss, you’ll need to add words like “printing” and “converting” to your search query. Nowadays, a search for “corona treatment” returns just what you think – information on vaccines, medicines, Covid symptoms and the like.
All of that is neither here nor there, as within the pages of L&NW, the corona treatment we discuss is the surface modification technique that uses a low temperature corona discharge plasma to impart changes in the properties of a surface. All materials have an inherent surface energy. Surface treatment systems are available for virtually any surface format, including dimensional objects, sheets and roll goods that are handled in a web format. Corona treatment is a widely used surface treatment method in the plastic film, extrusion, and converting industries.
The history of the corona treatment process begins in 1951, when it was invented by Danish engineer Verner Eisby. Eisby had been asked by one of his customers if he could find a solution that would make it possible to print on plastic. Verner found that there were already a couple of ways to accomplish this. One was a gas flame method and the other was a spark generating method, both of which were crude and uncontrollable and did not produce a homogeneous product. Verner came up with the theory that a high frequency corona discharge would provide both a more efficient and controllable method to treat the surface. Exhaustive experiments proved him to be correct. Verner’s company, Vetaphone, obtained patent rights for the new corona treatment system.
Today there a several companies specializing in corona treatment, and what follows are product descriptions, as well as thoughts on label industry trends and how they relate to the need for corona treatment in today’s evolving label converting industry.
VETAPHONE
Kevin McKell, vice president of sales and marketing at Vetaphone, emphasizes how there’s been an increase in demand across the package printing sector for added-value techniques that make for greater on-shelf visual impact. “These additional techniques have brought about the development of new substrates that have more complex chemistry and therefore require more careful and sophisticated processing,” he explains, adding, “With line speeds continuing to increase, securing adhesion of inks, lacquers and adhesives to these new substrates requires a detailed understanding and fine control of the surface treatment process if converters are to get it right the first time, every time. In today’s highly competitive marketplace, nobody can afford to miss a deadline or have to reprint a job.”
Vetaphone enjoys a market share of more than 80% in the narrow web sector, McKell says, and this relates to the company’s popular and reliable VE1A model, which has become standard-fit with most of the major narrow web technology manufacturers. “Its modular design makes it highly configurable, as well as easy to install, service and maintain. But it’s Vetaphone’s ‘intelligent’ iCorona generators that make the difference and sets the company’s technology apart because of the level of control they offer,” says McKell.
With the continued increase in production speeds and the use of more complex substrates, Vetaphone has developed the VE1A-M model, which combines higher speed and higher power (corona dosage) requirements. “There is a misconception in the industry that a higher dosage requirement equates simply to higher power,” Mckell says. “What’s really needed is carefully-controlled application of the corona discharge so that the delicate substrate is not damaged. Think of it as the difference between a delicate suntan and a harmful sunburn!”
Vetaphone supplies systems worldwide to OEMs and end-user customers alike, and has a global network to support this. “Corona treatment is vitally important to the label printing process and supporting customers at every stage is essential. That’s why a key part of our team support involves education and the sharing of knowledge,” says McKell.
To further advance surface treatment education, recently Vetaphone opened unique Test Lab facilities adjacent to its fully-equipped showroom in Denmark. “The first allows us to test the performance of inks, lacquers, and adhesives with a variety of substrates prior to converters committing to commercial production – the second allows us to demonstrate online or in-person our full range of technology to potential and existing users. This is another Vetaphone first in that it allows us to take our technology to customers wherever they are in the world and give a more meaningful demonstration of its ability than was ever possible on the booth of a trade show.”
Corotec
Changes in chemistries during the production of plastics, papers, films, and metalized products is happening rapidly, and according to Tom Ignatowski, president of Corotec, these changes are playing a crucial role in the demand for surface treatment.
“Every producer is trying to develop ways of making their product increasingly more eco-friendly while meeting the high demands of their end uses,” Ignatowski says. “To achieve this, the production of polymers, petrochemicals, metals, as well as paper products, are changing in order to produce products that are biodegradable, recyclable and overall, less harmful to the environment.”
Through these changes, Ignatowski explains, the adhesion effects of plasma and corona treatment are also evolving. “What was working in the past – regarding setups, power levels, process parameters and other considerations – is also changing to accommodate this trend.
Furthermore, the industry is always trying to develop new products in order to satisfy customer demands, yet maintain an environmentally friendlier product. For example, the development of UV-cured products, shrink wrapping products and others are creating a demand for enhanced performance through materials and chemistries.”
Changes in chemistries are demanding more flexibility, as well as minimizing down-time. “Achieving this begins with having fast, simple installations,” Ignatowski says.
Corotec’s UNI product line is made to streamline the installation by mounting a one piece design to the press that incorporates both the power and treating station. Ignatowski explains, “Simply connect up a vent hose, plug into a standard 110-VAC wall outlet and begin making product.”
After installation, production needs to be flexible. He adds, “Every material is different. Some work is better at more efficiently running covered rolls with standard electrodes, and some work better with bare rolls and ceramic electrodes, while some products require a covered roll and ceramic electrodes for a softer corona treatment field.”
Corotec’s UNI product line provides the flexibility of running any of the aforementioned methods, he says. With Corotec’s cassette design, flexibility can be easily achieved to accommodate the changing products.
“These same cassette style designs are also incorporated into our wider web applications,” Ignatowski says, adding, “Lastly, Corotec customers want a reliable, repeatable process where changes in the production runs are minimized. With this in mind, a new operator interface provides the ability to see trending, signal alarms of undertreatment, as well as provide maintenance and troubleshooting information.
“Signaling these points of interest to the operator, while also providing the ability to capture and record this information to a centralized process recording device through ethernet connection, is an important step in record keeping of product runs,” states Ignatowski.
Corotec’s Plasma-Jet power supplies provide the same flexibility for 3D treating applications. Power supplies simply plug into the wall, allowing quick, simple startup installations. These 3D treaters are made to be flexible and treat various shaped products with multiple head configurations and built-in alarm outputs.
Corotec has a number of new designs in process, all incorporating the features of flexibility, more intelligence and ease of maintenance. A new UNI design is expected to be out later this year, with an emphasis on flexibility. Ignatowksi says, “The design will be based off the highly reliable current UNI power supply design, yet will include new features for remote operation, easy installation and full featured operator interface. All of this, while providing an easy customization of the output to run any product thrown in its path and a new soft glow technology for sensitive materials. We’re also working on methods of treating thicker materials used for wider, flat stock applications where flame treatment or other methods are sometimes used. We expect this product to provide customers running these products an alternative to their current methods of treatment.”
As of January 1, 2022, Corotec has become part of the Inductotherm Group of companies. The Inductotherm Group of companies have provided customers around the world with some of the most advanced processing equipment and systems ever made for the past 60 years.
“Corotec is proud to become part of this group of companies. Furthermore, Corotec has moved into the building of Thermatool Corporation, also one of the Inductotherm Group of companies. With this move, we are now integrated into an over 80,000 square foot facility with worldwide sales, service, design, machining and assembly expertise.
“We strive to be a company that is easy to work with and always being available for their customers when assistance is needed. Our job is to help our customers make their products more efficiently, with less down-time,” Ignatowksi says.
ENERCON
“Corona treatment is a mainstay technology for both digital and flexographic printing, as well as for coating applications,” states Mark Plantier, VP of marketing and communication, Enercon Industries. “The mission of the corona treater is to optimize surfaces for better adhesion. It does this by cleaning, etching and functionalizing surfaces to improve wettability, create additional bonding sites and adding surface polarity.”
For some applications, Plantier explains, printing and coating would not be possible without corona treating. “For others, corona treatment acts as an insurance policy for converters to ensure surfaces are ready for bonding. Over time, converting applications have come to depend on inline corona treating more and more. From an environmental perspective, corona treating enables converters to move away from solvent inks to water-based inks. It’s also worth noting that narrow web printing and coating lines do far more than convert labels today. Converting flexible packaging on these lines involves a wider range of more complex engineered films. Most of these films have inherently low surface energy and are hydrophobic. Corona treatment increases these films’ surface energy to make them hydrophilic,” he says.
Enercon’s CoronaFlex corona treater is specifically designed for narrow web applications. It features high-powered ceramic electrodes with an option for High Definition Corona, which produces a uniform corona discharge yielding better treatment results. It allows converters to treat both conductive and non-conductive films, which provides them with more flexibility on the jobs their operations can print.
“One of the biggest developments is in the area of corona treater power supplies and their interface,” Plantier says. “Enercon’s new Compak Pro Series features a large touchscreen interface, which provides operators with local control, advanced diagnostics, maintenance reminders, troubleshooting assistance and more. It also offers remote network control, a handy USB port for downloading data and software updates, as well as artificial intelligence, which takes a digital snapshot of all operating parameters if a fault ever occurs.”
Plantier points out that Enercon is recognized as having the widest range of surface treating technologies in the marketplace with corona, atmospheric plasma and flame capabilities. He says, “Plasma is used for applications where materials are not responsive to corona and we anticipate advanced film structures to be developed, which will make plasma technology more mainstream. As films and applications evolve, Enercon is ready to support this growth with custom equipment designs.”
Within the corona category, Enercon offers many different configurations that can be customized to meet unique requirements such as extremely high line speeds, special web handling or higher treatment levels. Plantier concludes, “Enercon is able to use its experience on wider applications from both film extrusion and converting to customize technologies for converters on a smaller scale. In fact, we’ve even designed a complete self-contained corona treating system with tension control and unwind-rewind capabilities for customers who need off-line corona treating. Also, we offer free lab trials to converters to test their applications, determine how much treatment is needed and which technology will work best for their operation.”
Ferrarini & Benelli
Ferrarini & Benelli, an Italian company specializing in the design and manufacturing of surface treatment systems, has devised what it calls the perfect solution for label and narrow web applications.
The ET 98 treatment system developed by Ferrarini & Benelli is marked by what the company says is great flexibility and can be installed on narrow web printing presses designed to be combined with a wide range of printing and finishing technologies. Examples are UV flexo, water or solvent based, rotogravure or offset printing, as well as specific finishing techniques such as embossing, aesthetic lacquering, varnishing and protective lamination.
ET 98 is equipped with an open-cartridge system facilitating film threading and, owing to the small size of each component of the system, installation on the customer’s production line is effortless, the company says. The discharge roller is coated with a conductive ceramic coating, which improves the frictional performances of the system and ensures optimal treatment results.
ET 98 comes with a generator with a digital control system and multilingual communication display. The system regulates treatment power according to the line speed while also displaying the discharge density and the value of set and delivered power.
A compact, flexible and adjustable system, ET 98 is designed to be ideal for the needs of high-quality labeling and packaging manufacturers who want to maximize production efficiency by increasing ink wettability and adhesion to their material while also reducing waste, time and costs, and upholding high-quality standards.
All of that is neither here nor there, as within the pages of L&NW, the corona treatment we discuss is the surface modification technique that uses a low temperature corona discharge plasma to impart changes in the properties of a surface. All materials have an inherent surface energy. Surface treatment systems are available for virtually any surface format, including dimensional objects, sheets and roll goods that are handled in a web format. Corona treatment is a widely used surface treatment method in the plastic film, extrusion, and converting industries.
The history of the corona treatment process begins in 1951, when it was invented by Danish engineer Verner Eisby. Eisby had been asked by one of his customers if he could find a solution that would make it possible to print on plastic. Verner found that there were already a couple of ways to accomplish this. One was a gas flame method and the other was a spark generating method, both of which were crude and uncontrollable and did not produce a homogeneous product. Verner came up with the theory that a high frequency corona discharge would provide both a more efficient and controllable method to treat the surface. Exhaustive experiments proved him to be correct. Verner’s company, Vetaphone, obtained patent rights for the new corona treatment system.
Today there a several companies specializing in corona treatment, and what follows are product descriptions, as well as thoughts on label industry trends and how they relate to the need for corona treatment in today’s evolving label converting industry.
VETAPHONE
Kevin McKell, vice president of sales and marketing at Vetaphone, emphasizes how there’s been an increase in demand across the package printing sector for added-value techniques that make for greater on-shelf visual impact. “These additional techniques have brought about the development of new substrates that have more complex chemistry and therefore require more careful and sophisticated processing,” he explains, adding, “With line speeds continuing to increase, securing adhesion of inks, lacquers and adhesives to these new substrates requires a detailed understanding and fine control of the surface treatment process if converters are to get it right the first time, every time. In today’s highly competitive marketplace, nobody can afford to miss a deadline or have to reprint a job.”
Vetaphone enjoys a market share of more than 80% in the narrow web sector, McKell says, and this relates to the company’s popular and reliable VE1A model, which has become standard-fit with most of the major narrow web technology manufacturers. “Its modular design makes it highly configurable, as well as easy to install, service and maintain. But it’s Vetaphone’s ‘intelligent’ iCorona generators that make the difference and sets the company’s technology apart because of the level of control they offer,” says McKell.
With the continued increase in production speeds and the use of more complex substrates, Vetaphone has developed the VE1A-M model, which combines higher speed and higher power (corona dosage) requirements. “There is a misconception in the industry that a higher dosage requirement equates simply to higher power,” Mckell says. “What’s really needed is carefully-controlled application of the corona discharge so that the delicate substrate is not damaged. Think of it as the difference between a delicate suntan and a harmful sunburn!”
Vetaphone supplies systems worldwide to OEMs and end-user customers alike, and has a global network to support this. “Corona treatment is vitally important to the label printing process and supporting customers at every stage is essential. That’s why a key part of our team support involves education and the sharing of knowledge,” says McKell.
To further advance surface treatment education, recently Vetaphone opened unique Test Lab facilities adjacent to its fully-equipped showroom in Denmark. “The first allows us to test the performance of inks, lacquers, and adhesives with a variety of substrates prior to converters committing to commercial production – the second allows us to demonstrate online or in-person our full range of technology to potential and existing users. This is another Vetaphone first in that it allows us to take our technology to customers wherever they are in the world and give a more meaningful demonstration of its ability than was ever possible on the booth of a trade show.”
Corotec
Changes in chemistries during the production of plastics, papers, films, and metalized products is happening rapidly, and according to Tom Ignatowski, president of Corotec, these changes are playing a crucial role in the demand for surface treatment.
“Every producer is trying to develop ways of making their product increasingly more eco-friendly while meeting the high demands of their end uses,” Ignatowski says. “To achieve this, the production of polymers, petrochemicals, metals, as well as paper products, are changing in order to produce products that are biodegradable, recyclable and overall, less harmful to the environment.”
Through these changes, Ignatowski explains, the adhesion effects of plasma and corona treatment are also evolving. “What was working in the past – regarding setups, power levels, process parameters and other considerations – is also changing to accommodate this trend.
Furthermore, the industry is always trying to develop new products in order to satisfy customer demands, yet maintain an environmentally friendlier product. For example, the development of UV-cured products, shrink wrapping products and others are creating a demand for enhanced performance through materials and chemistries.”
Changes in chemistries are demanding more flexibility, as well as minimizing down-time. “Achieving this begins with having fast, simple installations,” Ignatowski says.
Corotec’s UNI product line is made to streamline the installation by mounting a one piece design to the press that incorporates both the power and treating station. Ignatowski explains, “Simply connect up a vent hose, plug into a standard 110-VAC wall outlet and begin making product.”
After installation, production needs to be flexible. He adds, “Every material is different. Some work is better at more efficiently running covered rolls with standard electrodes, and some work better with bare rolls and ceramic electrodes, while some products require a covered roll and ceramic electrodes for a softer corona treatment field.”
Corotec’s UNI product line provides the flexibility of running any of the aforementioned methods, he says. With Corotec’s cassette design, flexibility can be easily achieved to accommodate the changing products.
“These same cassette style designs are also incorporated into our wider web applications,” Ignatowski says, adding, “Lastly, Corotec customers want a reliable, repeatable process where changes in the production runs are minimized. With this in mind, a new operator interface provides the ability to see trending, signal alarms of undertreatment, as well as provide maintenance and troubleshooting information.
“Signaling these points of interest to the operator, while also providing the ability to capture and record this information to a centralized process recording device through ethernet connection, is an important step in record keeping of product runs,” states Ignatowski.
Corotec’s Plasma-Jet power supplies provide the same flexibility for 3D treating applications. Power supplies simply plug into the wall, allowing quick, simple startup installations. These 3D treaters are made to be flexible and treat various shaped products with multiple head configurations and built-in alarm outputs.
Corotec has a number of new designs in process, all incorporating the features of flexibility, more intelligence and ease of maintenance. A new UNI design is expected to be out later this year, with an emphasis on flexibility. Ignatowksi says, “The design will be based off the highly reliable current UNI power supply design, yet will include new features for remote operation, easy installation and full featured operator interface. All of this, while providing an easy customization of the output to run any product thrown in its path and a new soft glow technology for sensitive materials. We’re also working on methods of treating thicker materials used for wider, flat stock applications where flame treatment or other methods are sometimes used. We expect this product to provide customers running these products an alternative to their current methods of treatment.”
As of January 1, 2022, Corotec has become part of the Inductotherm Group of companies. The Inductotherm Group of companies have provided customers around the world with some of the most advanced processing equipment and systems ever made for the past 60 years.
“Corotec is proud to become part of this group of companies. Furthermore, Corotec has moved into the building of Thermatool Corporation, also one of the Inductotherm Group of companies. With this move, we are now integrated into an over 80,000 square foot facility with worldwide sales, service, design, machining and assembly expertise.
“We strive to be a company that is easy to work with and always being available for their customers when assistance is needed. Our job is to help our customers make their products more efficiently, with less down-time,” Ignatowksi says.
ENERCON
“Corona treatment is a mainstay technology for both digital and flexographic printing, as well as for coating applications,” states Mark Plantier, VP of marketing and communication, Enercon Industries. “The mission of the corona treater is to optimize surfaces for better adhesion. It does this by cleaning, etching and functionalizing surfaces to improve wettability, create additional bonding sites and adding surface polarity.”
For some applications, Plantier explains, printing and coating would not be possible without corona treating. “For others, corona treatment acts as an insurance policy for converters to ensure surfaces are ready for bonding. Over time, converting applications have come to depend on inline corona treating more and more. From an environmental perspective, corona treating enables converters to move away from solvent inks to water-based inks. It’s also worth noting that narrow web printing and coating lines do far more than convert labels today. Converting flexible packaging on these lines involves a wider range of more complex engineered films. Most of these films have inherently low surface energy and are hydrophobic. Corona treatment increases these films’ surface energy to make them hydrophilic,” he says.
Enercon’s CoronaFlex corona treater is specifically designed for narrow web applications. It features high-powered ceramic electrodes with an option for High Definition Corona, which produces a uniform corona discharge yielding better treatment results. It allows converters to treat both conductive and non-conductive films, which provides them with more flexibility on the jobs their operations can print.
“One of the biggest developments is in the area of corona treater power supplies and their interface,” Plantier says. “Enercon’s new Compak Pro Series features a large touchscreen interface, which provides operators with local control, advanced diagnostics, maintenance reminders, troubleshooting assistance and more. It also offers remote network control, a handy USB port for downloading data and software updates, as well as artificial intelligence, which takes a digital snapshot of all operating parameters if a fault ever occurs.”
Plantier points out that Enercon is recognized as having the widest range of surface treating technologies in the marketplace with corona, atmospheric plasma and flame capabilities. He says, “Plasma is used for applications where materials are not responsive to corona and we anticipate advanced film structures to be developed, which will make plasma technology more mainstream. As films and applications evolve, Enercon is ready to support this growth with custom equipment designs.”
Within the corona category, Enercon offers many different configurations that can be customized to meet unique requirements such as extremely high line speeds, special web handling or higher treatment levels. Plantier concludes, “Enercon is able to use its experience on wider applications from both film extrusion and converting to customize technologies for converters on a smaller scale. In fact, we’ve even designed a complete self-contained corona treating system with tension control and unwind-rewind capabilities for customers who need off-line corona treating. Also, we offer free lab trials to converters to test their applications, determine how much treatment is needed and which technology will work best for their operation.”
Ferrarini & Benelli
Ferrarini & Benelli, an Italian company specializing in the design and manufacturing of surface treatment systems, has devised what it calls the perfect solution for label and narrow web applications.
The ET 98 treatment system developed by Ferrarini & Benelli is marked by what the company says is great flexibility and can be installed on narrow web printing presses designed to be combined with a wide range of printing and finishing technologies. Examples are UV flexo, water or solvent based, rotogravure or offset printing, as well as specific finishing techniques such as embossing, aesthetic lacquering, varnishing and protective lamination.
ET 98 is equipped with an open-cartridge system facilitating film threading and, owing to the small size of each component of the system, installation on the customer’s production line is effortless, the company says. The discharge roller is coated with a conductive ceramic coating, which improves the frictional performances of the system and ensures optimal treatment results.
ET 98 comes with a generator with a digital control system and multilingual communication display. The system regulates treatment power according to the line speed while also displaying the discharge density and the value of set and delivered power.
A compact, flexible and adjustable system, ET 98 is designed to be ideal for the needs of high-quality labeling and packaging manufacturers who want to maximize production efficiency by increasing ink wettability and adhesion to their material while also reducing waste, time and costs, and upholding high-quality standards.