Top 10 Myths About Container Closure Testing X

Myth: One leak testing method fits all product packaging systems
Fact: Many leak testing methods are useful, but no one method is appropriate for all applications. Over the past decade, packaging integrity technology has improved significantly to the point where a toolbox of leak testing methods is essential for a wide range of product packaging applications. Typically, vacuum decay methods are effective for testing powder-filled and non-proteinaceous liquid-filled packages (10). High-pressure leak testing applies to many packaging systems containing liquid formulations (5). Laser-based frequency modulation spectroscopy of gas headspace detection is very useful for packages that require a vacuum or inert gas headspace (11). These nondestructive, rapid leak testing methods are today's primary CCIT tools. As technology advances, other methods may come to the forefront of leak detection, and the days of relying solely on microbial challenge dye entry testing may soon end.