ASTM_D_4332_-_22.pdf

Designation:D433222Standard Practice forConditioning Containers,Packages,or PackagingComponents for Testing1This standard is issued under the fixed designation D4332;the number immediately following the designation indicates the year oforiginal adoption or,in the case of revision,the year of last revision.A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval.Asuperscript epsilon()indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.1.Scope1.1 This practice provides for standard and special condi-tioning and testing atmospheres that may be used to simulateparticular field conditions that a container,package,or pack-aging component may encounter during its life or testing cycle.1.2 This practice describes procedures for conditioningthese containers,packages,or packaging components so thatthey approach or reach equilibrium with the atmosphere towhich they may be exposed.This standard is commonly usedfor conditioning when conducting transit simulation tests.1.3 Practice D685 should be used as the relevant condition-ing standard when quantification of box compression strengthat standard atmosphere conditions is required.1.4 This standard does not purport to address all of thesafety concerns,if any,associated with its use.It is theresponsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-priate safety,health,and environmental practices and deter-mine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.1.5 This international standard was developed in accor-dance with internationally recognized principles on standard-ization established in the Decision on Principles for theDevelopment of International Standards,Guides and Recom-mendations issued by the World Trade Organization TechnicalBarriers to Trade(TBT)Committee.2.Referenced Documents2.1 ASTM Standards:2D685 Practice for Conditioning Paper and Paper Productsfor TestingD996 Terminology of Packaging and Distribution Environ-mentsD1968 Terminology Relating to Paper and Paper ProductsE171 Practice for Conditioning and Testing Flexible BarrierPackagingE337 Test Method for Measuring Humidity with a Psy-chrometer(the Measurement of Wet-and Dry-Bulb Tem-peratures)F2825 Practice for Climatic Stressing of Packaging Systemsfor Single Parcel Delivery3.Terminology3.1 Terms and definitions used in this practice may be foundin Terminology D996,Terminology D1968,or SpecificationE171.4.Significance and Use4.1 Many materials from which containers and packages aremade,especially cellulosic materials,undergo changes inphysical properties as the temperature and the relative humidity(RH)to which they are exposed are varied.Therefore,thepackage should be placed and kept in a specified atmospherefor a length of time such that subsequent measurements ofphysical properties will be meaningful and reproducible.4.2 The conditions described in this practice are eitherhistorically accepted standard conditions or special laboratoryconditions chosen to represent particular phases of the distri-bution environment.These special conditions do not necessar-ily duplicate actual field conditions,but tend to simulate themand have effects on packages and materials which may berelated to their field performance.5.Atmospheric Conditions5.1 Preconditioning Atmosphere20 C to 40 C(68 F to104 F)and 10%to 35%relative humidity.5.2 Standard Conditioning Atmosphere23 C 6 1 C(73.4 F 6 2 F)and 50%6 2%relative humidity.NOTE1Average values must fall within these limits.Short-termfluctuations and measurement limitations may cause individual measure-ments to vary up to 62 C(63.6 F)and 65%relative humidity withoutsignificant impairment of test precision.1This practice is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee D10 on Packagingand is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee D10.21 on Shipping Containers andSystems-Application of Performance Test Methods.Current edition approved May 1,2022.Published June 2022.Originallyapproved in 1984.Last previous edition approved in 2014 as D4332 14.DOI:10.1520/D4332-22.2For referenced ASTM standards,visit the ASTM website,www.astm.org,orcontact ASTM Customer Service at serviceastm.org.For Annual Book of ASTMStandards volume information,refer to the standards Document Summary page onthe ASTM website.Copyright ASTM International,100 Barr Harbor Drive,PO Box C700,West Conshohocken,PA 19428-2959.United StatesThis international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles for theDevelopment of International Standards,Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade(TBT)Committee.15.3 Environmental Conditioning AtmosphereThe environ-mental conditions shown in Table 1 may be selected whenappropriate(also see Practice F2825).Environmental condi-tioning atmospheres can be used for testing packages with highmoisture sensitivity and for testing packages with limited or nomoisture sensitivity.NOTE2In the absence of a spe