Utilization of Laboratory Papers with Non-Wood Fibres as Printing Substrates Observed Through the Maximum Ink Penetration Depth

Abstract

The use of non-wood fibres for paper production could be one of the most environmentally friendly and economical alternatives. Reducing the consumption of wood pulp in paper and cardboard production by replacing wood pulp with alternative plant biomass could be a viable solution, as the amount of non-wood fibres in biomass is far from being exhausted. In this study, straw from the most commonly grown agricultural crops in Croatia was used as a source of non-wood fibres. Agricultural residues from wheat, barley and triticale were selected as a substitute for wood fibres for the production of laboratory papers with straw fibres. Under laboratory conditions, straw pulp was mixed with recycled wood pulp in a ratio of 30:70 to produce paper sheets that can be printed with different printing techniques. Regardless of the printing technique used, it is desirable that the prints contain a high-quality reproduction of the image and text on the surface of the paper and that the ink does not penetrate completely through the substrate. In this context, this study observed the use of laboratory-made papers with non-wood fibres as the printing substrate by analysing the maximum depth of ink penetration into the printing substrate obtained with two printing techniques - a modern one (digital UV inkjet) and a very high quality conventional one (gravure). It was found that the gravure printing favoured a greater penetration of the UV ink into the substrate with the addition of straw pulp compared to the digital printing technique. However, this is a consequence of the printing technique, as similar ink penetration was also observed on the laboratory substrate made only from recycled fibres. Compared to commercial papers, the ink penetration is slightly higher into the laboratory made printing substrates. It is interesting to note that the printing substrate with the addition of 30% triticale pulp has the lowest ink penetration, especially in multicolour prints produced with the digital UV inkjet printing technique.