Arcweb SL 220 High-Shrink Scratch and Tunnel Resistant Coating
A shrink sleeve coating for high shrink ratios and hard downstream handling, formulated to move with the film through the full shrink without crazing, blushing or cracking at the shoulder and base of the container. It adds scratch and scuff resistance and reduces the wet-look defect under condensation.
Grade Arcweb SL 220 | Range Label and Shrink Sleeve Coatings | Technology Flexible scratch-resistant sleeve coating; UV-curing acrylate for flexo, water-based dispersion for gravure
Technical Data Sheet
Arcweb SL 220
Issue 2026.09
1. Product description
A sleeve coating for high shrink ratios and hard downstream handling, formulated to move with the film through the full shrink without crazing, blushing or cracking at the shoulder and the base of the container. It adds scratch and scuff resistance for conveyor rails, guide plates and case packing, and it reduces the wet-look defect where a sleeve absorbs condensation in a chill chain or a wet filling hall and goes cloudy until the container dries. Shrink and scratch performance cannot be read from a drawdown card, so every specification is qualified in the customer’s tunnel on the customer’s film.
2. Features
- Moves with high-shrink film without crazing, blushing or cracking at shoulder and base
- Scratch and scuff resistance for conveyor rails, guide plates and case packing
- Reduces cloudy wet-look patches when sleeves meet condensation
- Suited to steam and hot-air tunnels, including two-stage tunnels
- Every specification qualified in the customer's tunnel on the customer's film
3. Recommended uses
High-shrink sleeves on PETG, PVC and OPS film, reverse or surface printed, for contoured containers that pass through chill chains, wet filling halls or demanding conveyor and case packing lines.
Substrates. High-shrink PETG, PVC and OPS sleeve film, reverse and surface printed
4. Typical properties
| Property | Typical value | Method |
|---|---|---|
| Technology | Flexible scratch-resistant sleeve coating; UV-curing acrylate for flexo, water-based dispersion for gravure | Formulation |
| Non-volatile content | 98 to 100 per cent by weight, UV version; 30 to 40 per cent by weight, water-based version | ISO 3251 (water-based version); ASTM D5403, Test Method A (UV version) |
| Supply viscosity | 200 to 500 mPa.s, rotational, at 25 °C, UV version; 20 to 35 s, 4 mm flow cup, at 23 °C, water-based version | ISO 2884-1 (UV version); ISO 2431, 4 mm orifice (water-based version) |
| pH, water-based version | 8.0 to 9.0 | ASTM E70 |
| Coefficient of friction, coated face to reverse face | Static 0.20 to 0.50, kinetic 0.15 to 0.45, set within this window for the applicator's magazine | ASTM D1894 |
| Surface resistivity | 1 x 10^9 to 1 x 10^12 ohm per square; resistivity rises as humidity falls, so confirm sleeve separation at the lowest relative humidity of the customer's applicator hall | ASTM D257, after conditioning at 23 °C and 50 per cent relative humidity |
| Rub and scuff resistance | 300 to 500 cycles under a 2 lb, 0.91 kg, weight without pick or print removal | ASTM D5264 |
| Shrink behaviour | No crazing, blushing or cracking at the shoulder and base through the full shrink, assessed in the customer's tunnel on the customer's film | Customer or supplier protocol |
| Condensation behaviour | Reduced wet-look clouding on sleeved containers under the customer's chill-chain or wet-hall conditions | Customer or supplier protocol |
Typical values, not a specification. Values for each batch are given on its Certificate of Analysis.
5. Application
| Parameter | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Application method | Gravure (water-based version) or UV flexo (UV version) |
| Surface preparation | Corona treat sleeve film that is not top-coated in line at the time of coating, and check wetting tension before the run; a low-energy surface shows as fisheyes, pinholes and poor anchorage |
| Dilution | UV version supplied ready for use and not diluted; water-based version adjusted only with small additions of water where needed |
| Applied dry coat weight | 1.5 to 2.5 g/m² |
| Drying or cure | UV version cured by mercury or UV LED lamps; water-based version dried with hot air, keeping the web cool enough that the sleeve film does not begin to shrink on press. For the UV version, state the lamp type, and for UV LED the peak wavelength, when ordering, because the photoinitiator package is matched to the lamp; confirm surface cure at the die on the lamp in use. |
| Shrinking | Steam and hot-air tunnels, including two-stage tunnels |
| Qualification | Qualified on the customer's film in the customer's tunnel at the customer's line speed and heat profile, covering crazing, gloss loss, ink anchorage after shrink, slide angle, scratch pick-up and behaviour under condensation |
Process. Gravure or UV flexo; steam and hot-air tunnels, including two-stage tunnels
6. Storage and handling
Store in the original closed container at 5 to 25 °C, away from direct sunlight; keep the water-based version clear of frost and the UV version away from UV light sources. Shelf life is stated on the label and Certificate of Analysis. Handle and use the product in line with its Safety Data Sheet.
7. Safety and regulatory information
Read the Safety Data Sheet before use. Safety Data Sheets and regulatory declarations are issued by our technical centre against the product and batch supplied, so they are sent on request rather than published. Request a Safety Data Sheet or declaration.
This Technical Data Sheet is published for on-screen reference. The information is given in good faith from laboratory and application experience and describes typical values; it is not a specification and does not replace a trial on your own substrate and line. Arctic Materials may revise this sheet without notice. Issue 2026.09.
Technical Data Sheets on this site are for on-screen viewing. For a controlled copy, write to tech@arcticmaterials.com.
Other grades in this range
Need a Safety Data Sheet, a regulatory declaration or a grade specified to your line? Contact our technical centre.