Protect your product’s reputation with oxygen permeation testing

You think you’ve picked the perfect packaging to protect your precious products…then you encounter an oxygen permeation problem. An issue that can lead to product recalls, expense, wasted time, and reputational damage. 

Knowledge of oxygen permeability is important because it determines the oxygen transmission rate (OTR) of a package. This is the amount of oxygen that enters the package over time.

The importance of permeation testing

It’s essential to understand the oxygen transmission rate of packaging films. Particularly if you’re a food producer that packages goods in a modified atmosphere. In this industry, you need to limit oxygen permeation and inhibit the growth of microorganisms to prolong the shelf life of your food and keep your consumer safe! 

A healthy oxygen transmission rate test procedure is important in the pharmaceutical industry too, where perishable drugs and medical devices must reach the patient in perfect condition.    

But whatever industry you’re in, whether you make packaging or use it to protect your products, oxygen transmission rate testing is important. Your packaging is only as good as the protective capability it offers. One faulty product can lose you a customer, or worse still – harm their health! 

If you analyze your raw materials or finished packages properly using reliable permeation testing instruments, then you’ll avoid any issues. When it comes to oxygen permeation, proactivity is key – perform the right checks now, and avoid problems later. 

Oxygen transmission rate testing

The best way to avoid any issues relating to oxygen is to analyze your raw materials or finished packages properly beforehand by determining the permeation rate calculation. 

Most techniques measure the oxygen transmission rate of a film before it’s been incorporated into the package. Typically, on a flat film – at a defined temperature of 23ºC. But this technique doesn’t account for real world scenarios. It doesn’t take into account heating, stretching, and forming – all of which will affect oxygen permeation rate properties. 

Final package permeation testing for optimal results

It’s far better to measure oxygen permeation on the finished article. This should be done through test conditions in which the product will be stored at a variety of temperatures. It adds a much-needed sense of realism. 

This method of oxygen permeation testing offers the potential of reduced costs for the producer and less waste for the consumer. 

One such way to measure the permeability of oxygen through films in finished packaging is to use the ambient oxygen ingress rate (AOIR) method. In this blog on the AOIR method, you can learn from its inventor how her work is now incorporated into our patented PermMate inspection technology.  

A permeation testing case study

Price, reliability, service, and performance. These are all key factors that come into play when picking out a permeation test and measurement solution. And these are the factors that led TIPA to choose Industrial Physics as their permeation testing partner. 

TIPA is a cutting-edge manufacturer of sustainable flexible packaging films. And recently, the team were searching for an oxygen transmission rate analyzer to be used within an R&D environment. 

Ultimately, they needed an instrument that would allow them to test across a range of sustainable options, ensure they were fit for purpose, and ideally expand upon their product offering. When developing their products, TIPA used the Systech OxySense 8101e OTR to test films with a wide range of barriers, starting from films with a high barrier (~0.1 cc/m2*day) to breathable sheets with an inferior barrier (~10000 cc/m2*day).  

TIPA were delighted with “the functionality and efficiency that the product offered, the competitive pricing and unrivaled level of service.” 

Our oxygen transmission rate testing equipment

So, how can Industrial Physics improve your oxygen transmission rate testing? 

Systech 8101e OxySense® Oxygen Transmission Rate Analyzer
Setting a new benchmark in oxygen transmission rate testing, our OxySense® instruments incorporate the latest in coulometric sensor technology with high sensitivity and the widest test range. 

Systech OxySense 8107 Oxygen Transmission Rate Analyzer 

The OxySense 8107 Oxygen Transmission Rate Analyzer is the perfect choice for testing finished packages at dry test conditions for throughput, quality control and R&D demands. Integrating the latest in highly sensitive coulometric sensor technology, it offers you a wide test range of 0.00025 cc/pkg day to over 2,000 cc/pkg day.

Systech OxySense 5250i 

The OxySense 325i is a highly accurate and versatile oxygen measurement machine that’s suitable for a wide range of applications, whether you need to test gas, oil or water. 

It offers high resolution (as low as 0.0001 psig) leak testing and can be configured to perform pressure or vacuum decay leak testing, flow and occlusion testing on non-porous, flexible, or rigid products. 

Experts in moisture, gas and, oxygen analysis

We’ve learnt a thing or two about gas permeation testing over the decades. Industrial Physics is recognized as a brand that likes to bring new, innovative oxygen testers to market. 

Ensure accuracy and productivity at lower costs with our permeation testing options. Find out more by downloading our guidebook: ‘How our permeation equipment works for you’.  

Then, you could check out this blog on permeation testing and the barriers – what can be measured…and why? Or read this innovative method for analyzing oxygen permeation of packaging film. 

Take some time to browse our full permeation testing range and then get in touch with any questions. 

Contact us – Industrial Physics