Coated paper - what is it? This is a special printed printing material for images and inscriptions of various formats, produced on certain equipment. The surface of the paper is porous, with selective absorption of printing inks. The material is used in the production of advertising and information products, souvenir products, in the decoration of interior spaces, design work, and so on.
Coated inkjet paper: features
Coated material is impregnated with only a small part of the paint, which contains a solvent. Pigment and light film remain on the surface of the paper. Thanks to this effect, the image is clear and colorful. When applying a special protective coating, the pattern lasts longer, it becomes more saturated and attractive than on any other paper.
In this case, you should pay attention to the density of coated paper. This material is divided into 15 different categories responsible for compaction of structural fibers. For color printing , a material is used whose density is 115 g / m 2 . Such paper absorbs colored ink a little and is less enlightened in the light.
When printing a two-sided image, they try to ensure that the drawings overlap each other without any distortion.
Coated paper: types and production
The product contains components such as pulp, various fillers and coated substance. The paper itself is divided into the following types:
1. Number of parties:
- one-sided printing (for labels);
- bilateral standard drawing.
2. Surfaces:
- matte paper is most often used for text labels, the hallmark is the stiffness and opacity of the material;
- semi-gloss paper provides an average type of finish;
- glossy material - increased image quality, smoothness and less dusting of paper.
3. Number of layers:
- single layer paper;
- two-layer material;
- Three layers of coating, providing better smoothness and whiteness.
4. Sheet weight:
- light up to 60–65 g / m 2 ;
- average - 70-155 g / m 2 ;
- heavy (high density paper) - 150 g / m 2 and above;
5. Coated paper formats:
- sheets packed in bundles for easy storage and transportation;
- rolls intended for drying.
How coated paper is made
Pulp is the main ingredient from which coated paper is made. What is this process in printing houses? Paper production is divided into several stages:
- Seal the main component. The pulp mass, consisting of 5-6 percent of the main ingredient and 94-95% of water, is laid on a movable mesh of production equipment. Under the press, water is gradually squeezed out, and the working fiber remains on the grid. It has a front and back (mesh) side.
- Sticking. To make coated paper and cardboard less absorb ink and paints, the fibers are impregnated with certain adhesive substances using production machines. Sometimes sizing is carried out at the end of manufacture, which is called "surface treatment". Most often, rosin is used to process the fibers, but various synthetic components can also be used.
- Calendering The preparatory material is laid on heating elements that rotate, dry and compress the fibers, giving them a smooth effect. It was at this time that the canvas turned into paper. The longer the material is under the press, the more future paper will be transparent and less convex. The main difficulty of this stage is to strike a balance between smoothness and opacity.
Final action
A4 coated paper, as in rolls, is already formed at this production step. This process is similar to the previous step, but using softer shafts coated with plastic, the paper becomes dull or glossy at the end.
Then begins the coating process, consisting of the following actions. After passing all the processing paper is coated with a special solution one or more times. Drying is used with the coating method, but sometimes some manufacturers refuse the drying process, which is called, in the language of experts, the wet method technology. In special cases, processing can be carried out in three layers, while coated glossy paper is obtained.
Properties and features of coated paper
Choosing and using such a paper, you should pay attention to its features, which are density, transparency, roughness, clean white, humidity and so on.
Manufacturers of coated paper, for the most part, under the same brand represent more than 10 varieties of products of different density groups, which start from 70 g / m 2 and end with 350 g / m 2 (cardboard).
Matte or glossy coated paper should have a resistance to plucking according to Dennisen from 4 to 7 points, which allows the printing ink to be well absorbed into the upper layers of the fibers.
Material application
Coated paper - what is it, how to recognize and see it? The most interesting thing is that we see this material every day, buying glossy magazines, encyclopedias, books, brochures and so on from newsstands and bookstores. There are many manufacturers of these products in the modern paper market, the competition is high, therefore the quality of products is monitored very strictly.
Also, color illustrated images are printed on such paper - stickers, advertisements for household appliances, calendars, posters for billboards and other information and print products.
Coated paper is harmful or not?
This question is not in vain, since there is a certain category of people (ecologists) who consider this type of paper to be very harmful and do not recommend using products based on coated material. What arguments do they give?
Environmentalists consider all beautiful and expensive books and magazines harmful to health, since the purity and whiteness of the paper is ensured by the chemical component - dioxin, which is used in the manufacture of high-quality products. At the same time, they argue that low-quality print media contain a lot of zinc and are also harmful to humans. In their opinion, offset paper is the safest product. Many experts agree with the latter statement, but one can argue with all other arguments.
Coated paper hazard statement
Indeed, manufacturers sometimes use dioxide to produce high quality coated paper. What kind of chemical is this? This is titanium dioxide, which is responsible for the purity and whiteness of the material. However, it is expensive, and modern printing paper factories mainly use other, cheaper and less harmful components, such as kaolin. It is even predicted to use ordinary chalk for fiber bleaching in the future.
Experts emphasize that the proportion of dioxide in the ingredients for coated paper processing is very small, especially since it comes with castor oil, which reduces the radiation background of the dioxide.
Where is coated material most commonly found?
Coated paper is often used for the manufacture of magazines, especially if it is necessary to portray a high-quality illustration, some kind of reproduction, advertising of expensive products and the like. A variety of information weeklies, business publications that focus on the text rather than the pictures, prefer to use less expensive and non-glossy paper, such as offset coated paper.
Also, coated material is preferred by publishers of various catalogs of cosmetics, clothing and home household products. In addition to a high-quality image and a beautiful view, fingerprints do not remain on such paper, which allows the catalog to remain presentable longer.
Wall calendars are also printed on coated paper. However, such products are better perceived without glare and gloss. Therefore, matte coated paper is used to make wall calendars . It does not change its shade under the influence of light, does not turn yellow and is more resistant to indoor air humidity.
Total
Thus, it becomes clear that coated paper is widely used in printing products. We encounter it almost constantly, buying a magazine, looking at booklets in supermarkets or leaflets from sales, catalogs with cosmetics and household goods. This high-quality paper is made according to complicated technology, with numerous gentle impregnations, long drying and other technological methods that give it a glossy effect and snow-white color.
Coated material is widely used when it is necessary to depict a clear and rich illustration, image or any picture. Unfortunately, many domestic manufacturers of printed products, trying to save on paper material, use low-quality paper, which not only increases the wear of the product, but also negatively represents this or that printed information.
In addition, it must be borne in mind that the paper described acquires its excellent qualities after using special chemicals that remain in the structure of the material after impregnation and can have a negative effect on human health, especially children. To this we must add that typographic ink and dyes can be based on inorganic substances that harm a person if they get inside the body. But this does not mean that you do not need to read and buy printed materials, but you just have to be careful, remembering that all kinds of chemical substances that are part of printing ink and coated paper can remain on hand.