BS DD CEN/TS 14234:2003 Materials and articles in contact with foodstuffs - Polymeric coatings on paper and board - Guide to the selection of conditions and test methods for overall migration
This Technical Specification specifies test methods for 'alternative tests' and 'substitute tests' performed with volatile test media, iso-octane and a volume fraction of 95 % aqueous ethanol, for the determination of overall migration from polymeric coatings on paper and board intended to come into contact with fatty foodstuffs.
A test method for overall migration from polymeric coatings intended to come into contact with fatty foodstuffs using modified polyphenylene oxide (MPPO) is in preparation.
A suggested test scheme is given in Figure A.1. If the test result obtained by the total immersion method, described in clause 4 of this Technical Specification, exceeds the allowed overall migration limit the single-sided migration test using a cell, see clause 5, if technically feasible; may be used. If it is not possible to use the single sided cell method, e.g. because of pinholes, use adsorption by modified polyphenylene oxide, (MPPO).
Iso-octane is used as a test medium for test samples coated with non polar food contact layers, such as polyolefins. For test samples coated with polar food contact polymers such as polyamide and polyethylene terephthalate, a volume fraction of 95 % aqueous ethanol is used. For polystyrenes, plasticised polyvinyl chloride and other polymers where the identification or polarity of the polymer is not clear, two parallel tests shall be
conducted using both of the proposed test media and taking the higher value obtained as the relevant result.
There is an expectation that the scope of this directive will be extended to cover polymeric coatings on paper and board.
The 'substitute tests' described in this Technical Specification are by total immersion, see clause 4 and in a migration cell, see clause 5.
The 'alternative test' methods described here specifies a rapid extraction test with a 'more severe' test character, for the assessment of the overall migration into fatty food simulants. The method differs from the substitute test methods only in the combination of test time and test temperature. The method is based on the determination of the extraction of migrateable substances from polymeric coated paper or board, which are intended to come into contact with foodstuffs, by total immersion in non-polar, iso-octane, and/or polar, ethanol, solvents depending on the polarity of the polymeric coating. According to the results obtained by this method, see [5],[6],[7],[8],[9] and taking physio-chemical considerations into account, the obtained extraction efficiency has, generally, been found to be equivalent to or higher than overall migration results obtained using fat simulant D,under the test conditions, 10 days at 40 °C, 2 h at 70 °C, 1 h at 100 °C, 30 min at 121 °C and 30 min at 130 °C.
The test method should be applied to polymer coated packagings where the polymer layer is less than 300 µm in thickness. However, if this extraction test is applied to materials with coatings with higher thickness than 300 µm and the result does not exceed any allowed overall migration limit then the method is considered to be suitable for those materials.
In those cases where the rapid extraction test by total immersion, yields total extraction values that exceed the overall migration limit or may be technically unsuitable a cell test method using the same time and temperature conditions is applicable. This cell test method should primarily only be applied to packagings with a physical barrier
layer (for instance of aluminium or other material to prevent penetrative loss of test medium) and which have a thinner food contact layer than 300 µm. This test method can not be applied if the polymeric coating is shown to have pinholes.
BS DD CEN/TS 14234:2003 history
2003BS DD CEN/TS 14234:2003 Materials and articles in contact with foodstuffs - Polymeric coatings on paper and board - Guide to the selection of conditions and test methods for overall migration