Influence of different box preparations on creep performance of corrugated fibreboard boxes subject to constant and cycling relative humidity environments

Abstract

To understand the effect of load and relative humidity (RH) on box creep in cool storage conditions, standard tests are performed. However, these test conditions are oversimplified compared with actual shipping conditions. Our aim is to develop test conditions that more closely mimic those encountered during refrigerated conditions to investigate their influence on creep performance and box lifetime. We compared three box preparations: (i) empty boxes used as a control, (ii) filled boxes, and (iii) boxes with only two side panels exposed to the atmosphere. A controlled environment test facility was used to subject sets of 24 boxes to 30% of their ultimate failure load under different cyclic and constant relative humidity conditions. Results indicate that filled boxes had substantially reduced performance in terms of secondary creep rate and lifetime. The fill in the box contributed to out-of-plane displacement of the side panels which manifested earlier than in the control, resulting in a higher creep rate. Boxes with only two exposed panels had lower moisture uptake and performed substantially better than the control. These findings demonstrate how creep performance and box lifetime depend on the box conditions including fill and the area of the box that is exposed for moisture transfer. Alternative box preparations which mimic supply chain conditions are worthy of investigation in creep analysis as they will help predict more accurately box performance in the cold supply chain.

Creep behaviour of day‐old chicken corrugated paperboard packaging under different uniaxial compression loads—An experimental study

“…29 Several researchers have investigated the so-called creep deformation of corrugated board and its components under constant load. [30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41] The studies concluded that cyclical changes in humidity generally cause higher creep rates than holding humidity constant. Other studies showed that the creep deformation has three stages: primary, secondary and tertiary (see Figure 2).…”

“…Several researchers have investigated the so‐called creep deformation of corrugated board and its components under constant load 30–41 . The studies concluded that cyclical changes in humidity generally cause higher creep rates than holding humidity constant.…”

Reinforcing folding board boxes by printing a PLA patterned grid on their panels: A new approach for lightweighting stiff packaging

“…These phenomena are strongly affected by environmental conditions (i.e., air humidity) 6 as well as by loading time as folding board boxes can exhibit creep behaviour 7 . Note that variations in air humidity can also promote these creep phenomena 8 …”

“…7 Note that variations in air humidity can also promote these creep phenomena. 8 As the compression resistance of the folding board box is related to the buckling behaviour of panels, it greatly depends on the bending stiffness of the folding board. [9][10][11] Designing ribbed plate or shell structures is relevant to improve the moment of inertia of the cross section and accordingly the bending stiffness to weight ratio of materials.…”