A working group was appointed in 1989 to consider the use of alkaline paper for Canadian Government publications. It has recently made the recommendation, through the Parliamentary Librarian to the speakers of both houses, that the proposals in their September 1989 report (below) be enacted for government publications that are archival in nature.
Excerpts from the report are reprinted here with permission.
Report on the Runability of Alkaline Paperstocks within the National Printing Bureau
Prepared for the Working Group on the possible use of alkaline paper for the printing of Government publications
by Neville Wooodman
Canadian Government Printing Services
September 1989
A working group under the direction of the Library of, Parliament to determine the feasibility of using alkaline paper for the printing of Canadian Government publications was created in 1989. This working group commissioned the Canadian Government Printing Services (CGPS) to perform a runability test by printing facsimile publications on alkaline paper and investigate the effect of present printing methods on the pH factor of the paper. The tests were commissioned in order to determine the feasibility of the option to print some or all parliamentary papers and possibly other Government publications on alkaline paper.
The CGPS evaluation trial used recognized standards and testing methods. The trial confirmed that alkaline paper is suitable for printing government publications; that the usage of alkaline paper for printing will have m negative impact on production; that m retrofit of existing printing equipment is necessary; that production costs should not differ for either acidic or alkaline paper; that product appearance is enhanced due to the optical characteristics of alkaline paper; that an ample supply of Canadian and offshore alkaline uncoated paper suitable for the inside pages of a publication is available; that m significant degradative actions to alkalinity of the paper take place during any of the printing or binding cycles.
The runability trials performed by CGPS confirm that the longevity of the text page portion of future government publications can be guaranteed by printing them m permanent alkaline paper available now off-the-shelf in some grades and weights from Canadian manufacturers. The results of the trial runs demonstrate that the printing of publications using alkaline paperstock is a viable and cost effective option to consider.
Trials. On April 10, 1989, at the second working group meeting, P.G. Franche, Director, CGPS, proposed that trial runs of printing on alkaline paperstocks be made. The working group later agreed to fund the trials which were scheduled for completion prior to September 1, 1989 after which a report would be prepared.
Scope of the Evaluation. The evaluation of the runability of alkaline paper included the following objectives:
Permanence and Durability of Paper. "Permanence" refers to the retention of significant use properties, particularly folding endurance, tear resistance and color, over prolonged periods. It is distinguished from "durability," which expresses the degree to which a paper retains its original qualities under continuous usage.
The permanence of paper is determined by "internal" and external' factors. The internal factors are established during manufacture of the paper and include kind and quality of the fibers, sizing materials, coatings, the presence of acidic and metallic compounds, and other components of the sheet. The external factors are related to conditions during storage or use, e.g., temperature, relative humidity (which determines the moisture content of the paper), light and contaminants in the atmosphere....
Supply and Demand of Alkaline Paper. Alkaline papers have been around since the [early] 1900's. Their advantages were known but they were difficult and costly to produce and were also difficult to use.
Today, new production methods have solved most manufacturing problems and the performance of the sheet has improved considerably.
Many paper mills have converted to an alkaline process within the last few years. These conversions have not been for paper longevity purposes but for economic reasons.
In Canada within the last year, two mills have converted (Canadian Pacific Forest Products Limited and Island
Paper Mills Company), a new mill (Weyerhaeuser Canada Limited) is alkaline only and one mill (E.B. Eddy Forest Products Ltd.) had conducted trials with a possible intention to convert.
In Europe over 65% of paper production is alkaline. In the U.S.A. some 52 mills are alkaline (over 25% of the total). They produce approximately 4 million tons (25% of the total) of U.S. fine paper production. More conversions have been announced and many grades of paper are involved.
Because of the recent conversions and additions in Canada to alkaline papermaking, and as a result of the modifications to the Supply and Services Canada procurement process through Free Trade and GATT, the availability and cost of alkaline papers should no longer be considered impediments. The normal tendering process will likely result in an alkaline mill winning a contract and C.G.P.S. receiving alkaline paper as a result of normal business practices. However, this would not ensure that the paper was also permanent. For permanent paper to be specifically procured, a purchase specification would have to be prepared that included the requirements for permanency as well as alkalinity.
Stocks were obtained off-the-shelf as opposed to proceeding through the normal procurement process which would have included a specific purchase description. This was to obtain papers currently produced to industry specifications. The small tonnage required for the tests did riot allow for dedicated mill runs to a Government specification. If a switch is ever made to alkaline paperstocks and the order is of sufficient quantity, then a Government official purchase description should be prepared to have the paper made to conform to permanency requirements by incorporating the "ANSI®" specifications.... A conscious effort was made to obtain an alkaline version of No. 2 Offset for the tests because this category of paper, when made alkaline via the precipitated calcium filler process, provides enhanced optical characteristics which make it an ideal option, both in price and suitability.
Stocks were obtained from:
Weyerhaeuser Canada Limited
Roll and sheets of 80M No. 2 Offset
Roll and sheets of 100M No. 2 Offset
Canadian Pacific Forest Products Limited -
Roll of 80M No. 1 Book, Opaque
Roll of 100M No. 1 Book, Opaque
E.B. Eddy Forest Products Limited
Roll and sheets of 80M No. 1 Book, Opaque
At the same time, as a norm for printing quality, the acidic paperstock currently used for printing parliamentary requirements was subjected to the same testing.
Before testing began, officials of CGPS visited the U.S. Government Printing Office, the U.S. Library of Congress and the U.S. National Archives. Discussions took place and literature and expertise were exchanged about similar ongoing investigations and testing that had taken place.
The author gratefully acknowledges the time and expertise shared by:
George J. Collins, Manager, Quality Control and Technical Department, U.S. Government Printing Office.
Susan Lee-Bechtold, Ph.D., Supervisory Chemist, Document Conservation Lab, Preservation Policy & Services Division, U.S. National Archives.
Chandru J. Shahani, M.S., Ph.D., Research Officer, Preservation Research and Testing Office, U.S. Library of Congress.
Consultation also took place between officials of CGPS and several individuals from private industry including printers and bookbinders who use alkaline products and who shared expertise about related binding products. CGPS officials found that generally, commercial printing firms are printing on alkaline paper without problems, bookbinders are becoming more aware of archival requirements for ephemeral products and that alkaline binding supplies are now available from the U.S.
All paperstocks were tested upon arrival against the appropriate Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB) applicable standard to determine whether the "off-the-shelf" sheet met the minimum property characteristics of its advertised category. As the papers were not specifically procured by the Crown against a standard, any differences were borderline and in no way had a bearing on the result of the testing-
The paperstocks were also tested upon arrival against an existing standard for permanence being ANSI® (Z39.481984). At this point, paper from two Canadian mills passed all requirements and could be deemed to be permanent and last several hundred years.
Printing then took place using normal procedures. During production the pH of various chemicals and item used, and inked and blank areas of the printed product were closely monitored. Paper was run through all printing stages with and without all chemicals and the pH continuously monitored. This was to determine the location and culprit stage of production where contamination occurred in the event that alkalinity had been affected.
The pH of the fountain solutions was 5.1 for sheet-fed and 3.9 for the web press. The pH of the softener was 9.4.
After printing, the papers were again tested against the ANSI standard for permanency. Those papers which were permanent upon arrival from the paper mills, were still permanent. It could be stated that the printing process within the National Printing Bureau, using existing equipment and supplies, does not affect alkalinity or permanency.
The printed signatures were then put through normal bindery procedures to produce facsimile finished products of several styles of bound item which included saddle-stitched, corner-stitched, perfect-bound and sewn case-bound hard cover books. An acidic cover was used on the perfect-bound version to attempt to identify any contamination from migration. None was apparent.
The finished bound item were subjected to a heating test (TAPPI 453 su-70) in a dry oven at 105°C for 72 hours with a beginning RH of 50%. to examine the effects of heating on folding endurance. After heating, the product was inspected for visual defects and the paper was again tested against the ANSI® standard. The same papers were still permanent . It was confirmed that the bindery process within the National Printing Bureau, using Existing equipment and supplies, does not affect alkalinity or permanency.
Unresolved arguments within the scientific community about the validity of various aging tests notwithstanding, general scientific agreement exists that acid reduces the life of books and that alkaline books last longer. Aging tests serve only to substantiate research into paper permanence or impermanence.
The results clearly show that paper with an alkaline pH cannot necessarily be deemed permanent. The other characteristics tested against the permanency standard are equally important. One paper had a pH of over 8.0 but failed the tear resistance and folding endurance portions of the ANSI® tests.
Only products from Weyerhaeuser Canada Limited and Canadian Pacific Forest Products Limited passed all tests against the ANSI specification. Other papers failed at least one test.
The testing was performed within the Quality Assurance Unit at the National Printing Bureau. Mr. M. Graham of the working group visited the laboratory and was confident that all tests were performed in accordance with standards and specifications. His interest and input were appreciated.
After heating, the currently used acidic paper yellowed considerably regardless of the type of binding. Those papers that had an alkaline pH but had not passed the permanency tests also showed slight yellowing at the folds and edges in all types of binding. The stables in the wire-bound versions had no effect an any test results and m corrosion was evident. The heating appeared to have no measurable effects on the binding materials used in the case-bound sewn books. The acidic covers on the perfect-bound version had no effect an the pH levels. As it was bound using hot melt glues, it did loosen at elevated temperatures which was expected.
The printing quality level was tested against the parameters of the Supply and Services Canada document entitled "Quality Levels for Printing." It was found that the printed image met the requirements for "Informational" quality level which is the level used for parliamentary publications....
[Test results, comparison charts and standard test methods are in appendices, not included here.] The most significant results are as follows:
All the papers adequately met the CGSB standards for the particular grade. Any deviations were borderline and had m effect on the balance of the testing. Any deviations were the result of off-the-shelf paper being used.
Papers from two Canadian mills met the requirements of the tests for permanence both before and after heating. it must however be clearly stated that the only agreed way within the scientific community to guarantee that paper will last several hundred years is to examine it in several hundred years.
The trial confirmed that alkaline paper can be run on existing CGPS equipment with no negative impact on runability.
The use of alkaline paper will not affect CGPS arrangements with the private sector regarding disposal of waster paper. Specifically, the mixing of alkaline and acid waste causes no problem for the current recycled paper contractor.
As there are now three Canadian manufacturers of alkaline paper and one considering conversion, it is inevitable that CGPS will acquire alkaline paper as a result of normal tendering and contracting procedures should an alkaline mill be the successful contractor.
It is realistic to expect that by changing to alkaline paper, the actual printing costs should not be different than when using acidic paper. Savings are possible to the Crown, however, if a switch were made to alkaline permanent paper and at the same time a switch was made away from No. 1 Book, Opaque to No. 2 Offset. While the No. 2 grade is slightly different in properties, it is considered quite appropriate. Any immediate demands to produce ad hoc printing requirements on alkaline paper would generate higher costs because of a diminished purchasing power on the bulk procurements. Any complete switch will require considerable advance notice as existing paper supply contracts are in place and must either be terminated or seen to their expiry dates.
A possible preservation strategy of using alkaline paper for those publications of archival interest could reduce future public and private expenditures in the restoration area with no significant current additional outlay.
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