USES OF PAPER
At work, at school, at home. The types and uses of paper are present in every moment and stage of our life.
Paper has endless uses, its job is to make people’s lives easier and since its discovery, its applications have been growing.
What is paper?
Paper is a material with a porous structure made up of interlaced fibers. It is manufactured from a pulp or aqueous suspension of fibers by draining the water through a mesh and subsequent drying. The fibers that make up the pulp are generally vegetable in nature, but their origin can also be mineral, animal, or synthetic.
It is manufactured from fibrous materials to which fillers, sizing agents, colorants, and additives are adhered to determine their characteristics. The fibrous materials are manipulated into the continuous paper.
The most widely used paper sources for its manufacture are hardwood trees, which are used for writing paper. Softwood trees are used for wrapping paper or boxes. The wood used to make paper in Spain is constantly being regenerated and replanted.
Paper is obtained from cellulose, a fiber from wood, and is divided into four large groups:
– Graphic paper
This term is used to encompass printing and writing paper. In this group are all the papers intended for printing, but the specific name is reserved for the printing papers used in the three main processes: letterpress, litho-offset and gravure. This designation includes very different kinds of paper due to their composition and treatment, such as poster paper, filigree paper, bible paper, carbon paper, etc.
– Paper for containers and packaging
This designation includes all the papers intended to contain and protect any kind of material or product. Some types of this paper are kraft paper, wallpaper, wrapping paper, sulfite paper, greaseproof paper, etc.
– Toilet and sanitary paper
This type of paper includes fine papers that are usually used for cleaning. Its most common format is the roll format but it can also be found in various others. The design of this paper is usually thought for its dissolution or decomposition in contact with water. Within this group are toilet paper, tissue paper, creped tissue paper, etc.
– Special paper
This broad category includes very varied types of paper that are outside the previous groups, such as that used for leather goods and security.
The types of paper differ from each other by:
- Raw Materials
- Surface structure
- Nature of the surface
- Finishing
- Grammage
- Uses or application
In addition, all varieties of paper have properties:
– Durability
Paper durability expresses the ability of the paper to perform its intended functions during continued use.
– Dimensional stability
It is the ability of a paper to maintain its dimensions and its flat appearance when its moisture content changes.
– Hand
This term refers to the relationship between the thickness and the weight of the paper.
– Permanence
This property refers to the useful properties of the paper, it’s mechanical and color resistance after prolonged periods.
– Resilience
It is the ability of the paper to return to its original shape after being deformed or curved.
– Carteo
This property refers to the combination of touch and sound that a sheet of paper produces when it is shaken manually.
There are many competitive advantages of paper, which is why it stands out compared to other alternative materials, offering high quality for different jobs.
Paper has been used in history as the material par excellence for the transmission of knowledge, its applications have no limits and there are many different varieties. The great variety of paper is constantly adapting to new uses.
The paper industry has evolved technologically and has endowed paper with new properties while entering a dynamic of environmental efficiency that makes paper position itself as the way to a sustainable future. Paper is a product with high added value and surprising applications. Stay tuned to our blog and you can learn much more about the types and uses of paper. Also in our online store, you can have everything you need.
