BASF launches new packaging film for hair care products

- Film minimizes oxygen penetration

- Improves stability and shelf life of products 

Chemical company BASF has introduced a new thin plastic film packaging for the Luviskol range of high molecular weight powders, which has been designed to set new quality standards in keeping the powders more stable and protecting them against contact with oxygen and oxide penetration.
 
Luviskol powders are polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) polymers, which are key components in hair care products to give products such as styling gel and mousse their tightening properties.
 
PVP has been a successful product for many years. Around 70 years ago, BASF chemist Walter Reppe used acetylene and pyrrolidone to produce a new monomer called vinylpyrrolidone, which was then transformed into PVP.

Polyvinylpyrrolidone

PVP is water-soluble but can also absorb large quantities of water; it does not irritate the skin or pose a health hazard; and it is temperature-resistant, pH-stable, nonionic and colorless.
 
These properties make PVP suitable for countless applications. It is used in a variety of BASF product lines including: Kollidon, as a pharmaceutical excipient; Luvitec, to produce special membranes and special adhesives; Sokalan HP, as a detergent additive; and Divergan, in the filtration of beer and the treatment of wine.
 
BASF said that to keep Luviskol powders stable, you must minimize oxide penetration with a superior level of protection.
 

EVOH

The new thin packaging film is made of the same ethylene vinyl alcohol plastics (EVOH) that are used to package food. It keeps the oxygen in the air from penetrating through to the PVP powders and, because of EVOH’s first-rate sealing properties, the effect lasts for several years.
 
The packaging also has excellent chemical resistance and very good tensile strength, BASF said, and is impermeable to gases and fluids.

The multi-layer and heat-sealed plastic film is more environmentally friendly because it is completely aluminum-free.
 
Heike Kusche, global product management for PVP cosmetics at BASF, said: ‘Our customers can benefit from a long shelf life, a consistent high level of quality and even more stable Luviskol powders.’
 
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