Helium leak testing of composite cans in the food industry
Ensuring the tightness of food packaging with Pfeiffer Vacuum
The durability and integrity of food primarily depends on its packaging. Thanks to their manufacturing technology and their basic raw material, composite cans provide the best conditions for proper and sustainable storage.
A leading global provider of packaging is the Weidenhammer Packaging Group GmbH from Hockenheim, Germany. For almost 60 years, the company has been manufacturing composite cans and plastic containers for various products, pursuing the highest quality standards. In order to fulfill them, Weidenhammer Group has counted on the collaboration with Pfeiffer Vacuum for many years now.
The most important quality aspect is the tightness of the cans: If oxygen diffuses into the package, the food spoils quickly. Therefore, the manufacturer performs leakage tests to examine the composite cans for leakage.
Fig.1: Vacuum solution for the helium leak testing of sealed cans
For leak testing of composite cans a helium leak test is performed during production and after the last production step, following a given test plan. With the help of the test gas helium, the packaging is examined for possible leaks.
If a leak is detected, the production of the composite cans is stopped. In this case, the cause of the leak is sought in the previous process chain and eliminated.
The impact of modified parameters during the production process as well as new substances and materials can be immediately analyzed by leak testing. This allows for a targeted product development.
For this verification process, Pfeiffer Vacuum has designed a vacuum solution that is precisely tailored to the requirements of the customer and which is used at several production sites in various versions.
Read more about this state of the art technology in the attached application report.
Should you have any further question, do not hesitate to contact us.
