Received: 17 August 2020 Revised: 16 March 2021 Accepted: 22 March 2021

DOI: 10.1002/pts.2573

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Electron beam irradiation on monolayer plastic packaging films:

Studies on physico-mechanical and thermal properties

Nilay K. Pramanik1 | Irmia Katamgari1 | Ayan Dey1 | Yatender K. Bhardwaj2 |

Tanweer Alam1 | Sanjay K. Chattopadhyay1 | Narayan C. Saha1

1
Research and Development Division, Indian
Institute of Packaging, Mumbai, India
2
Radiation Technology Development Division,
Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Trombay,
Mumbai, India
Correspondence
Dr. Nilay Kanti Pramanik, Indian Institute of
Packaging, MIDC Area, Andheri East, Mumbai
400093, India.
Email: nilaypramanik@yahoo.com
Funding information
Bhabha Atomic Research Centre; Board of
Research in Nuclear Sciences
Linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE), biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP),
polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and Nylon 6 films used for food packaging applica-
tion were subjected to e-beam (EB) irradiation at different doses in the range of 0 to
80 kGy. The mechanical, barrier, optical and thermal properties of the irradiated films
were evaluated and compared with the non-irradiated films. A notable decrease in
oxygen transmission rate (OTR) was observed for BOPP and Nylon 6 specimens after
irradiation, whereas for PET samples, no significant change was noticed. Water
vapour transmission rate (WVTR) was found to exhibit a decreasing trend for PET
and Nylon 6 samples but remains unchanged for BOPP after EB irradiation. Tensile
strength (TS) of Nylon 6 and LLDPE films was found to increase upon irradiation up
to 20 kGy, whereas for BOPP, a clear decreasing trend was observed. No significant
change in TS and elongation at break was observed for PET film after irradiation. The
melting temperature (Tm) and enthalpy of melting (ΔHm) were decreased with EB
dose as revealed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) studies.

KEYWORDS
barrier, e-beam irradiation, flexible packaging film, optical, tensile properties

1 | I N T RO DU CT I O N materials via blending with polymers having barrier-rich properties,

Plastic, as flexible packaging material, has attracted immense
interest in the packaging world owing to its moldability, light-
weight, ease of operation, low cost, high strength-to-weight ratio
and good barrier properties.1 On the basis of structure, flexible
packages are categorized into monolayer and multilayer films.
Co-extruded and/or laminated multilayer film is produced by com-
bining same or two different polymers to achieve desired sets of
properties for packaging applications. Multilayer film production
cost is high due to different materials used and technology
involved. Besides the production cost of multilayer film, there is
also difficulty in recycling during the reprocessing of the film due
to the presence of different materials being used for making
2
such film.
Many research groups have made significant contribution
towards the modifications of the existing properties of polymeric
thin transparent vacuum deposited coating, organic barrier coating or
adhesive development of nanocomposite materials and so forth.3–6
However, such modification also limits its recyclability and also results
in migration of toxic chemicals when exposed to water and other
acidic or alcoholic items.
Application of high-energy irradiation for the improvement of
existing properties of polymer is very innovative and possesses several
advantages. Curing or crosslinking via chemical process was reported
hazardous for food packaging applications, and hence, interest in
adopting better methods like radiation treatment is observed to grow
enormously.7 Radiation technology is a green technology used for the
development of crosslinking in the materials to achieve desired
properties for its successful application.7,8 Unlike the chemical
process, the radiation process is safe, relatively easy, fast and non-
toxic. Radiation processing of materials is not only cost-effective but
also leads to high output rates.9

Packag Technol Sci. 2021;1–9. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/pts © 2021 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 1
2 PRAMANIK ET AL.
Effects of β and γ rays on monolayer plastic film were
reported by several researchers, and adequate research papers are
available in this field.10–16 However, none of the work leads to
desirable modification of the films in terms of mechanical and bar-
rier properties for its successful applications as a packaging mate-
rial. This is because of the higher possibility of oxidative
degradation during γ irradiation of polymer film in the presence of
air.10,12,17,18 The lower dose rate and high penetration power of γ
irradiation accelerate the process of oxidative reaction.19 The effect
is more severe when polymer is in the shape of film in which the
10
oxygen can diffuse more easily. On the other hand, e-beam
(EB) radiation processing is comparatively a new technology, and
its effect on plastics is expected to be different compared with
gamma rays. EB radiation provides better control on crosslinking
and degradation because of high dose rate, low penetration
power and easily adjustable irradiation parameters. A significant
crosslinking via EB radiation can lower the permeability and
enhance the mechanical properties of the flexible materials.20
Available literatures on EB irradiation of multilayer and mono-
layer packaging films are limited and describe only some specific
parameters.18,21,22 Moreover, literatures covering all the aspects
related to the effect of EB irradiation on the parameters related
to packaging applications, such as mechanical, optical, thermal
and barrier (oxygen transmission rate [OTR]/water
transmission rate [WVTR]) properties of the flexible films, are
scanty.18,23,24
The present study has been undertaken to investigate the
effect of EB on the properties of four major polymeric films (two
addition polymers and two condensation polymers) used for food
packaging application covering all the relevant parameter related to
this area. In this work, EB radiation dose up to 80 kGy was applied
on commercially available monolayer films of linear low-density
polyethylene (LLDPE), biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP),
Nylon 6 and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and various
properties like mechanical, thermal, barrier and optical were
investigated.
TABLE 1 Details of the packaging films used for the irradiation experiments
Name of the
films Thickness Grade
LLDPE 80 μm F22020 (Reliance)
BOPP 45 μm Sarafil-BTNTG
(nonheat sealable)
PET 50 μm Sarafil TF
Nylon 6 15 μm Biaxially oriented Nylon 6
films
Abbreviations: BOPP, biaxially oriented polypropylene; LLDPE, linear low-density polyethylene; PET, polyethylene terephthalate.
2 | EX PE RI MENT AL
2.1 | Materials
The experiments were carried out using commercially available plastic
packaging materials obtained from various film manufacturers. All
films comply with food safety regulation for food contact materials as
per the guidelines of EU 10/2011 and FSSAI regulation 2020. Plain
commercially available LLDPE, nonheat sealable BOPP films, PET and
Nylon 6 films were taken for the study. The details of the films used
in this study are given in Table 1.
2.2 | Irradiation
EB irradiation of the film samples was performed at ‘Bhabha Atomic
Research Center (BARC) Mumbai, India’, using a 5.0-MeV EB accelera-
tor with a dose rate of 2.5 kGy/pass in the presence of air at a temper-
ature of 303 K. In this case, ozone was obtained as a by-product due
to the interaction between EB and the oxygen molecules, which can
cause oxidation of the polymers. This in turn leads to oxidative degra-
dation of the polymer specimens. Hence, in order to avoid such reac-
tion, ozone gas was continuously drove off by circulation of air in the
vapour radiation chamber. The applied doses are 10, 20, 40, 60 and 80 kGy.
After the irradiation, the specimens were immediately repacked in PE
zipper pouches to minimize the ingress of moisture. The tensile, bar-
rier, optical and thermal properties of the irradiated specimens were
evaluated and compared with non-irradiated (control) films.
2.3 | Testing and characterization
a. Tensile properties
Tensile properties were determined using film strips of
15 mm × 200 mm following the guidelines of ASTM D882-90 using
Supplier Properties
Para Polyplast Good mechanical and optical properties for co-extrusion,
lamination, mulch films for agriculture, shopping bags,
liners, protection films and bubble wrap films.
Polyplex Corporation Transparent BOPP films designed for flexible packaging
Ltd and other applications.
Polyplex Corporation Clear, transparent, flexible, lightweight PET films suitable
Ltd for use in packaging, electrical and industrial
applications.
Huhtamaki PPL Ltd. Sequentially biaxially stretched film used for general
packaging of liquid materials, wet foods, frozen foods,
boiled foods, pasty foods, meat, seafood products and
so forth. It is also used for making heavy load bag.
PRAMANIK ET AL.
Universal Testing Machine, Model AGX of Shimadzu, Japan.
Tensile strength (TS) and elongation at break were determined at
crosshead speed of 500 mm/min (LLDPE), 300 mm/min (Nylon 6) and
100 mm/min (BOPP and PET). In order to ensure accuracy and
repeatability, 10 specimens for each set of samples were tested for
tensile properties evaluation.
b. WVTR measurements
WVTR was determined using the MOCON, Permetran-W3/33
following the guidelines of ASTM F1249-13. The test was performed
at a relative humidity (RH) of 90% and at a temperature of 38
C. The
study was performed in duplicate, and the average values are
reported.
c. OTR measurements
OTR through films were determined using MOCON OTR Tester,
Model OXTRAN 2/22. The test was performed as per ASTM
D3985-17 at 23 ± 1
C, 1 atm. pressure and 60% ± 1% RH. The study
was performed in duplicate, and the average values are reported.
d. Optical properties
The percentage of light transmission was performed according to
ASTM D1003 using Haze meter, model haze-gard plus, make-BYK
Gardner. The percent haze was measured according to ASTM D1003,
in the same instrument. The reported values are the average of five
readings taken in different places of the sample.
e. Differential scanning calorimetry study
Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) studies were performed
in nitrogen atmosphere using a modulated differential scanning calo-
rimeter (Model DSC 6000 of PerkinElmer, USA). The flow rate of the
nitrogen gas was kept constant at 50 ml/min. The temperature scan
was performed at a heating rate 10
C/min in the range of room
F I G U R E 1 Variation of
(A) tensile strength and
(B) percentage elongation at
break with dose of e-beam
radiation for linear low-density
polyethylene (LLDPE) film
specimens. CD, cross-machine
direction; MD, machine direction
3
temperature to 200
C (for BOPP and LLDPE), 250
C (for Nylon 6)
and 280
C (for PET). Heat of fusion and melting temperature were
determined from heating scan. Percent crystallinity was calculated
using the following equation:
ΔHexp
Crystallinity ð%Þ = × 100,
ΔHF
where ΔHexp = heat of fusion of the sample under study and
ΔHF = heat of fusion of 100% crystalline polymer. The ΔHF value for
different polymer, which is taken from literature for calculation of
percent crystallinity, is given as follows25: ΔHF of LLDPE = 279 J/g;
ΔHF of Nylon 6 = 230.1 J/g; ΔHF of BOPP = 207.1 J/g; and ΔHF of
PET = 140.1 J/g.
3 | RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
3.1 | Tensile properties
The influence of EB on TS and percent elongation for four different
films are shown in Figures 1–4. TS of LLDPE film is found to increase
up to 40 kGy of EB dose in both directions. A maximum of 47%
improvement in TS is observed at 40-kGy dose for LLDPE film.
Percent elongation is found to decrease gradually with the increase of
EB dose in both directions (Figure 1A,B).
The variations of TS and elongation at break with the increase
in EB dose for BOPP films are shown in Figure 2A,B, respectively.
TS is found to decrease with the increasing radiation dose in both
directions of the film. In addition, the rate of reduction in TS up to
20 kGy is less than the rate observed above 20 kGy. The film when
irradiated at 20-kGy EB, loses 12% TS in machine direction (MD),
whereas at 80 kGy, a reduction of 56% of its original strength in
the same direction is observed. Unlike LLDPE, it shows a continuous
decrease in TS with the increase in radiation dose. The observation
suggests that the EB resulted in chain scission rather than
crosslinking among the polymer chains. The chain scission may be
4 PRAMANIK ET AL.

F I G U R E 2 Variation of
(A) tensile strength and
(B) percentage elongation at
break with dose of e-beam
radiation for biaxially oriented
polypropylene (BOPP) film
specimens. CD, cross-machine
direction; MD, machine direction

F I G U R E 3 Variation of
(A) tensile strength and
(B) percentage elongation at
break with dose of e-beam
radiation for Nylon 6 film
specimens. CD, cross-machine
direction; MD, machine direction

F I G U R E 4 Variation of
(A) tensile strength and
(B) percentage elongation at
break with dose of e-beam
radiation for polyethylene
terephthalate (PET) film
specimens. CD, cross-machine
direction; MD, machine direction

the reason of such drop in TS.26 Elongation at break is found to be
affected in similar way like TS due to EB irradiation. It decreases
gradually with the increase in EB dose from 10 to 60 kGy. After
60 kGy, the decrease of elongation at break is significantly less and
the corresponding curve approaches to linearity. Elongation at break
decreases in both directions with the increase in EB dose. A similar
observation was also reported by Goulas et al.27 where both TS and
elongation at break are observed to decrease when BOPP is sub-
jected to 30 kGy using a 240-kCi (60Co) source. ‘Polypropylene film
is considered unsuitable for the use as radiation sterilization packag-
ing’ when the irradiation process was carried out using γ radiation
at different doses (15, 25 and 50 kGy).28
PRAMANIK ET AL. 5

The variations in TS and elongation at break of 15-μm monolayer
Nylon 6 films with EB dose are shown in Figure 3A,B, respectively. TS
is found to increase at lower doses and decrease at higher doses
(above 60 kGy) in both directions. The maximum improvement in TS
is 53.7% in MD and 17.6% in cross-machine direction (CD) at 20 kGy.
However, the elongation at break is found to decrease gradually in
both directions with the increase of EB dose. The decrease in percent
elongation is 50% and 30% along MD and CD, respectively. Nylon
6 undergo crosslinking when irradiated by EB, which resulted in an
increase in TS and a decrease in elongation at break.29 Thus, the
above observation is due to the radiation-induced crosslink formation
among the polyamide chains.Effects of EB irradiation on TS and elon-
gation at break of PET film are presented in Figure 4A,B, respectively.
Interestingly, TS in one direction (CD) is found to increase whereas in
the other direction (MD), a slight decrease in TS is observed. At
20 kGy, TS of the PET film is increased by 26% along CD; after that, it
remained almost constant; and finally, a 32% increase is observed at
80 kGy. However, a small decrease in TS is observed along the MD up
to 20 kGy, and thereafter, it remains almost unchanged. At 80 kGy,
TS is decreased by only 11.7% (along MD) as compared with
unirradiated PET sample. On the other hand, there is no significant
change in elongation at break observed in both directions. PET
appeared to be quite stable in terms of TS against EB irradiation than
other polymers used in this study. The presence of aromatic group in
polymer backbone may be the reason of such stability. PET is consid-
ered as suitable materials for radiation sterilization at lower doses. An
initial increase in TS may be attributed to slight crosslink formation,
which occurs during the EB irradiation. El Fray et al.30 reported the
evidences of crosslink formation when poly(aliphatic/aromatic ester)
is subjected to irradiation. Hence, it can be said that the same
phenomenon happened during the irradiation of PET with EB.31
3.2 | Barrier properties
The effect of EB irradiation on the barrier properties of the various
films is discussed in this section. Here, the OTR and WVTR of the
films are estimated before and after EB irradiation. The variations of
WVTR and OTR for the BOPP, Nylon 6 and PET are presented in
Figures 5–7, respectively.
It is evidenced from Figure 5 that the OTR value of BOPP
decreases with the increase of EB dose. However, there is no

F I G U R E 5 Variation of
(A) oxygen transmission rate
(OTR) and (B) water vapour
transmission rate (WVTR) with
dose of e-beam radiation for
biaxially oriented polypropylene
(BOPP) film specimens

F I G U R E 6 Variation of
(A) oxygen transmission rate
(OTR) and (B) water vapour
transmission rate (WVTR) with
dose of e-beam radiation for
Nylon 6 film specimens
6 PRAMANIK ET AL.

F I G U R E 7 Variation of
(A) oxygen transmission rate
(OTR) and (B) water vapour
transmission rate (WVTR) with
dose of e-beam radiation for
polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
film specimens

significant change in the WVTR value after irradiation. The OTR value
is found to decrease from 236 cc/m2/day (0 kGy) to 146 cc/m2/day
after irradiation by EB at 80 kGy.
A decrease in crystallinity and a decrease in oxygen permeability
of BOPP were reported by Lepot et al.32 Moreover, Siracusa and
Ingrao also reported variations of OTR and crystallinity (%) against
thickness for BOPP materials.33 Therefore, the observed trend of the
OTR value is due to the decrease of percent crystallinity as revealed
in the DSC study. A similar observation for the decrease in OTR for
oriented PP after 25-kGy β-ionizing radiation treatment has also been
reported by Rojas Gante and Pascat.14
Variations in the OTR and WVTR values of Nylon 6 with EB dose
are shown in Figure 6A,B, respectively. A significant reduction in both
the OTR and WVTR values is observed after irradiation. The OTR
value decreases from 44 to 29 cc/m2/day after irradiation by EB at
80 kGy. The WVTR value decreases from 530 g/m2/day (at 0 kGy) to
211 g/m2/day (at 80 kGy). Improvement of moisture barrier proper-
F I G U R E 8 Variation of water vapour transmission rate (WVTR)
ties of Nylon 6 film after irradiation is an important transformation of with dose of e-beam radiation for linear low-density polyethylene
Nylon 6 considering its poor moisture barrier properties. Due to the (LLDPE) film specimens
presence of polar amide group in polymer chain, Nylon 6 absorbs
moisture, which may be the reason of such high WVTR value. Thus,
Nylon 6 films are not suitable for the packaging of hygroscopic mate- backbone of polymer chains.21,36 This might be the reason for such
rials and always laminated with high moisture barrier films. A drastic observations noted from the OTR and WVTR values for PET films.
reduction in water absorption at 80 kGy dose is evidenced, which is The change in percent crystallinity is also found to be negligible after
about 60% with respect to the unirradiated Nylon 6. Hence, the EB EB irradiation as revealed by DSC studies. A very similar observation
irradiation has the ability to improve moisture barrier property of of the OTR and WVTR values of multilayer PET/PET/LLDPE film after
Nylon 6. The increase in barrier properties of Nylon 6 film may be γ radiation at low doses was reported by Riganakos et al.21, Mizani
caused due to radiation-induced crosslinking among the polyamide et al.37 and Jeon et al.38
chains, which is most likely taken place in the amorphous region of The WVTR values of pristine LLDPE and EB irradiated LLDPE are
the semi-crystalline polymer.29,34,35 given in Figure 8. LLDPE film possesses excellent barrier property
The influence of EB irradiation on the OTR and WVTR values of towards the water vapour transmission. As shown in Figure 8, there is
PET film is shown in Figure 7A,B, respectively. There is no noticeable no significant change in the WVTR value even after irradiation by EB
change in the OTR value for PET film after irradiation. Only a up to 80 kGy. A very similar observation has also been reported by
slight decrease in the WVTR value from 31.2 g/m2/day (0 kGy) to Goulas et al. (2002) for LDPE film irradiated by γ radiation at 30-kGy
2
20.2 g/m /day (at 80 kGy) is observed. dose.27 Thus, the current results are in agreement with the previous
Oriented PET films are fairly resistant towards low dose of radia- study. However, in the present experimental condition, the OTR
tions due to the presence of aromatic and aliphatic segments in the values of LLDPE films for both controlled and EB treated are found to
PRAMANIK ET AL.
be beyond the capacity of the instruments (MOCON OTR Tester,
Model OXTRAN 2/22). Hence, the OTR value of LLDPE film is
not reported.
3.3 | Optical properties
The effect of EB irradiation on light transmission and haze is discussed
in this section. Figure 9A shows a decrease in percent light transmis-
sion for LLDPE film, whereas no noticeable change in percent haze is
observed after EB irradiation. For BOPP film, percent transparency
decreases whereas haze increases with the increase of EB dose as
shown in Figure 9B. Light transmission of BOPP film decreases from
91.6% (0 kGy) to 89.9% (80 kGy), and the haze value increases from
1.8% (0 kGy) to 2.7% (80 kGy). In case of Nylon 6, percent transpar-
ency remains almost unchanged whereas haze increases after EB
irradiation as shown in Figure 9C. For PET film, a slight decrease in
transparency and an increase in the haze value are observed after irra-
diation at 80 kGy (Figure 9D).
No noticeable colour change was observed after EB exposure. In
few cases, a very light yellow colour was developed initially after
irradiation, which disappears with time. The observation is in line with
Moura et al.12
Percent transmittance of LLDPE film decreases at lower wavelength
but increases slightly at higher wavelength after γ irradiation at 100 kGy
F I G U R E 9 Variation of transparency (%) and haze (%) with dose of e-beam radiation for (A) linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE),
(B) biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP), (C) Nylon 6 and (D) polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film specimens
7
as reported by Moura et al.12 The reduction in light transmission in the
spectral region between 195 and 240 nm, which is UV region, indicates
improvement in UV barrier properties after irradiation.12
3.4 | Thermal analysis by DSC
The effect of EB irradiation on the melting temperature (Tm) and
enthalpy of fusion (ΔHm) of LLDPE, BOPP, PET and Nylon 6 samples
is summarized in Tables 2 and 3. A decreasing trend in Tm with the
absorbed dose is observed for all the samples. On increasing the EB
dose from 0 to 80 kGy, Tm decreases by 2
C for LLDPE, 5.5
C for
BOPP and 2.3
C for Nylon 6. There is no noticeable change in Tm for
PET sample after irradiation. A very similar trend in variation of ΔHm
and percent crystallinity value is observed for all the samples after
irradiation. The percent crystallinity value is found to decrease by
2.3% for LLDPE, 2.8% for BOPP, 1.6% for PET and 2.3% for Nylon
6 specimens.
A decrease in melting temperature of BOPP/CPP laminate after
EB irradiation was reported by Mizani et al.37 They have also reported
no significant change in Tm of PET when PE/PET/LLDPE multilayer
laminate was irradiated. The decrease in both the melting temperature
and percent crystallinity values after EB irradiation is observed due to
the formation of slight crystal imperfection and reduction in
crystallite sizes.35,39,40
8 PRAMANIK ET AL.

TABLE 2 Tm, ΔHm and percent crystallinity values determined by differential scanning calorimetry analysis for LLDPE and BOPP film

LLDPE BOPP


Dose of EB radiation (kGy) Tm ( C) ΔHm (J/g) % Crystallinity Tm (
C) ΔHm (J/g) % Crystallinity
0 121.71 33.59 12.0 163.49 78.89 38.1
20 123.5 37.4 12.6 162.65 78.11 37.7
40 121.04 32.65 11.7 159.1 77.77 37.5
60 120.39 31.27 11.2 158.48 75.25 36.3
80 119.73 26.68 9.5 157.92 73.11 35.3

Abbreviations: BOPP, biaxially oriented polypropylene; EB, electron beam; LLDPE, linear low-density polyethylene.

TABLE 3 Tm, ΔHm and percent crystallinity values determined by differential scanning calorimetry analysis for Nylon 6 and PET film

PET Nylon 6

Dose of EB radiation (kGy) Tm (
C) ΔHm (J/g) % Crystallinity Tm (
C) ΔHm (J/g) % Crystallinity

0 255.13 42.94 30.6 222.6 68.31 29.7
20 255.92 44.87 32.0 222.11 69.56 30.2
40 255.43 43.15 30.8 221.64 67.43 29.3
60 254.5 42.42 30.3 220.96 65.19 28.3
80 254.8 40.73 29.0 220.35 63.81 27.7

Abbreviations: EB, electron beam; PET, polyethylene terephthalate.

Experimental evidence as reported in several literatures suggests investigation. The authors also extend their special thanks to Bhabha
that the radiation-induced crosslinking takes place primarily in the Atomic Research Centre, Trombay, for providing the EB accelerator
amorphous phase and at the interface between crystalline and amor- facility for the irradiation work required in this work.
phous regions.35,41,42 Due to crosslink formation in the interface
between these two regions, crystalline phase becomes slightly OR CID
impaired and resulted in lowered crystallinity when exposed under Nilay K. Pramanik https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0706-6868
high-energy radiation (γ rays).35,39,40 Ayan Dey https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7106-3952
Sanjay K. Chattopadhyay https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1350-3446

4 | C O N CL U S I O N
From the present studies, it can be concluded that EB irradiation can
be effectively used for modification of plastic packaging film charac-
teristics. Almost all the properties like mechanical strength, transpar-
ency, haze and permeability of O2 and water vapour can be changed
on irradiation. The extent of change in these properties is polymer
specific and also in some cases the direction specific. The inherent
drawback with Nylon 6 is its poor moisture barrier properties; this
could be improved on EB irradiation. It indicated that EB irradiation
can bring out basic changes in the properties of polymers. The
improvement in TS and barrier properties was attributed to
crosslinking of polymers due to irradiation. Same was further
established by DSC studies, which indicated a decrease in crystallinity
of polymers on irradiation.
ACKNOWLEDGEMEN TS
This project was supported by Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences
(BRNS), Mumbai. The authors moreover acknowledge Indian Institute
of Packaging, Mumbai, for their help and direction in leading this
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How to cite this article: Pramanik NK, Katamgari I, Dey A,
et al. Electron beam irradiation on monolayer plastic packaging
films: Studies on physico-mechanical and thermal properties.
Packag Technol Sci. 2021;1–9. https://doi.org/10.1002/pts.
2573