Permeation Testing of PET bottles in the production of Mineral Water
S.Pellegrino mineral water is recognised globally as one of the leading mineral waters on the market. Flowing from a thermal springs in the heart of the Orobic Alps, its properties were known and appreciated since the thirteenth century. In the late nineteenth century it reached peak popularity. In response to the growing demand for entire cases of water from the springs in 1899 the modern S.Pellegrino Company was founded, producing 35,345 bottles of which 5,562 were exported around the world.
The taste of S.Pellegrino is acquired during 30 years of natural filtering through Dolomitic rocks, which gives it a richness and balance of mineral salts. The composition of the water has remained unchanged over time. The sparkling version was created by adding natural CO2 to balance the light aftertaste due to the mineral content with the right level of carbonation. It was an immediate success. The mineral water is produced and bottled at San Pellegrino Terme in the Province of Bergamo, Lombardy, Italy.
During the bottling process, numerous controls are carried out to ensure and maintain the quality of the mineral water. S.Pellegrino utilise the Systech Illinois 8700 analyser to test the oxygen permeation of their plastic bottles. This analysis assists S.Pellegrino in meeting the high demand of shelf life requirements. The 8700 Oxygen Permeation Analyser is extremely versatile, capable of measuring wide ranges of oxygen permeability. It can complete up to 11 sample tests simultaneously and provide data in a very short time of between 3-12 hours.
Technical Manager at S.Pellegrino says, “After the first 4 months of use in the laboratory, the technicians who work in myteam have found that the instrument is easy to use and it showed excellent stability in the results.”
