Foil Bubble Bags vs FrioBox™: The Science of Low-e

Low-e technology is everywhere. We use aluminum foil for cooking, wrap ourselves with space blankets after a marathon, and even use low-e windows in our homes. The science sounds simple – the shiny metal surface insulates by not emitting infrared heat. But it’s a little more complicated than that. In the insulated packaging industry, you’ll find low-e materials in both foil bubble bags and the FrioBox™. Both products may look similar, but their performance couldn’t be more different.

The Physics Behind the Foil:

The “e” in low-e stands for emissivity, which describes a material’s ability to emit or radiate heat. If a low-e material like aluminum heats up, it will radiate very little infrared heat.

On the other hand, aluminum is also a very conductive metal, so if it were to be in contact with a solid object on both sides, the heat would easily be able to conduct though. To work properly, a low-e material should be installed with an adjacent air space on at least one site to prevent conduction.

Hate to Burst Your Bubble:

Foil bubble bags have become popular for shipping temperature sensitive goods, but there’s a fundamental flaw in the design of these bags. When placed in the shipping box, the aluminum foil presses directly against the box, eliminating any air space and allowing the heat to conduct through.

It might appear that the bubbles in the bubble wrap create an air space, but it’s constructed with a plastic film between the foil and the bubbles. The aluminum foil is in intimate contact with cardboard on one side and plastic on the other. Without the benefit of the low-e aluminum, the only insulation the bag provides is from the bubbles themselves, which is very little.

Thinking Outside the Box:

FrioBox™ is designed differently. Unlike a foil bubble bag, FrioBox™ maintains a controlled air space adjacent to the low-e surface. Conduction is minimized because there are very few points of contact, and radiation is minimized because the heat can’t emit across the space.

The results speak for themselves. Compared to an uninsulated cardboard box, FrioBox™ saw over 3X the improvement over a foil bubble bag. FrioBox™ is simply a better way to ship your temperature-sensitive goods.