The article presents a comprehensive study of the surface properties of polymer films used in flexible packaging, with emphasis on their suitability for forming stable ink layers under flexographic printing conditions. The growing use of polymer substrates with insufficient surface energy makes the topic highly relevant, as achieving reliable adhesion between the ink and film surface remains a technological challenge.
Herein, we discuss various physicochemical properties of cationic (CTAB), anionic (SDBS) and nonionic (TX-100) surfactants in the presence and absence of lysozyme, at different temperatures by using tensiometery. The surface excess (Γmax) decreases with the increase in temperature for all three kinds of surfactants in the presence and absence of lysozyme, but the most prominent decrease is to be observed for SDBS as compared to CTAB and TX-100 in the presence of lysozyme. The minimum area per molecule (Amin) follows the opposite trend as expected.