What is the Porosity of Paper? What are the Important Factors Affecting It?

 When it comes to knowing about the behavior of ink on paper, comprehending the porosity of paper becomes essential. In the following article, we will read how porosity affects the behavior of ink on paper, the factors that affect porosity, and the functioning of a smoothness tester. This will help you in making the right decision about the kind of papers for printing. So, let’s go.

What is the porosity of paper?

Porosity refers to the measure of the amount of air that can pass through the paper. This measurement helps in knowing how well the ink gets absorbed in the paper and how quickly it dries. 

Paper with high porosity absorbs ink more quickly, while one with low porosity takes a longer time to do it. Also, a more porous paper dries more quickly, while a less porous paper dries slowly. 

What are the factors that affect the porosity of paper?

There is more than one factor that affects the porosity of paper. By altering the factors, manufacturers can get the desired porosity. A few significant factors are mentioned below.

• Types, Length & Number of Fibers

The porosity of paper depends on what type of fiber, whether wood pulp, flax, or cotton, is used to make paper. Then, the length of the paper is also a factor. If fibers are long, papers will be stronger and less porous. Besides, papers with more fibers per unit area are less porous. 

Further, papers with a high cellulose percentage are more porous than the ones with a lower percentage, because cellulose is hydrophilic and thus easily absorbs water. Try testing the paper with a Cobb sizing tester to determine its water absorption capacity.

• Weight

It is the most crucial factor that determines the porosity of paper. Please note that heavier papers are less porous and lighter papers are higher in porosity. Heavier papers mean more fibers per unit area, making them easily penetrated by ink.

 

• Thickness

Just like the weight of the paper, the thickness of the paper also determines the porosity. Thicker papers are less porous, while thinner papers are more porous, as they contain fewer fibers per unit area. 

Conclusion

So, this was the paper’s porosity explained and also the important factors that majorly affect the porosity. UEC’s smoothness tester is a capable instrument designed to measure the porosity of the paper and make it easy for manufacturers to make better decisions. To learn about, how it works, you can visit the website and share inquiries.