• Development of a varnish with functional capsules for  delamination and the use of bio-based solvents for de-inking, enabling  currently non-recyclable multilayer flexible packaging to become recyclable  instead of ending up in landfills.
• The goal is to implement a sustainable delamination  and de-inking process achieving yields above 70%, enabling the effective  recycling of the polypropylene contained in monomaterial multilayer flexible  packaging.

The company IFLEX Flexible Packaging, in collaboration with the technology centre Leitat and the Packaging  Cluster, is promoting the DesLamTin project, a pioneering initiative that seeks to transform the management of flexible packaging waste through ecodesign. The project is supported by the Catalan Waste  Agency (ARC) within the 2024 call for projects promoting the circular economy, under Class B: Ecodesign.

Currently, a large proportion of multilayer flexible packaging ends up in landfills or is incinerated due to the technical difficulty of separating its layers or removing printing inks, which significantly limits its recyclability. In Spain, the annual market for this type of packaging is estimated at 306,667 tonnes, creating a major environmental challenge due to its dependence on fossil resources and its high CO₂ emissions.

The DesLamTin project aims to develop an efficient and sustainable process for the delamination of multilayer flexible packaging. To improve the recyclability of the layers obtained after delamination, an innovative and more sustainable de-inking process will also be developed and applied, based on lower energy consumption and the use of more environmentally friendly solvents.

These delamination and de-inking processes will make it possible to recover high-quality materials from monomaterial multilayer flexible packaging, thereby reducing the dependence on virgin raw materials derived from petroleum and lowering the environmental impact of the packaging industry.

With a total budget of €79,983.85, the project aims to implement a sustainable delamination and de-inking process capable of achieving yields above 70%, which would enable the effective recycling of polypropylene contained in monomaterial multilayer flexible packaging. In Catalonia alone, this could represent a potential impact of diverting up to 16,671 tonnes of  waste from landfills.

Furthermore, the implementation of this ecodesign measure is expected to reduce the  carbon footprint of the film by between 30% and 40% compared to current linear  production models.