Closure (container)

Last updated
An aluminum bottle with a threaded aluminum screw closure Bottle Can.jpg
An aluminum bottle with a threaded aluminum screw closure

A closure is a device used to close or seal a container such as a bottle, jug, jar, tube, or can. A closure may be a cap, cover, lid, plug, liner, or the like. [1] The part of the container to which the closure is applied is called the finish. [2]

Contents

Other types of containers such as boxes and drums may also have closures but are not discussed in this article. Many containers and packages require a means of closing, which can be a separate device or seal or sometimes an integral latch or lock.

Purpose of closures

The closure is often the most critical part of a package, and must fulfill all of the basic functions of packaging in addition to being easy to open and (if applicable) reclose. [3]

Depending on the contents and container, closures have several functions:

Many types of packaging with their closures are regulated for strength, safety, security, communication, recycling, and environmental requirements plus many others.

Types of closures

Closures need a means of attaching to the container with sufficient security. Threads, lugs, hinges, locks, adhesives, etc. are used. Many plastic closures are made by injection molding. [6]

Many closures need to have the ability to adjust to slight manufacturing variation in the container and the closure structure. Some closures are made of flexible material such as cork, rubber, or plastic foam. Often an o-ring or a closure liner (gasket made of pulp or foam cap liner) is used. Linerless closures often use a deformable plastic rim or structure to maintain the seal.

Secondary seals are common with sensitive products that may deteriorate or where extra security is needed. Foil or plastic inner seals are used on some bottles, Heat sealed lidding films are used on some tubs. External shrink bands, labels, and tapes are sometimes used outside the primary closure structure. Additionally, many closures feature ventilation to prevent bloating, collapse or explosion due to unequalized pressure during processing or storage. Venting technologies utilize common materials such as PTFE, PP, etc. These elements are preferred due to their ability to withstand temperatures of 260 °C and water intrusion pressure levels of 770 mbar. [7]

Screw top

Closures Closures .jpg
Closures

A screw closure is a mechanical device which is screwed on and off of a threaded "finish" on a container. Either continuous threads (C-T) or lugs are used. Metal caps can be either preformed or in some instances, rolled on after application. Plastic caps may use several types of molded polymer.

Some screw tops have multiple pieces. For example, a mason jar often has a lid with a built in rubbery seal and a separate threaded ring or band.

Crown cap

Crown caps Bottle caps.jpg
Crown caps

Beverage bottles are frequently closed with crown beverage caps. These are shallow metal caps that are crimped into locking position around the head of the bottle.

Snap on

Some closures snap on. For opening, the top is designed to pry off or, break off, or have a built in dispenser.

Friction fit

Some containers have a loose lid for a closure. Laboratory glassware often has ground glass joints that allow the pieces to be fitted together easily.

An Interference fit or friction fit requires some force to close and open, providing additional security. Paint cans often have a friction fit plug.

Tamper-evident

Resistance to tampering is required for some types of products. Container closures can be one of several layers of packaging to deter tampering and to provide evidence of attempts at tampering. *Sometimes tamper resistance is obtained by a tamper-evident band; separate or integral with the closure. [8] [9] [10]

Dispensing

A wide variety of convenience dispensing features can be built into closures. Spray bottles and cans with aerosol spray (valves, actuator) have special closure requirements. Pour spouts, triggers, sprayer cap, measuring attachments, sifting devices, etc. are common caps.

Spray bottle

A spray bottle is a bottle that can dispense, squirt, spray or mist fluids. A common use for spray bottles is dispensing cool cleaners, cosmetics, and chemical specialties.

Child-resistant

Child-resistant packaging or C-R packaging has special closures designed to reduce the risk of children ingesting dangerous items. This is often accomplished by the use of a special safety cap. It is required by regulation for prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, pesticides, and household chemicals.

Examples

History

Early pottery and ceramic containers often had lids that fit reasonably snug onto the body of the container. The narrow necks of ancient amphora were closed with a plug of cork, wood, or ceramic and sealed with mortar. [11] Wooden Barrels often had bungholes closed by cork or wood bungs.

Some early tinplate cans were made with threaded necks for screw top closures.

Beverage bottles started using the Hutter Stopper in 1893. This involved a porcelain plug fitted with a rubber washer, which was then forced down into the lip of the bottle. This technique only works with carbonated beverages. The Hutter Stopper became standard in beer bottling in the late 1890s / early 1900s. Bail closures on bottles were invented by Henry William Putnam in 1859. These involved heavy wire bail attached to a bottle's neck that swung over the cork to hold it in.

The world's first modern bottle cap, the crown cork, was invented by William Painter in 1890 in Baltimore. The screw cap using rust resistant aluminum was first used in prescription drug bottling in the 1920s. Molded urea based bottle caps were first introduced in the early 1900s.

A history of accidents involving children opening household packaging and ingesting the contents led the US Congress to pass the Poison Prevention Packaging Act of 1970.

The manufacture of closures

The International Society of Beverage Technologists (ISBT) is the main trade association for closure manufacturers. It develops voluntary industry standards for its members to use in the manufacture of closures.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cork (material)</span> Tree bark tissue harvested for commercial use

Cork is an impermeable buoyant material. It is the phellem layer of bark tissue which is harvested for commercial use primarily from Quercus suber, which is native to southwest Europe and northwest Africa. Cork is composed of suberin, a hydrophobic substance. Because of its impermeable, buoyant, elastic, and fire retardant properties, it is used in a variety of products, the most common of which is wine stoppers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bottle</span> Narrow-necked container

A bottle is a narrow-necked container made of an impermeable material in various shapes and sizes that stores and transports liquids. Its mouth, at the bottling line, can be sealed with an internal stopper, an external bottle cap, a closure, or induction sealing.

A screw cap or closure is a common type of closure for bottles, jars, and tubes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bottle cap</span> Top for holding liquid inside a bottle

A bottle cap or bottle top is a closure for the top opening of a bottle. A cap is sometimes colorfully decorated with the logo of the brand of contents. Plastic caps are used for plastic bottles, while metal with plastic backing is used for glass; plastic caps are commonly made from polyethylene or polypropylene, while metal caps are usually either steel or aluminum. Plastic caps may have a pour spout. Flip-Top caps like Flapper closures provide controlled dispensing of dry products. Caps for plastic bottles are often made of a different type of plastic from the bottle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jar</span> Rigid, approximately cylindrical container with a wide mouth or opening

A jar is a rigid, cylindrical or slightly conical container, typically made of glass, ceramic, or plastic, with a wide mouth or opening that can be closed with a lid, screw cap, lug cap, cork stopper, roll-on cap, crimp-on cap, press-on cap, plastic shrink, heat sealed lidding film, an inner seal, a tamper-evident band, or other suitable means. The English word "jar" originates from the Arabic word jarra, which means an earthen pot or vessel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stopper (plug)</span> Conical closure used to seal a container

A stopper, bung, or cork is a cylindrical or conical closure used to seal a container, such as a bottle, tube, or barrel.

Tamper-evident describes a device or process that makes unauthorized access to the protected object easily detected. Seals, markings, or other techniques may be tamper indicating.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lid</span> Part of a container that closes or seals it by fitting over and around the opening

A lid or cover is part of a container, and serves as the closure or seal, usually one that completely closes the object. Lids can be placed on small containers such as tubs as well as larger lids for open-head pails and drums. Some lids have a security strip or a tamper-evident band to hold the lid on securely until opening is desired or authorized. These are usually irreversible to indicate that the container has been opened. They can be made of varying materials ranging from plastic to metal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glass bottle</span> Narrow-necked container

A glass bottle is a bottle made from glass. Glass bottles can vary in size considerably, but are most commonly found in sizes ranging between about 200 millilitres and 1.5 litres. Common uses for glass bottles include food condiments, soda, liquor, cosmetics, pickling and preservatives; they are occasionally also notably used for the informal distribution of notes. These types of bottles are utilitarian and serve a purpose in commercial industries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vial</span> Small glass vessel or bottle used in laboratories or hospitals

A vial is a small glass or plastic vessel or bottle, often used to store medication in the form of liquids, powders, or capsules. They can also be used as scientific sample vessels; for instance, in autosampler devices in analytical chromatography. Vial-like glass containers date back to classical antiquity; modern vials are often made of plastics such as polypropylene. There are different types of vials such as a single dose vial and multi-dose vials often used for medications. The single dose vial is only used once whereas a multi-dose vial can be used more than once. The CDC sets specific guidelines on multi-dose vials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wine cork</span> Stopper used to seal wine bottles

Wine corks are a stopper used to seal wine bottles. They are typically made from cork, though synthetic materials can be used. Common alternative wine closures include screw caps and glass stoppers. 68 percent of all cork is produced for wine bottle stoppers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alternative wine closure</span> Alternative methods for wine closure

Alternative wine closures are substitute closures used in the wine industry for sealing wine bottles in place of traditional cork closures. The emergence of these alternatives has grown in response to quality control efforts by winemakers to protect against "cork taint" caused by the presence of the chemical trichloroanisole (TCA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Induction sealing</span> Process of bonding thermoplastic materials by induction heating

Induction sealing is the process of bonding thermoplastic materials by induction heating. This involves controlled heating an electrically conducting object by electromagnetic induction, through heat generated in the object by eddy currents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tamper-evident band</span>

A tamper-evident band or security ring serves as a tamper resistant or tamper evident function to a screw cap, lid, or closure. The term tamper-proof is sometimes used but is considered a misnomer given that pilfering is still technically possible.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Screw cap (wine)</span> Cap for wine bottles

A screw cap is a metal, normally aluminium, cap that screws onto threads on the neck of a wine bottle, generally with a metal skirt down the neck to resemble the traditional wine capsule ("foil"). A layer of plastic, cork, rubber, or other soft material is used as wad to make a seal with the mouth of the bottle. Its use as an alternative to cork for sealing wine bottles is gaining increasing support. In markets such as Australia and New Zealand screw caps on bottles have overtaken cork to become the most common means of sealing bottles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drug packaging</span> Packaging for pharmaceutical preparations

Drug packaging is process of packing pharmaceutical preparations for distribution, and the physical packaging in which they are stored. It involves all of the operations from production through drug distribution channels to the end consumer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Multi-pack</span> Packaging that combines or holds multiple items or smaller packages

A multi-pack also known as multipack is packaging that combines or holds multiple items or smaller packages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flip-top</span>

A flip-top, swing-top, lightning toggle, or Quillfeldt stopper is a type of bail closure frequently used for bottles containing carbonated beverages, such as beer or mineral water. The mouth of the bottle is sealed by a stopper, usually made of porcelain or plastic, fitted with a rubber gasket and held in place by a permanently attached wire bail. The bottle can be opened and resealed repeatedly without the use of a bottle opener, with the wires acting in the same way as a latch clamp. The flip-top was the dominant method of sealing beer and mineral water bottles prior to the invention of the crown cork

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Security tape</span> Adhesive tape to indicate possible theft

Security tape is a type of adhesive tape used to help reduce shipping losses due to pilfering and theft. It helps reduce tampering or product adulteration. It is often is a pressure sensitive tape or label with special tamper-resistant or tamper-evident features. It can be used as a security seal in addition to a container closure or can be used as a security label. They are sometimes used as or with authentication products and as an anti-pilferage seal.

References

  1. Nairn, J F (2010), "Closures, Bottles and Jars", in Yam, K L (ed.), Encyclopedia of Packaging Technology, Wiley, pp. 269–284, ISBN   978-0-470-08704-6
  2. Smith, J. Scott; Hui, Y. H. (2008). Food Processing: Principles and Applications. John Wiley & Sons. p. 129. ISBN   9780470289976.
  3. Smith & Hui 2008, p. 123.
  4. Yoxall, A; J. Langley; R. Janson; J. Wearn; G. Manson (2006). "The Use of Uncertainty Analysis for Design of Container Closures". Packaging Technology and Science. 19 (3). Wiley: 139–147. doi:10.1002/pts.716. S2CID   109492532.
  5. Carus, D. A.; C. Grant; R. Wattie; M. S. Pridham (2006). "Development and Validation of a Technique to Measure and Compare the Opening Characteristics of Tamper-evident Bottle Closures". Packaging Technology and Science. 19 (2). Wiley: 105–118. doi:10.1002/pts.721. S2CID   110675079.
  6. Sievers, R M (2005), SIMULATING THE POLYPROPYLENE FILLING OF A DISPENSING CLOSURE MOLD WITH INJECTION MOLDING SOFTWARE (PDF), 2005 IL/IN Sectional Conference: American Society for Engineering Education, retrieved 18 May 2021{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  7. "Venting Filters: Porous Venting Material & Technology by Porex". www.porex.com. Retrieved 2017-04-11.
  8. US 6550626 B1,Randall,"Closure lid and resealable closure system with tamper-evident features",published 2003
  9. US 3904062 A,Grussen,"Tamper-proof and loss-proof screw-type bottle cap",published 1975
  10. US 5913437 A,Xiaoli Ma,"Tamper evident bottle cap",published 1999
  11. Tweede, D (June 2002), "Commercial Amphoras, the First Consumer Package" (PDF), Journal of Macromarketing, 22, 1: 185–198, archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-16, retrieved 2010-02-02

Books