A screw cap or closure is a common type of closure for bottles, jars, and tubes.

Common screw closures: Plastic bottle with plastic screw cap, Dispensing closure for salad dressing (with inner seal), Break-away closure for syrup, Dispensing pump closure, Dispensing closure (with inner seal), Spray pump, Metal closure on glass jar, Child resistant closure, Cap on toothpaste, Measuring cap

[edit] Usage

A screw closure is a mechanical device which is screwed on and off of a "finish" on a container. Either continuous threads or lugs are used. It must be engineered to be cost-effective, to provide an effective seal (and barrier), to be compatible with the contents, to be easily opened by the consumer, often to be reclosable, and to comply with product, package, and environmental laws and regulations. Some closures need to be tamper resistant and have child-resistant packaging features.

[edit] Wine Industry

Its use as an alternative wine closure is gaining increasing support as an alternative to cork for sealing wine bottles. A screw cap is a metal cap that screws onto threads on the neck of a bottle, generally with a metal skirt down the neck to resemble the traditional wine capsule ("foil"). A layer of plastic (often PVDC), cork, rubber, or other soft material is used as wad to make a seal with the mouth of the bottle.

[edit] Sake industry

Sake bottles are almost universally closed with screw caps (some are packed in barrels, or novelty bottles).

[edit] Sources

• Brody, A. L., and Marsh, K, S., "Encyclopedia of Packaging Technology", John Wiley & Sons, 1997, ISBN 0-471-06397-5
• Soroka, W, "Fundamentals of Packaging Technology", IoPP, 2002, ISBN 1-930268-25-4
• Prlewe, J. Wine from Grape to Glass. NY: Abbeville Press, 1999.
• Wayne J. Mortensen and Brian K. Marks, The Failure of a Wine Closure Innovation: A Strategic Marketing Analysis,
• ASTM D3474 Standard Practice for Calibration and Use of Torque Meters Used in Packaging Applications

[edit] See also

• Screw cap (wine)
• Packaging
• Bottle cap
• Permeation‎
• Child-resistant packaging
• Closure & Container Manufacturers Association

[edit] External links

• New Zealand Screwcap Initiative