We are now looking for a EUTOPIA co-tutelle PhD researcher to join us in the Autumn of 2024 and develop together with us an exciting joint research program together with the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB).
Stefan Bon helps out with the "I am a scientist get me out of here" initiative
I’m a Scientist is an online, student-led science engagement activity where school students connect with working scientists. Prof. dr. ir. Stefan Bon says: “This initiative is fantastic. It is great to contribute and talk to various young people about science. I always look forward to the online chats as people come with great questions and have a lot of enthusiasm”.
BonLab designs a stick-on-demand adhesive for linerless labels
Labels are big business. A typical label has multiple layers: a topcoat for protection, the face stock, which contains the message in the form of text and/or images, a pressure-sensitive adhesive, and a release liner, which often has a release coating. The release liner and coating are only there to protect the label from sticking to things you do not wish it would stick to. You remove the liner when you wish to apply the label onto your substrate of choice, for example, a bottle containing a drink.
Imagine a label without a release liner and coating, imagine a label that could be activated at the moment you want it to stick to a substrate, a stick-on-demand linerless label.
BonLab has designed and developed a concept and prototype for a sustainable solution: a mesh reinforced pressure-sensitive adhesive for linerless label design. The idea was worked out by Emily Brogden and prof. dr. ir. Stefan Bon, in collaboration with UPM Raflatac Oy, a global supplier of label materials for branding and promotion, information and functional labelling (patent application: WO2023105120A1). The complete study, which was done at the University of Warwick, is now published in the new journal RSC Applied Polymers.