{"id":36344,"date":"2023-11-27T05:02:23","date_gmt":"2023-11-27T05:02:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cos.net.au\/c\/?p=36344"},"modified":"2023-11-27T05:28:40","modified_gmt":"2023-11-27T05:28:40","slug":"everything-you-need-to-know-about-paper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cos.net.au\/c\/cospedia\/everything-you-need-to-know-about-paper","title":{"rendered":"Everything You Need to Know About Paper\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Although we live in an increasingly digital world, paper still plays an incredibly important part in daily life for a huge number of people. Students use multiple kinds of paper throughout the day, from text and notebooks, through to printed exam sheets, to craft paper, art paper and more. Similarly, most office workers are in constant need of printer paper, notebooks and sticky notes.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Paper-like materials have been in use for around 5000 years thanks to the Egyptians and papyrus. Although like paper, papyrus is a woven mat of papyrus stems that is pounded flat, and sun dried. True paper isn\u2019t thought to have arrived until around 3000 years later in China. This first paper was made from a mixture of mulberry bark, hemp waste and old rags.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The production of paper has become a great deal faster and more efficient than when it was first invented, but the general technique remains essentially the same. Plant matter is ground down into a wet pulp then formed into the desired paper shape. The water is then squeezed out of the pulp, leaving the interwoven plant fibres to knit together as it dries.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

From its rather basic beginnings, paper has become an incredibly important and highly varied commodity, with an confounding number of specific paper terms and words<\/a> that are used to describe it.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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How is Paper Made? <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Depending on the specific type of paper, the materials and machinery may vary but the technique for making most kinds of paper is the same. Some form of biomass \u2013 typically wood, but other materials such as bamboo, sugarcane, cotton, rags and more \u2013 are broken down into a fibrous pulp. This pulp is then formed into a paper shape and dried.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Industrial paper manufacture use presses to form, smooth and extract moisture while making paper. These presses may be either hot or cold. Cold presses result in paper that has a slightly rough or \u201ctoothy\u201d texture that is also very good at absorbing water or ink. Cold pressed paper is well suited for artistic pursuits, such as watercolour painting or projects that don\u2019t require fine line and detail.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Hot presses, like the name suggests, combine pressure and heat to both squeeze water from the pulp and dry the surface. Hot presses result in a smooth, non-absorbent paper. Printer paper and the paper in notebooks are fine examples of hot-pressed paper.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Paper Weight and Size <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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If you look on the box of a ream of printer paper, <\/span>you\u2019re<\/span> likely to see two classifications or measurements printed on it. One will be a number followed by GSM \u2013 for printer paper, this will usually be between 70 and 100 \u2013 and a sizing, the most common of which is A4. These classifications <\/span>represent<\/span> the dimensions of the sheets of paper, with GSM showing weight, and the A(number) showing the height and width of the sheet.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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GSM <\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Meaning Grams per Square Metre, GSM is an indicator of the thickness of a piece of paper. All GSM paper is measured by weighing a single one square metre piece of paper, with the resulting weight giving an indication of how thick the paper is \u2013 the heavier the one metre sheet, the thicker it is.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The thickness or heaviness of a sheet of paper can affect a number of properties of that sheet, including its rigidity \u2013 how resistant the sheet is as bending \u2013 to how much light can show through the paper. The normal ranges of GSM and the general purposes of that thickness of paper are shown below:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

35-55 gsm<\/span><\/b> \u2013 This is the lightest common form of paper. Examples of 35-55 gsm paper include tracing paper and newsprint.\u00a0\u00a0 The lightest classification of GSM paper, ranges from tracing paper to newsprint.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

75-90 gsm<\/span><\/b> \u2013 Most forms of printing paper will fit within this range, as will the paper found in most notebooks and pads. The thickness of the paper is enough that it is suitable for printing and writing but isn\u2019t heavy enough to stand out.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

120-140 gsm<\/span><\/b> \u2013 Posters, flyers and presentations are typically printed on 120-140 gsm paper. The thickness of the paper makes it feel premium without having to use special paper or card.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

210-300 gsm<\/span><\/b> \u2013 This thicker type of paper is stiffer but can still bend. You\u2019ll see it used for high-end magazine covers and high-quality flyers. This is also the weight of most paper used for watercolours or painting.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

350-450 gsm<\/span><\/b> \u2013 The highest classification of GSM paper is pretty much cardstock. This is the heaviest, sturdiest paper available and is commonly used for business cards and invitations.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Paper Sizes <\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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The most common sizing for paper internationally is referred to as ISO A, and the most used paper size is A4. So, what does this mean?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Sheets of ISO A paper range from A0 to A10, with each successive number being half the size of the ISO number that preceded it.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>