Print Buying Direct

Recycled Paper – Print appearance – 21st January

In areas printed as solids there can be an uneven appearance and a poor ink lay due to uneven ink absorption and the roughness of the surface. A surface profile in which the peaks and valleys of the paper are greater than the thickness of the ink film is common, and as a result the ink fails to ‘bottom’ the valleys of the paper surface.

The surface is likely to be ruptured at many points where the fibre bonds have failed to resist the tack forces of the ink during impressions, and the tendency of quickest inks to ‘tack up’ as the low-viscosity components of the vehicle drain into the surface only makes matters worse. Solids are also likely to appear a little duller, with less floss, than on a comparable standard paper.

Set-off is possible, especially in overprint areas, owing to the heavy ink weights that must be run to achieve an acceptable print density on highly absorbent stocks. High surface acidity on some stocks can exacerbate drying problems. Halftones suffer considerably as dot gain is higher than on papers made from virgin fibre.

At the same time, reduction is brightness and maximum print densities will cause a loss of print contrast. It is often necessary to print halftones with coarser screen rulings is required on other stocks. Tints suffer in the same way but can also be noticeably uneven, for the same reasons as solids.

Type is affected by the paper absorbency, appearing thicker and less crisp. On smaller type sizes counters are prone to filling in, and some faces can become legible. Colour work suffers from the reduction in print contrast referred to earlier, appearing duller and less saturated than on standard stocks, and colour balance can be influenced by the hue of the paper.

Despite the difficulties, some printers have produced first class, award winning work in recycled paper. To obtain optimum quality, and process the materials as efficiently as possible, it is necessary to treat recycled papers a little differently from their standard counterparts.

Peter Harrison is Joint Managing Director of The Printing House Ltd,
and Print Buying Direct of Crewe, Cheshire, UK.

Print Buying Direct are UK market Leaders in Leaflet Printing | Brochure Printing.

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For more information on printing and graphic design please see some of our recent blog articles;

• Recycled Paper – Printability
• Recycled paper – Availability
• Recycled paper- uses
• Paper Recycling legislation as it concerns the print industry
• Printing and Recycling- definitions and legislation

Print Buying Direct is the online division and a Trading Name of The Printing House Ltd. One of the UK’s leading quality printing companies for short run, long run and wide format colour printing. Based in Crewe, Cheshire, in the North West of England – delivering to customers across the UK and Ireland.

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