Abstract
Among packaging materials, plastics have the advantages of being thin, lightweight, robust, bendable, flexible, and are applicable to a variety of shapes. However, plastics also have several disadvantages, including those due to oxygen and water vapor barrier properties. The barrier properties of plastics are extremely important, in particular, from the viewpoint of the shelf life of packaged food products and medicines. The oxygen barrier is necessary to suppress deterioration of food due to oxidation during storage. Moreover, the water vapor barrier is necessary to prevent moisture loss. This review presents the fundamentals of gas barrier properties of plastic products for packaging applications.
