Standard for testing transmission of water vapour in packaging

ASTM is developing a new standard to test the transmission rate of water vapour into packaging materials. Understanding water transmission rate is a key component for the shelf life of many products.

“The materials and packages covered by this standard affect nearly every package one sees in grocery stores, pharmacies and hospitals,” says ASTM member Joel Fischer, laboratory manager, MOCON.

The proposed standard (WK49124, Test Method for Water Vapor Transmission Rate through Packages Using a Modulated Infrared Sensor) is based on another ASTM standard (F1249) that measures water vapour through plastic film and sheeting with a pressure-modulated infrared detector.

“This detector lends itself well to testing whole packages, including bottles with closures, sealed pouches, tubing and small blister cards,” notes Fischer.

Many people have used the instruments in F1249 for packaging testing due to faster analysis and greater sensitivity. This led to a need for a standard that used the techniques described in F1249, but with a focus on packaging.