Volume 15, Number 6
Oct 1991

Permanent Papers on the Market

The papers listed in Table 1 are those named by the 23 paper companies that returned the Abbey Publications questionnaire on permanent papers by August 15, 1991. The list is probably not comprehensive. Twelve of the companies that did not reply are Cross Pointe, Eastern, E.B. Eddy, Finch Pruyn, Parsons, Patriot, Potsdam, Riverside Simpson Pasadena, Warren, Byron Weston, and George Whiting. These are all 100% alkaline companies, or close to it.

We have made an effort to clarify any ambiguous questionnaire responses by making follow-up calls to the companies, with limited success. Some mills specified just which ASTM standards each of their listed papers met (e.g., D-3290), while others simply wrote "ASTM." We are responsible for some imprecision too, because we did not insist that respondents list only papers that corresponded exactly to the type covered by a standard. A strict interpretation would have meant omission of many papers that are indeed long-lived, because many fine papers produced today are not covered by any kind of permanence standard.

For more information on just what kind of printing ("ptg") or office ("ofc") papers these are, see Walden's Paper Catalog or one of the directories published by Grade Finders, Inc. Most printers and distributors have copies of these directories; ask them to let you use their copy.

Papers with recycled content have an R following their name. Content varies from 5% to 100% and may be preconsumer or postconsumer waste or both. Now that all 50 states have laws requiring the use of recycled paper for certain purposes, a purchaser may have to specify recycled content as well as permanence.

Summaries of the specifications for the ANSI and ASTM standards are given in Tables 2 and 3. The row for tear resistance specs gives three different measures for resistance to tearing: g (gram, really a measure of weight that often does double duty as a measure of force), gf (gram force, which is the same as the grain under standard gravity conditions on earth) and N (newton, a unit of force which has come into wider use recently; one mN or millinewton=9.81 gf). In future standards, we can expect to see this confusion cleared up. We will also see more frequent use of measures in the form of indexes, which will take into account the thickness of the paper and thus allow the use of one measure for all papers covered.

Complete standards are available from ASTM, 1916 Race St., Philadelphia, PA 19103 (215/299-5400) and (for ANSI Z39.48) from Transaction Publishers, Dept. NISO Standards, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08903 (201/932-2280).

Table 1. Permanent Papers, Standards Met, and Main Use

Notes

1. Champion International. The four deep shade Carnival Cover grades will remain acid sized until late in 1991.

2. Consolidated & Potlatch both make alkaline coated papers, for which there is no permanence standard at present.

3. Crane. A note on the 1990 survey says they have the capability to manufacture all bonds, ledgers, indexes and Save-A-Source recycled paper to meet the ASTM, ANSI, or other specifications as requested by customers.

4. Mohawk. Except midnight blue, navy blue, autumn red, berry, charcoal, forest green, cordovan, plum and ash gray.

5. All papers listed for Mohawk meet the specs in ASTM D-3290 (bond and ledger papers) and ASTM D-3458 (copy papers).

6. Papyrus Newton Falls. "Recycled fiber used on a special making basis."

7. Union Camp replied (in 1990), "At the present time all of our papers are manufactured to a level less than 7.0. Several trials have been conducted on alkaline sized paper and Union Camp's Fine Paper Division is presently making plans for a conversion to alkaline sizing in 1991."

Table 2. ASTM Standards for Permanent Records Papers: Specifications for Maximum Permanence (Type I), Ordinary Use

Table 3. ANSI Standard (Z39.48-1984) for Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials

pH - 7.5 min
Alkaline reserve - 2% calcium carbonate, min.
Fiber (paper stock) - No groundwood or unbleached pulp
Fold endurance - 30 double folds, average both directions
Tear resistance - 24-50 g for 30-60 lb. paper, MD, min.