Global Evolution of Tinplate and Can-making Cover Technology

I. Chrome-plated iron and coated iron <br> Tin is a major strategic resource, but developed countries have no such minerals, so after the Second World War, the Bethlehem Steel Plant of the United States, under the cooperation of Heinz, was established first in 1953. Chrome-plated iron (reported as TFS or ECCS) production line. After that, U.S. Steel Company and Yangsson Steel Works quickly followed suit. So the United States is still one of the two countries that produce the most chrome-plated iron (with 15 production lines). The other is Japan.
Japan later in the United States, in 1961, the first chrome-plated iron production line was established by Dongyang Steel Company. The product was named Hi-Top and was mass-produced. The quality was very good. At that time, Fuji (the later Nippon Steel) company. It was also built in 1962. After that, it was followed by a chrome-plated iron production line. Soon, the NOK Steel Pipe Co., Ltd., Yasaka, and Kawasaki were all working together. When the output was highest, eight production lines were used throughout Japan. After 1998, the output of Japan's chrome-plated iron TFS has remained above 600,000 tons, more than 50% of his total consumption. Especially in recent years, on the one hand, tin prices have risen by 60-70% (from 50,000 yuan to 80,000 yuan / ton). On the other hand, the production of chrome-plated iron is simpler than tin plating because it No reflow is required, just electroplating in chromic acid solution. In general, for normal TFS products, the corrosion resistance is roughly equivalent to 2.8/2.8 g/? tinplate, and the adhesion of inner and outer printing coating is much better than that of tinplate. Therefore, before the 1990s, it was widely used in the United States and Japan. This can be confirmed by using chrome-plated iron in most cans (ketchup, asparagus, sweet corn, etc.).
However, TFS has a big drawback. It means that both sides must be coated with a protective film before it can be used. The printing and coating process will cause serious benzene pollution to the environment and humans. However, some of the inescapable trace residues of many coatings have been considered harmful to human health in the past 10 years.
Therefore, from the late 1980s, Japan successfully produced recoated iron. In 1991, laminating iron from Europe was put into production. The films covered by laminating iron were all multi-layer polyester composite films (thickness of about 20-25 μm), which blocked the penetration of corrosive media. , far better than the printed film, and close to "completely deterred." Therefore, it is possible to directly 'overlie' the multilayer polyester film to the steel substrate without the use of a tin layer having a protective tin layer. This completely abolished for more than one hundred years, food cans (and other tanks, in particular) must have a golden layer of tin. In theory, only steel substrates can be used. However, in practical use so far, all countries still use chromium-plated iron TFS as a substrate.

Asia-Europe two continents production of iron ladle production capacity at the beginning of 2005 (tons) Total production (tons)

Nippon Steel Nagoya 170,000

490,000

Fukuyama 120,000

Toyo Tinting Simomatsu 200,000

Korea

TCC Toyo 55,000

105,000

Donbu Tobu 50,000

Corus Corus Group

Trostre 30,000 UK

135,000

Duffel 40,000, Belgium

Germany Rasselstain 50,000

Lorraine, France Sollac 15,000

As shown in the table, due to the high pollution caused by the overcoating of iron coating, Japan has a large number of people, which forces it to become a large country for production and all coated iron (1.2 million tons of domestic total 40%).
Because of the adoption of several complex laminating techniques such as high-temperature lamination and quenching recrystallization technology, the laminating irons of major Japanese groups are extremely fast in composition (this is also true in Western European countries). China's laminated film technology has started, but because of the low temperature bonding, the adhesive fastness is inferior to that of Japan, and improvement is still needed.
II. Progress of DRD stamping cans and secondary cold rolled sheets <br> The soaring tin resources and harsh environmental protection requirements have forced the rapid development of laminated iron in recent years. In addition, due to various kinds of laminating iron (including aluminum), it is not suitable to leave empty laminating iron (coating aluminum). Therefore, all kinds of stamping cans DRD (and cupping DI) become more and more popular. The three-piece cans have been gradually reduced in developed countries due to their complicated production. Instead, they have adopted the stamping can DRD and the cupping DI. Their largest applications are in the food cans and beverage cans.
I have pointed out many times that in developed countries, empty cans with a volume of less than 1000 ml have mostly used secondary cold-rolled sheets with a thickness of 0.16 mm or less as food empty cans. Here, if we make a three-piece can empty, the traditional secondary cold-rolled sheet will of course have no problem and can be competent. However, if it is used as a DRD stamping food can, the mechanical properties of the secondary cold-rolled sheet must also greatly improve its ductility.
From the aspect of the quality of secondary cold-rolled recoated iron, Corus Group cooperated with Crown can-making to study the two-piece cans to cope with the increasing number of two-piece cans used in foods. Secondary cold-rolled sheet, and adaptability to existing equipment. The concrete result is: Using the French Lorraine sheet metal factory as the representative, the secondary cold-rolled iron film with excellent elongation is produced. It is most suitable for two-piece stamping cans and easy-open covers. The sheet has excellent elongation. They named this material "the Malei board." Its performance is as follows:
Ordinary tinplate

As can be seen from the table, the elongation of the Manet plate is 10% at the hardness of the DR-8, while it is 3% for the ordinary plate. According to information available, Japan also has products similar to Manet boards. The reason why such a hard and well-extensible sheet can be made is that the key is to use vacuum smelting in the steelmaking process so that the content of certain non-metals, including carbon, and certain metals in the steel materials are greatly reduced. (To several tens of PPM levels), there is such performance.
Third, easy to tear the cover <br> In the past two or three years, easy to open the cover (EOE) has been more popular in China, the annual output of about 2 billion or so, of course, the quantity and quality must also be further improved.
However, in foreign countries, a kind of so-called Easy Peeled End has been gradually popularized in recent years. The cover is actually a secondary cold-rolled aluminum sheet or a secondary cold-rolled sheet steel with a thickness of 70-130 μm (0.07-0.13 mm), and it is subtly sealed on the empty can by mechanical and heating techniques. Due to the use of tear off, certain types of EPE can withstand high temperature sterilization. Now the list of awards related to the EPE tear cover in the global can comparison organized by the International Can Making Association is as follows:

years

Type of award

Award winner

Can lid name

1998

Cover award

German Lacroix factory

EPE for meat cans (gourmeT fileT)

1999

Gold Award

Golden Circle Fruit Factory

EPE (made with Swiss equipment)

2002

Canister Gold Award

Corus Corus Group
Proflex Factory

500ml beer can EPE
80-130μm secondary cold-rolled tinplate

2003

Cover silver award

Crown Group

EPE (aluminum fish tank)

Tank Silver Award

Crown Group

EPE (Pet Tin Cans)

2004

Crown Group Impression Group*

EPE
EPE of fish tank

2005

Canister Gold Award

Brazilian National Metallurgical Company

Aluminum easy tear cover

Tank Bronze Award

French Impression Group*

EPE (pet cans)

Copper cover

French Impression Group*

EPE (microwave food cans)

As can be seen from the table, in terms of 2005, there were altogether 3 caps, including lids, three-piece cans, two-piece cans, and beverage cans, each with 3 awards, for a total of 12 awards. The award-winning use of EPE accounted for 25%. In addition, the world’s largest The Open Cap Manufacturing Group* is Sonoco Phoenix of the United States. It has an annual output of various types of EOE and EPE, with a total volume of 9 billion per year. Its production plants are distributed in the following table:

Production site

Production line quantity

product type

Ohio, Canton

2 pieces

Iron Easy Cover (Fe EOE)

Kentucky, Henderson

1 item
1 item

Aluminum Easy Opening (Al EOE)
Al easy tear cover (Al EPE)

Tennessee, Memphis

1 item
2 pieces

Al easy tear cover (Al EPE)
Special covers

Wisconsin, Vasso

1 item

Al easy tear cover (Al EPE)

Brazil, Rayson

1 item

Iron Easy Cover (Fe EOE)**

Note **: The cover material is supplied by CSN (Companbia Siderurgica Nacional) of the Brazilian National Metallurgical Corporation. It can be seen from the table that although it does not have any specific figures, it does not have specific figures for the AL EPE Fe EPE. Not too little. Soro? U. Phoenix company's products, 80% of the United States, 20% of sales in South America, Europe. Its EPE, of course, is also commonly used to heat foods. Sold to: Boer Can, Campbell Soup Company, Del Monte, Dole, Kraft Foods, Maxell Coffee, ConAgra's Jam Products and Thailand's Pineapple Factory, etc. .
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Note*: The largest can making group in the world, and one of the two largest can makers in Europe, is Impress Holding. It has a factory that can produce 1.4 billion fish cans annually in Cuxhaven, Germany (the mouth of the Elbe, 80km northwest of Hamburg), and 70% of it uses color-printed aluminum cans. Its canning factory has 23 can body lines and 29 system cover lines, and the total output of easy-open covers (including EPE) is 7 billion per year, making it the world's second largest open cover plant. Some of its products are EPE (square cover and diameter of 63 to 99 mm round cap). Its EPE production facility was supplied by the Hans Rychiger plant in Switzerland in 1995. The Cuxhaven Fish Cannery has annual sales of US$7.2 billion. Australian Packaging Containers (with 6 can makers) also purchased Hans Rychiger's EPE equipment and technology in 1998.
Crown now has four production plants in France and Italy. Among them, in Concorneau, it mainly produces canned meat (5 million cans/year) and uses Al EPE.
The canned fish factory of INESA Holdings of South America and Chile, which has three plants in Chile and Argentina; one plant in Uruguay and Brazil, and EPE covers, which purchased the Alcan Rorschach AG plant in Switzerland. device of.
The Soudronic Group Company, which developed the "Universal Sealing Equipment" in 2002, can seal the EPE lid made of secondary cold-rolled sheet. The machine has four heads and 240 caps per minute. The first of such machines is sold. middle East.
So from this point of view, tearing lids is a direction for future development. According to my own judgment, it is still in development. It has been reported that the cost of aluminum easy tear covers is only 50% that of aluminum easy to open. From the point of view of Europe and the United States, the technology of laminated aluminum is maturer than that of laminated iron. In addition, from the past two years in Australia, the construction of laminating iron production plant situation, they considered that after accounting: iron-coated aluminum sheet metal cheaper, which is the opposite of our country's actual situation. The knowledge and the mystery among them are worth our careful analysis and deduction.

To sum up, in the past decade and a half, due to the harsh environmental protection requirements and resources are becoming increasingly scarce, the world's can making materials industry, can making industry and manufacturing and cover industry are undergoing revolutionary major changes. The secondary cold-rolled sheet, laminated iron, laminated aluminum, stamping cans, punched and shaped cans, and easy-to-remove covers are slowly becoming the mainstream of the canning industry in developed countries. The key to these changes is the advancement of secondary cold-rolled iron (which is behind the great advances in steelmaking technology) and the development of lamination technology. This is very much worth our attention and must be taken seriously. Otherwise, it will cause the entire industry to be passive and the loss will be hard to estimate.