BOPP – BIAXIALLY ORIENTED POLYPROPYLENE.

Aim: The main aim of this report is to identify and highlight the importance of BOPP in
the field of Packaging, areas of application, market size, manufacturing process of BOPP,
the different conversions that can be done using BOPP and some of the important
considerations that need to be taken into account during the manufacturing of BOPP.

The Indian Polymer industry: Today, the size of the global chemical industry is
approximately US$ 2 trillion. Petrochemicals is the largest segment in the chemical
industry accounting for about 40%. The Indian petrochemical industry, though only a few
decades old, has been deeply influenced by the developments in this industry worldwide.
There had been more frequent exchange of views, ideas and technology between the
global fraternity and the Indian industry. With the liberalization of the Indian economy
and the lowering of tariff levels, the pace of integration with the global industry has
accelerated. A decade back, India used to have major dependency on the import of
polymers. Today we are a significant exporter. Over past two decades, the plastics
industry has transformed from a being a slow and small enterprise to being one of the top
ten vibrant industries in the world.

Petrochemicals are derived from petroleum products (mainly naphtha) or natural gas.
Through the process of catalytic cracking, these feedstock’s give rise to six main
petrochemical building blocks for downstream production. These are olefins
(ethylene, propylene and butadiene) and aromatics (benzene, toluene and xylenes).
Basic petrochemicals are further processed into polymers, fibers, surfactants and
chemicals for various applications. The major demand for basic petrochemicals is for
commodity polymers such as polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyvinyl
Chloride (PVC) and polystyrene (PS) – which are used in various products.

At present, the Indian petrochemical industry ranks 13th in the world and the Indian
polymer industry accounts for 2.5% of global production. Although Indian demand is
small compared to global standards, this is among the fastest growing markets in the
world, due to a larger presence of traditional materials, there are greater opportunities for
substitution and consequently accelerated growth prospect for the polymer industry. India
has shown a significantly higher growth rate in polymer consumption in the last five
years which is higher than China and other Asian countries.

Introduction to BOPP: BOPP or Biaxially Oriented Poly Propylene was introduced

about 30 years ago as a supplement to cellophane but only recently it was realized that it
would be the world leader and the most preferred material for functional flexible
packaging. Biaxially Oriented" means that the polypropylene film is stretched in both the
machine direction (MD) and cross direction (CD). Because of its superior strength at low
gauges, flatness, clarity and excellent printability, BOPP has become a major material for
flexible packaging. BOPP can be manufactured as heat sealable or as non heat sealable
material and in either case produced as white opaque, pearl luster or clear transparent
films. Certain additives are usually added to improve its properties relating to slip,
blocking, modifying the heat seal temperature and anti static requirements (discussed in
detail below). The basic BOPP manufacturing plant comprises of compounding and
feeding, extrusion, casting, orientation, gauging, winding, recycle, Corona treating and
profile control systems. The main line plant is imported and auxiliary equipment and
utilities are indigenously obtained. The first Indian BOPP unit to come up was MM
Rubber in Tamilnadu closely followed by Cosmo films in Maharashtra and later by M P
United Polypropylene Ltd. At present, seven units are in operation, though thirty two
units took license for this activity. The present installed capacity is 17000 tonnes and
production during 1990-91 was 8400 tonnes. Cosmo films have the largest capacity of
4000 TPA followed by Biax Ltd with 3900 TPA.
The above figure is a graphical representation of some of the major manufacturers of
BOPP in the world.

Global BOPP Market Scenario: Global annual average demand-growth for bi-
oriented polypropylene film is set to drop by about 2% in the next few years. Capacity,
however, is set to expand by 33%, which could make for an interesting combat for
market share. These are figures released by PCI Films Consulting. The study examines
the BOPP film market from 2003-2008 and predicts where it is headed for the period
2008-2013. PCI predicts that demand will fall in every region, though that fall will be
most pronounced as a percent of total demand in Western Europe, the only region where
demand fell in 2008. The US$15 bln BOPP film industry experienced more positive
buyer behavior in other regions, Growth in demand was seen in Eastern Europe, propped
by investment in retailing, food processing and new converting equipment. In South East
Asia, especially India, growth was stimulated by increased availability of film. North
America experienced a 3% growth in demand in 2008 owing to the buoyant Mexican
market, whereas demand in Central and South America remained relatively stable. Due to
recent capital investment, supply and demand in China’s 1.8 mln ton market became
more balanced, encouraging suppliers to plan the next expansion phase of their industry
In South East Asia, especially India; growth was stimulated by increased availability of
film. A leading manufacturer of film extrusion equipment has sold 10 new lines to China
in 2009, equivalent to 375,000 tons of new capacity.

Demand and supply of bi-oriented polypropylene (BOPP) film is set to see strongest
growth in nations such as Dubai, India and China as the current order in the sector swings
from West to East. The report also confirms that the Middle Eastern BOPP film industry
is expected to emerge as a significant regional production center in the future, doubling
its size in the next three years. One of the major factors driving this growth is the support
given by regional governments to downstream industries, which are capable of adding
value to oil assets. PP resin production, film extrusion, flexible packaging, and food
processing are all industries targeted for expansion in the region. Limited regional
demand, however, means processors there will be pressed to find customers in export
markets. In the next five years an additional 2.3 mln tons of new BOPP film capacity is
expected to be commissioned, expanding the industry by a third, which will likely will
cause a shakeup not only in the market’s leadership but also in its pricing structure.
Middle Eastern BOPP film producers are confident of strong regional demand growth
from flexible packaging customers and increased opportunities to export volume based
on their lower costs of production. The report predicts that between 2009 and 2014 there
will be a strategic shift in the balance of power away from the traditional suppliers of
BOPP film. Previous market leaders such as Treofan and ExxonMobil, have already had
to make room for new players such as Dubai-based Taghleef Industries and others
emerging in India and China. In the last five years, Taghleef has invested in new low-cost
equipment and also bought regionally based assets such as Radici Film, to emerge as one
of the world’s largest BOPP film producers with a world-wide network of supply.
The Central and East Asian region, which includes South Korea, Japan and China, is now
the world’s largest producer and consumer of BOPP films accounting for 46% of demand
and capacity. The world BOPP film industry has expanded by 60% since 2003 with
China commissioning the majority of new capacity. In 2008, while Asia saw demand
grow by 7%, BOPP volume demand in Western Europe shrunk by 3.1%.
The use of BOPP in Packaging: In today’s world, technological advances have
changed people in general to become more practical and efficient, including in their
choice of packaging for a product. The improvements in people's economic welfare have
stimulated the demand for more hygienic and esthetic packaging to attract buyers. As a
result of tight competition, packaging is no longer a supporting element in the distribution
of goods but has become a factor determining marketing success, particularly for
consumer goods. As a result there as been a shift in the role of packaging, plastic film,
especially BOPP film is becoming a popular alternative material for the flexible
packaging industry. BOPP film is not only more cost efficient than other materials, such
as cellophane film, kraft paper and aluminium, but also has greater resistance to pull and
shock, temperature changes and gas penetration. BOPP film also has an advantage in its
physical appearance due to technological advances in flexible packaging and rotogravure
printing.

BOPP film is the most popular plastic film for flexible packaging as a substitute for
cellophane film because of its quality. It is not only more attractive in physical
appearance but also more resistant to humidity. BOPP film is produced in the form of
plain and special film.

BOPP film is used for the packaging of various products, including food products and
cigarettes, as well as for producing adhesive tape. As such by function, there are six types
of BOPP film namely, plain film, heat sealable film, white pearlescent film,
metallizable/metallized film and PVdC coated film. The demand for BOPP film for food
products is very dominant at the moment as a result of the rapid growth of food industries
in the country, such as instant noodle, snack food and biscuit industries. Around 55% of
the national BOPP film production is used for the packaging of food products. The
cigarette industry also uses BOPP film in significant quantities, accounting for around
16% of the national BOPP film production. The other industries contributing to the
growth of the BOPP film industry in the country include the adhesive tape, album and
laminating industries.

The strong demand for BOPP film has encouraged investors to go into the BOPP film
industry, as indicated by the existing investment plans in the industry. In view of its rapid
growth as a relatively new industry, it is interesting to have a close look at the BOPP film
industry in the country to find out its prospects.

Types of BOPP: The different types of BOPP films used in the market are as follows:

→ Transparent and Opaque Non heat sealable film: This grade of film is generally
used in conjunction with wax coated paper. Non heat sealable films are used for pressure
sensitive tapes, over lay in print lamination, as release agents in decorative laminates and
most importantly in lamination with other substrates selected to add sealability and other
characteristics. If an opaque film is used, it further reduces light penetration and protects
the products against UV radiations.
→ Transparent, heat sealable film: This grade of film is mostly used to pack all snack
products, either alone or as a laminate with other films. These films are manufactured in
combination with several materials such as E.P. co-polymers and broad seal range
polymers. This grade of BOPP is the most economic and widely used film.
→ Opaque, Heat sealable film: Generally, opaque films are white pigmented to act as a
light barrier. The opacity of the film can be upto 80 to 90%, thus preventing the product
from rancidity which is caused due to the exposure of UV light. This grade of film is
usually used in the packing of biscuits, wafers, potato wafers, cough lozenges etc.
→ Pearlised BOPP: Apart from being opaque, this film can also provide a shiny, eye
catching, pearl appeal. Further its low density enables the convertor to pack more
products per quantity of film. Due to these two properties, the pearlised film is mainly
used to pack confectionery.
→ Metalized, Heat sealable film: Metallization is the process of depositing a thin layer
of aluminium over the film under vacuum. The deposition of aluminium drastically
improves the light, moisture vapor and oxygen barrier of metalized film. Further it
eliminates the problem of pin holes, poor flex resistance which is often encountered in
bare aluminium foil. An optical density of about 2.0 is maintained to achieve better
barrier properties. This film is either available alone or as a laminate with other films and
is commonly used in the packaging of cream biscuits, stuffed biscuits, pan masala, supari
and so on.
The above diagram shows the consumption level in India of the different types of BOPP
films as discussed above.

Features and Applications of BOPP: Bopp film combines several good qualities
to make itself a very versatile and cost effective construction. Some of the properties or
good qualities of BOPP are as follows:
→ Yield: Compared to all other plastics, BOPP has the lowest specific gravity and for
the same weight and thickness it yields more area than any other packaging film.
→ Tensile Strength: Tensile strength is a crucial parameter for certain applications such
as pressure sensitive tapes. BOPP films have higher tensile strengths compared to other
films. The outstanding feature of BOPP is its unique combination of strength with
economy.
→ Moisture absorbing capacity: BOPP has the lowest absorption rate. This very factor
underlines its importance as a superior packaging material in providing protection to the
packed contents. This property is also very useful and helpful in applications such as
print laminations, tea chest linings to pack water sensitive products.
→ Moisture vapor transmission rate (MVTR): BOPP has low MVTR which enables
the ability to protect packaged food products from the accumulation of moisture which in
turn increases shelf life of the products. Therefore this property of the BOPP film is
highly suitable for the packaging of biscuits, snack foods and confectionery.
→ Tear Strength: BOPP by far has the best tear strength compared to all other films.
This property signifies the stress it can take before snapping. BOPP has very high tear
initiation strength. Low tear propagation of BOPP can also be used as an advantage by
providing notches to a sealed pack to enable the consumer to tear open the pack with
ease.
→ BOPP films have outstanding optics and gloss/transparency which is among the best
compared to any other material.
→ BOPP films have good barriers to flavors and aromas especially at the concentration
level which is usually encountered in packaging products.
→ BOPP films are produced by melt extrusions at very high temperatures and therefore
are totally sterile when produced. Furthermore the surface does not promote any
microbial growth and hence is very convenient for food packaging, aseptic packaging and
retortable packaging.
→ BOPP films are eminently suitable for the purpose of conversion. They are highly
amendable to all operations like printing, coating, lamination, and metallization and
pouching.
→ BOPP films can be pearlised or cavitated. This gives the films a unique pearlescent
appearance which makes for excellent aesthetics. These films can also hide the fats
present in chocolates and high fat biscuits which tend to leave an oily satin when in
contact with other flexible packaging film.

Some of the other special properties of BOPP are:

• BOPP films have excellent properties of printability at high speeds.

• BOPP films have good ink adhesion capability.
• BOPP films have outstanding machinability. I.e. they do not stick to the crimp
heat seal jaws.
• Good antistatic / Low static charge.
• BOPP’s can be sealed at low temperatures.
The above diagram shows a comparison between BOPP and other Poly Ethylene’s
namely CPP and LDPE.

The typical applications of BOPP are:

→ Plain BOPP film:

• Industrial tapes (25-40 mic): Such as Pressure sensitive tapes.

• Lamination (10-20 mic): BOPP films are widely used as a laminate on book
covers, brochures, catalogues, shopping bags, carton boxes, cosmetic
boxes, restaurant menus, film to film laminate.

• Food packing (20-40 mic): BOPP in food packaging is basically used for making
printed laminated pouches and Metalized pouches to store and preserve food.
Some of the other areas where plain film BOPP is used are in Tea chest lining, flower
over-wrapping, textiles, cable over-wrappings, photo albums, release film, biscuit inner-
wraps, envelope windows, tear tapes and stationery.

→ Co-Extruded BOPP film:

Over wrapping (18-23 mic)
• Ο ver wrapping: Co Extruded BOPP films are used as an over wrapper in Cigarette
cartons, audio/video cassette boxes, blade boxes, toffees and candies.
• Co Extruded BOPP films are also used for various general packaging purposes
such as in the packing of snack food, bakery products, cosmetics, 2 minute
noodles, textiles, bread and also as twist wraps. A special grade of BOPP films
known as the Super Seal BOPP is used for the packaging of food grain and sugar.

The above diagram is a graphical representation of the consumption of BOPP for the
packaging of different products.

Manufacturing process of BOPP: The basic raw material used for the
manufacturing of BOPP film is Polypropylene resin. Biaxial orientation is a process in
which a continuous cast film is heated to bring it to a stretchable temperature and
thereafter it is stretched in machine and then in transverse direction. Biaxial orientation of
polypropylene (BOPP) film is done by two methods
• Tenter frame process and
• Double bubble process

→ Tenter Frame Process: Tenter frame process is a very expensive way of

processing BOPP film. However it has become popular due to higher production rate
with very thin and wide width film. (Fig. 1)

• Extruders used in Tenter frame process: Extruders with a diameter up to 150 to

200 mm and screws having L/D of 26:1 to 30:1 are more popular.

• Dies used in Tenter frame process: Here 600 to 1500 mm wide coat hanger type
of dies are used.
• Casting & Quenching: The molten polymer extruded from the die is placed
against a chill roll or multiple chill rolls. The most popular being casting onto a
chill roll partially submerged in a water bath. The chill roll and water bath
temperatures are generally 20 to 25°C. Usually, these chill rolls are 1000 to 2000
mm in diameter and approximately 1000 to 1500 mm wide. The surface of the
chill roll must be very smooth; pitting or irregularities on the surface of the roller
will influence the film quality. An air knife is used to force proper contact of
molten polymer against the casting roll. The cooled web proceeds towards the
machine direction orientation section.
• Machine Direction Orientation (MDO): The base sheet is alternatively heated
by passing it over the heated rollers (145 - 150°C) to achieve uniform heating of
web throughout its thickness. These rollers are usually smaller in diameter (450
to 600mm) compared to the casting drums (chilled rolls). When the film reaches
the necessary stretching temperature, it is passed over a series of stretching rolls
which are usually arranged in pairs. Each pair has a rubber nip roll to prevent
slipping of the web while stretching. These first set of nip rollers are run at a
speed similar to preheat rollers. The next set of rollers is operated at higher
speeds than the first set of nip rollers. Usually the stretch ratio is kept between
4:1 and 6:1. From the stretching rollers, the film is passed on to a series of
annealing rollers, which are heated to a temperature, adequate to prevent
shrinkage in the machine direction (MD) of the web.

• Transverse Direction Orientation (TDO): From the machine direction orienter,

the film is guided on to the chain, containing clips which close on to the film. A
rail guides the chain with clips to preheating section, where the film is heated
with hot air at 160°C, slightly below the melting point of polypropylene.
As the film leaves the preheat section of the oven, the chain diverges quite rapidly to a
Ratio of 8:1 to 10:1. The film is then passed on to annealing oven where it is maintained
at 155°C to reduce the shrinkage of the film. Usually the tenter frame run at line speeds
of 200 to 300 meters/min.

• Winding: Edges of the film remain thick, as they are in the clips while the film is
being stretched. These edges are then trimmed off as the film leaves the tenter
frame. The wide film is slit into the required width by rotating knives and wound
on to separate winders.

→ Double Bubble Process: The equipment for this process is small compared to
that of tenter frame process. It is difficult to produce thin film in double bubble process.
The output in term of quantity and width of the film is also very low compared to that in
tenter frame.
• Extruders used in Double Film Process: Generally 50 mm to 75 mm extruders
are used

• Dies: Circular dies of 150 to 200 mm diameters are more popular

• Quenching: The extruded tube from the die is directly taken into the quenching
bath (20-25°C) collapsed between the nip rollers located at the bottom of the
quench bath. The film is then taken up to second set of nip rollers via a drying
unit. The water is stripped in the drying unit.
 • Preheating: The tube in its flattened state is heated (at 150 to 160°C) either by IR
heaters or hot air. The heated tube is inflated to its new dimensions, which is
usually 5 to 6 times its original diameter. With the third set of nip rollers, the film
is stretched in the machine direction at the ratio of 5:1 to 6:1.

A set of cooling rings are used to cool the inflated bubble prior to being collapsed. The
collapsed tube is then slit on both the edges and the web is then separated before winding.

However, the Tenter process is the most widely practiced and fast growing method for
producing BOPP films.
Different conversions that can be done using BOPP: A majority of BOPP
films have to converted and it is estimated that over 70% of all BOPP films used in the
developed markets have to undergo a conversion process. Therefore BOPP films are
specifically tailored to meet the end use requirement. The different conversion operations
associated with BOPP films are mainly the following:

→ Printing: BOPP films can be both surface printed as well as reverse printed
depending on either the ultimate structure or the size of the printing run. Surface printed
BOPP monoweb films are the most cost efficient packaging and due to this a large
majority of BOPP films used in the European market are surface printed. However the
requirement in India and USA is for a much higher quality of reproduction and therefore
the industry standards calls for reverse printing even though this process is more
expensive. The printing processes used for BOPP films are usually Rotogravure and
Flexography.

→ Lamination: BOPP films are quite often laminated either to themselves (for reverse
printed structures), metalized BOPP’s or to other substrates like LDPE, paper and board,
aluminium foil etc. The lamination processes used most commonly are dry laminations
and extruded laminations or coatings. However extruded lamination coatings are
economical only for large production lines. Lamination of BOPP films are well
established in India and various kinds of specialty adhesives are available for specific
applications.

→ Metalizing: Metalizing of BOPP films are done using a vacuum decomposition

process. The metal deposited is usually high purity aluminium. The production of a
matallizable grade of BOPP film is highly specialized and requires a very special film
formulation and surface treatment. It is also important to ensure that there is sufficient
good adhesion of metal to the film surface without resorting to a priming operation which
makes the film very expensive.

→ Coating: Coatings on BOPP films can be carried out on all kinds of conventional
coating equipment and the process depends on the actual coating being applied. The most
popularly used coatings on BOPP films are acrylics and PVDC. Acrylics impart gloss and
stiffness and provide a wider heat seal range. PVDC imparts gas barriers, gloss and also
heat sealability when used on a non sealable BOPP film. Coatings are applied on BOPP
films mainly for the following reasons:

• To obtain a wider heatseal range.

• To improve gloss.

• To impart a stiffer feel.

• To provide release- this is particularly important or cold seal applications and for
certain types of adhesive tapes.

Areas requiring attention while using BOPP films: There are some areas that
need to be specially looked into while using BOPP films. These cannot be called problem
areas but careful attention to these will result in getting optimum value and output from
the BOPP films. Some of these areas are:

→ Treatment: All BOPP films that have to be laminated to other substrates, converted
by printing, metalizing, coating etc need to be surface treated with corona discharge on
the surface where such an operation needs to be carried out. The normal recommended
level of treatment is 40 to 42 dynes.

→ Heatsealability: Most of the conventional BOPP films have an effective heatseal

range of around 120 to 130 degrees ‘C’. it is therefore very important to control the
temperature on the heat seal apparatus as excess temperature will result in the shrinkage
of the film. An important function of heat sealability is hot tack strength i.e. the ability of
the heat seal process to bond together at higher temperatures which is encountered during
the heat seal process. This is particularly important for Vertical Form Fill Seal machine
operations where often the seal has to carry the weight of the product until it cools and
sets.

→ Static: BOPP films have the tendency to dis-charge static forces on the surface
particularly when running over machine parts during conversion or packaging operations.
These static charges tend to cause the film to stick to machine parts and causes machine
feeding problems. Even though it is possible to incorporate a certain amount of anti-static
additives in the film, it is important for all the equipments running BOPP films to be
ideally equipped with anti static devices for removing or neutralizing the charges
developed.

→ Stiffness: This is one of the major concerns in the packaging operation. Usually the
problems if any would involve modifications in the feeding system for the film. The best
solution to avoid this problem of stiffness is to slightly increase the thickness of the film.

→ Dead fold: BOPP films have very low dead fold properties because the PP resins has
a property that always tends to make it go back to its original configuration. This is a very
important consideration which needs to be taken into account while designing packaging
machines for BOPP films. E.g. twist wrapping machines. Extensive research is being
carried out into modifying the resin formulation so as to impart the dead fold property of
the BOPP films. However this is sure to take some time.

→ Cutting: It is important for the knives used to cut the BOPP films to be kept sharp at
all times. This means using the right material and cutting angles for the knives. It is
advisable that the knives used for cutting the BOPP films be kept and used solely for the
purpose of BOPP film cutting as performing other jobs may result in blunting of the
blades or knives.

→ Slip: It is important to get the right slip on the surface of the BOPP films. Usually the
film has to be tailored for the right amount of slip for specific applications. There would
be no problem if the film manufacturer is advised before hand about the end use
condition so that the film formulation can be suitably tailored.
Conclusion: BOPP is a growing market. Some markets in Europe are under pressure to
consolidate and other markets like India and China still see new players joining the game.
However the main challenge for BOPP manufacturers across the globe is to balance their
production efficiency with their increasing customer requirements and to cope with the
increasing volatility of raw material costs. Some of the ways forward could be by:

→ continuing to add value to the business by:

• Supply chain optimization such as rolling stocks, consignment stocks etc.
• Joint developments and to
• Improve product offerings like metalized barrier films, UV light barrier films and
cost effective oxygen and moisture barrier films.

Despite the above mentioned challenges, BOPP continues to be a profitable industry with
high growth rates, a fragmented convertor customer base and high barriers to entry, but
the reality is that there appears to be no shortage of capital to fund new plants so that the
business is continually plagued by over-investment resulting in persistent oversupply,
weak pricing and poor returns with an increasingly powerful and globalized customer
base.