Lubricated sheet product and lubricant composition

Abstract

There is disclosed a metal sheet product, more particularly formed food container stock and/or industrial sheet product, which has been treated with an ester-free, lubricant composition that is suitable for direct food contact. This composition consists essentially of: (i) about 10-90 wt. % of a polyalphaolefin; (ii) about 10-90 wt. % of an oleic acid; (iii) about 0-60 wt. % of an isostearic acid; and preferably, about 10-35 wt. % isostearic acid. It should be noted that especially good smudge testing results were observed with the presence of oleic acid. In alternative embodiments, the lubricant composition further includes: (iv) up to about 5 wt. % of an antioxidant, preferably about 0.1-3 wt. % butylated hydroxytoluene; and (v) up to about 10 wt. % of a conductivity enhancer, such as about 2-7 wt. % lecithin. When applied in total deposited weights of about 0.1-30 mg/ft2 per side, this invention produces formed food container stock or industrial sheet having improved formability and relatively lower smudge results when compared to its fatty acid and ester-containing alternatives.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.