A polymeric film comprising a polyester substrate layer and a heat-scalable polymeric layer disposed on one surface of said polyester substrate layer, wherein the heat-scalable polymeric layer comprises copolyester A having a glass transition temperature Tg(A) in an amount WA and copolyester B having a glass transition temperature Tg(B) in an amount WB, wherein: (i) WA>WB; (ii) WA is at least 50 wt % by total weight of the heat-scalable polymeric layer; (iii) WB is at least 10 wt % by total weight of the heat-scalable polymeric layer; (iv) Tg(A)>Tg(B); (v) Tg(B) is in the range of ?35? C. to ?10? C.; and (vi) Tg(A) is preferably in the range of ?15? C. to 5? C.

Cleaning a sealing element includes pausing a rotor that bears the sealing elements at an angle from a set of discrete angles such that a sealing element is brought to a cleaning station. The station's coupling piece connects to the sealing element and allows cleaning medium to flow into it.

A sterilizing device for sterilizing closures for closing containers has vertically-oriented closure receivers arranged around a circumference of said rotor that moves said closures through a treatment zone between a closure inlet and outlet. One of the closure receivers is provided with said actuating device that at least partially engages the housing for applying, using the actuator, an actuation movement to a closure in said closure receiver. The actuator is movably connected to the opening via a bellows.

A treatment apparatus (1), using a sterilizing substance, for closures (2) for containers, including: a rotating unit (6); a plurality of longitudinal rails (7) able to house the closures (2) arranged by force of gravity, the rails (7) being solidly connected to the rotating unit (6) and being arranged such as to follow a circumferential extension of the rotating unit (6); dispensing apparatus (16) of the sterilizing substance, a variable-height support profile (15) located below the rails (7) and also having a circumferential extension such as to support the lines (8) of closures (2).

A device is provided for the decontamination of hollow objects with a cavity such as caps, including: (i) a first exposure apparatus including at least a UV radiation source and a reflector oriented toward the cavity of the positioned objects, able to produce a direct exposure to UV radiations of surfaces inside the cavity, (ii) a second exposure apparatus including at least a UV radiation source placed on the opposite side relative to the cavity of the positioned objects, the second exposure apparatus being able to expose surfaces inside the objects cavity to UV radiations by diffusion and/or transmission of UV radiations through the walls surrounding the objects cavity, and the first and second exposure apparatus cooperating for producing a global exposure to UV radiations of the surfaces inside the objects cavity. A method is also provided for the decontamination of hollow objects.

A polymeric film includes a polyester substrate layer and a heat-sealable polymeric layer disposed on one surface of the polyester substrate layer. In some cases, the heat-sealable polymeric layer includes a copolyester A having a glass transition temperature Tg(A) in an amount W.sub.A and a copolyester B having a glass transition temperature Tg(B) in an amount W.sub.B. In certain cases, (i) W.sub.A>W.sub.B; (ii) W.sub.A is at least 50 wt % by total weight of the heat-sealable polymeric layer; (iii) W.sub.B is at least 10 wt % by total weight of the heat-sealable polymeric layer; (iv) Tg(A)>Tg(B); (v) Tg(B) is in the range of 35 C. to 10 C.; and (vi) Tg(A) is in the range of 15 C. to 5 C.

A sterilization apparatus for sterilizing receptacle closures, comprising: a treatment chamber having an inlet station and an outlet station; a feeding device configured to feed a succession of receptacle closures to the inlet station; a conveyor configured to convey the receptacle closures through the treatment chamber from the inlet station to the outlet station; a sterilization agent injection device configured to inject a sterilization agent into the treatment chamber, wherein: the conveyor includes a plurality of adjacent guide rails; the feeding device is configured to feed the receptacle closures to at least one active guide rail of the plurality of guide rails; and the sterilization agent injection device includes a plurality of injection devices, each injection device being associated with one of the guide rails; and a controller configured to selectively actuate the injection devices according to a first and second operative mode.

A method for decontaminating caps (2) or necks of containers by electron bombardment, the method including: an operation of the passage or positioning of the caps (2) or necks of containers in front of an electron bombardment window (8), the opening of the caps (2) or necks of the containers facing the window (8); and an operation of electron bombardment of the caps (2) or necks of the containers, during the passage or positioning of the caps or necks of the containers in front of the window (8); the bombardment being carried out by way of a pulsed electric field including a series of electrical pulses of determined frequency, duration and intensity.

A packing apparatus for use in a sterile environment has an article loading and supply system. The loading system has a hatch in a first wall (P1) positioned at a height corresponding to a normal and ergonomic working height for an operator. The hatch faces an operating station which is to be supplied with the articles. A container element (2) has an internal volume (25) for containing articles, with a first article loading opening (21) and a second article unloading opening (22). The container element (2) is positioned in the sterile environment and is movable so that it can be positioned in a lowered position (PA) which corresponds to the hatch position for loading articles through the first loading opening, and then positionable in a raised position (PS) in which the second loading opening (22) is above the operating station (S1) for unloading the articles to be supplied thereto.

An electron beam sterilization method is provided to sterilize a bottle cap by dropping the bottle cap sequentially along a sterilization path in the vertical direction while the bottle cap is oriented such that the cap axis thereof passing through the center of an opening face is substantially horizontal, and applying an electron beam onto the bottle cap. First, in the sterilization path, an ambient gas is sucked through a suction hole formed along the vertical direction in a guide wall, thereby drawing the closed face of the bottle cap toward the guide wall, and an electron beam is applied onto the opening face. Next, in the sterilization path, an ambient gas is sucked through a suction hole formed along the vertical direction in a guide wall, thereby drawing the opening face of the bottle cap toward the guide wall, and an electron beam is applied onto the closed face.