Packaging material and method of wrapping articles

Abstract

The present invention provides a packaging material comprising paper having a wet shrinkage in the CD direction of at least 3% and a method of wrapping articles with said packaging material, wetting the packaging material, wrapping said articles with said wetted packaging material, and drying the packaging material such that it shrinks to tightly bind the wrapped articles.

1 . A packaging material comprising paper having a wet shrinkage in the CD direction of at least 3%. 
     
     
         2 . A packaging material as claimed in  claim 1  having a wet shrinkage in the CD direction of at least 4.5%. 
     
     
         3 . A packaging material as claimed in  claim 1 or claim 2 , having a length weighted mean fibre length of at least 1.5 mm. 
     
     
         4 . A packaging material as claimed in  claim 1 or claim 2  having a length weighted mean fibre length of at least 2 mm. 
     
     
         5 . A packaging material as claimed in  any preceding claim , having a wet tensile strength of at least 10% of the material's dry tensile strength. 
     
     
         6 . A packaging material as claimed in any of  claims 1 to 5 , having a wet tensile strength of at least 15% of the material's dry tensile strength. 
     
     
         6 . A packaging material as claimed in  any preceding claim  having tensile stiffness index MD/CD ratio of at least 2.0. 
     
     
         7 . A packaging material as claimed in  any preceding claim  having tensile stiffness index MD/CD ratio of at least 2.5. 
     
     
         8 . A method of wrapping articles comprising providing a packaging material as claimed in  any preceding claim , wetting the packaging material, wrapping said articles with said wetted packaging material, and drying the packaging material such that it shrinks to tightly bind the wrapped articles. 
     
     
         9 . A method as claimed in  claim 8 , wherein said packaging material is dried by blowing unheated air over the packaging. 
     
     
         10 . A method as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein said packaging material is dried by the application of heat or blowing heated air over the packaging. 
     
     
         11 . A method as claimed in any of  claims 8 to 10 , wherein the packaging material is oriented in such a way that it preferentially shrinks around the articles in the material's CD direction.