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Recently, the phenomenon of "paper towel prices rising in many regions across the country" has topped the trending list. At the same time, both household paper and office paper have also begun to increase in price simultaneously.
Soft toilet paper, hard paper that can cut fingers, what are the differences in manufacturing processes for different types of paper? Why do the prices of daily-use paper increase at this time? To answer these questions, we need to have a basic understanding of the paper production process.
Where does the paper we use come from?
In a nutshell, paper is an industrial product made from fibers extracted from plants. If you observe paper under a high-power microscope, you will find that it is actually a network structure composed of layers of fibers, with voids between the fibers.
The raw materials used for paper production mainly come from three sources: wood pulp from wood, non-wood pulp from plant fibers, and waste paper pulp from waste paper. Among the wood pulp, there are two types: coniferous pulp and broad-leaved pulp. The non-wood pulp is mainly composed of fiber raw materials from the Gramineae family (such as straw, wheat straw, reed, bamboo, sugar cane residue, etc.), bast fiber raw materials (such as hemp, jute, flax, mulberry bark, cotton stalks, etc.) and seed fiber raw materials (such as cotton fibers, etc.).
According to the processing method of the pulp, it can be divided into mechanical pulp, chemical pulp, and chemical-mechanical pulp. Here, "mechanical" and "chemical" refer to the main processing methods relied upon during the process of preparing the raw materials into pulp.
Based on the source and processing method, we can classify pulp into mechanical wood pulp, chemical wood pulp, etc. Just by looking at the name, one can have a clear understanding of the properties of the pulp. In actual production, the proportion of wood pulp is much higher than that of non-wood pulp, but the vast majority of paper-making raw materials are actually waste pulp. Of course, most of the waste pulp actually comes from wood pulp. Therefore, let's take the most common chemical method as an example to explain how wood pulp is produced.
How to turn wood into wood pulp?
The wood used for making pulp comes from not only specially cultivated tree species but also from a large amount of wood waste with no other useful value. For instance, the leftover scraps from cutting boards and rods, the defective wood with excessive twists and turns that cannot be utilized, the felled timber during regular forest management and maintenance, and the construction waste removed from dismantling old wooden buildings, etc.
Generally speaking, the tree species used for manufacturing wood pulp are mainly coniferous trees such as pine, and broad-leaved trees like eucalyptus or acacia. The fibers of coniferous trees are longer and are suitable for making products with high strength requirements such as paper bags or envelopes, while the fibers of broad-leaved trees are shorter, resulting in better surface smoothness and being suitable for making printing paper and household paper.
The wood used for pulping needs to go through processes such as cutting and crushing to be transformed into small wood chips. Then, it is boiled with sodium hydroxide solution. The so-called chemical process refers to this procedure, which can separate cellulose and lignin. Lignin is like glue, binding the cellulose together and is the main substance that enhances the strength of the wood. The separated wood fibers then undergo processes such as filtration, impurity removal, and bleaching, and thus become the wood pulp that we often hear about.
For ease of transportation, the wood pulp is not a viscous substance like the pulp we imagine; instead, it is a group of dried and compressed fiber chunks. The finished wood pulp looks like thick cardboard or felt, stacked together. Most paper-making factories do not produce wood pulp themselves; instead, they purchase it from upstream manufacturers. Generally, only relatively large paper-making enterprises will build a complete paper-making production line from wood pulp to paper products.
How can similar techniques be used to create a wide variety of paper shapes?
The processing of various types of paper basically follows the above method, but the paper used in our daily life has completely different purposes and textures: some are used for writing, some for hygiene care, and some for packaging. Why can similar processes produce completely different paper products? The secret lies in the slight differences in their production parameters and processes. For example, the proportion of coniferous pulp, broad-leaved pulp, and waste pulp mentioned above in the pulp is one of the key parameters that determine the nature of the paper. In addition, the dilution degree of the pulp and the stacking thickness during papermaking will also make the produced paper have different densities and thicknesses, which directly determines the purpose of the paper.
In addition, moisture content is also a very crucial factor. For paper used in hygiene care, such as toilet paper, the moisture content is relatively high, approximately 5%, which is the key to its soft texture. Sometimes, we want hygiene care paper to maintain a soft texture while also having a certain degree of strength, so that it won't break when it comes into contact with water or under force. To meet this requirement, paper mills add paper strength enhancers during the paper-making process. These enhancers can form connections between the fibers, thereby enhancing the paper's resistance to water and external forces. Adding paper strength enhancers and other chemical agents is a necessary process in the paper-making process. These additives are of very small quantity and will not cause harm to humans or the environment.
Why has the price of paper gone up?
While paper towels have been increasing in price in many parts of the country, there have been reports of many paper mills suspending production. Shouldn't manufacturers increase their production efforts when prices are rising? Why then do they suspend production instead?
Through the analysis in the previous text, it is not difficult to find that in order to produce paper, a paper mill must first import pulp from the upstream pulp factory, and then can carry out the production of various types of paper. Paper manufacturers and pulp manufacturers organize production separately, and they are in a relationship of upstream and downstream in the industrial chain or suppliers and purchasers. Therefore, the cost of raw materials largely determines the profit margin of enterprises in the downstream of the industrial chain. Most of the paper enterprises in China are located in the middle and downstream positions of the paper production industry chain, and the proportion of imported wood pulp exceeds two-thirds. The situation is quite passive.
The root cause of this paper price increase is actually a temporary fluctuation in international pulp supply: On one hand, due to the impact of the epidemic, international shipping costs have risen, and pulp is a bulk commodity that heavily relies on maritime transportation; on the other hand, the paper-making industry consumes certain forest resources, and major pulp-producing countries also need to reasonably organize pulp production and balance short-term and long-term interests. Moreover, our country has recently implemented stricter import management measures for solid waste raw materials, which has directly restricted the import of waste paper raw materials from abroad.
These reasons have led to a significant increase in the price of paper raw materials, making many paper product factories unprofitable. Therefore, they chose to suspend production. However, from a positive perspective, the higher raw material prices may actually be an opportunity for the paper industry to eliminate outdated production capacity.
Paper is an indispensable essential material in people's lives. It is encouraging to note that currently, recycled paper has accounted for over 60% of the raw materials for pulp. However, not all types of paper have recycling value, which highlights the importance of resource recycling and precise classification of garbage. We certainly do not need to advocate extreme environmental protection methods. We should use paper as needed, but we must avoid unnecessary waste and at the same time, we should effectively increase the rate of paper recycling.
