Modeling of the thermoforming process of paperboard composites for packaging

The quest to reduce global plastic consumption has led to the emergence of biodegradable fiber-based composites as a promising sustainable replacement to conventional plastics in the food packaging industry. As the packaging sector is shifting more towards fiber-centric materials, thermoforming techniques for the 3D forming of the fiber-based materials, especially using complex mold designs, should be thoroughly researched to replace the conventional plastics in the industry. Finite element analysis of the deformation behavior of the paperboard during the thermoforming process and the factors that trigger the fracture of the composite layers were studied in the present work. The results show that 90° fiber orientation, 0.3 mm sheet thicknesses, and specific mold geometries can result in better forming results, thereby maximizing the potential of fiber-based materials in thermoforming.