Dow announced the introduction of solvent-free SYL-OFF SL 184 Coating, which was designed to be an energy-efficient alternative that minimizes misting at very high product label production line speeds. A fast-curing silicone that exhibits low release force at both low and high peel speeds, SYL-OFF SL 184 Coating reportedly maintains overall performance on most existing label coating equipment, including multi-roll lines.

“Release liner producers are investing in high-speed label coating production lines to increase production rates, lower costs, and meet increased demand for reliable product labels,” says Nathalie Gerard, global segment leader for Dow Consumer Solutions. “SYL-OFF SL 184 Coating significantly minimizes the misting that occurs in high-speed lines without any performance tradeoffs.”

Mist is an aerosol or “fog” made of silicone droplets that form at the rolls coating head in high-speed release liner operations to form adhesive labels. This causes runnability issues in the curing oven, which leads to more frequent downtimes and higher maintenance costs.

Dow says that extensive laboratory and pilot plant testing demonstrates that SYL-OFF SL 184 Coating allows high speed operations of up to 1,600 meters per minute with significant mist reduction while maintaining other release coating attributes at high-speed process conditions. Testing also confirmed that SYL-OFF SL 184 Coating offers release liner producers formulation flexibility at any speed, with fast curing rates, no migration to the adhesive and improved substrate anchorage. The new coating also reportedly provides stable release force over time, which is critical for adhesion to a variety of containers and flexible packaging during industrial fast and automated label delamination operations.

The new coating is solvent-free and more energy efficient because less energy per square meter is required to produce the same quantity of release liners when production lines are running at higher speeds. SYL-OFF SL 184 Coating has been designed to comply with FDA and BfR XV food contact regulations, making it suitable for food labeling applications.