CARTONS
MATERIALS ORIGIN & MANUFACTURING LOCATION
MATERIALS
Virgin fibre paper, starch glue
ORIGIN
Paper > pines, glue > They are extracted from
various starches, such as potato or wheat, rice, maize, as well as leguminous plants.
ORIGIN OF PAPER
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Paper is made from the cellulose fibres found in wood. When this fibre is used for the first time, it is called virgin fibre, and when it is recovered through recycling and reused as raw material for papermaking, it is called recycled fibre.
The virgin or recycled cellulose fibres are mixed with water and this mixture is fed into the paper machine. In the machine, the mixture of water and fibres is placed on a long conveyor belt driven by rollers.
MANUFACTURING
The paper industry is an important sector of the Spanish economy, comprising some 1 640 companies, employing more than 44 000 workers.
PROCESS
1
Wood supply and debarking
To obtain the raw material used in wood, it is necessary to cut trees and remove all the branches to leave only the main trunk. Then the bark is removed from the trunk in order to move on to the next production step
4
Pressing
The pulp is fed into rotating rolls in order to obtain the desired thickness of the paper being made.
During this step, marks can also be printed on the paper, although this marks can also be printed on the paper, although this varies from manufacturer to manufacturer.
2
Fibre and pulp
The trunks are cut into small pieces to obtain their vegetable fibre. Through treatments with chemical products, the fibre is transformed into a pulp that will eventually become a sheet of paper.
5
Drying
Once the pulp has been pressed, it goes to the drying process.
Rollers apply heat to the paper so that it is 100% dry and free of moisture.
3
Bleaching
The pulp obtained must be washed, filtered and dried.
The bleaching process is used so that the colour of the paper is the desired one.
The pulp is then dried and the water it contains is released.
6
Finishing
After all these steps, the paper is practically ready. The only thing to do is to pass the paper through cold rollers that give it the final finish and provide it with the appropriate gloss. Once all the steps of paper manufacturing have been completed, the paper is usually wound and transported to have it cut to the required size.
EXTERNALITIES
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF CARDBOARD
- It involves the consumption of large amounts of water and energy.
- Greenhouse gases are produced, which are harmful to the planet and accelerate climate change, and both air and water are polluted.
- Consumption of large quantities of wood, which directly leads to the deforestation of the Earth's lungs.
- Loss of forests and green spaces, destroying the flora of specific areas and directly influencing the habitat of the wildlife that inhabits these areas.
- Large-scale transport is necessary, so this is another new source of air pollution and waste of resources.
CARBON FOOTPRINT
The production of 200 kg of paper, the average amount we use each year, generates between 130 and 250 kg of CO 2 depending on the energy source. That is equivalent to the CO 2 generated by a typical family car travelling a distance of 960 km.
HEALTH EFFECTS OF CARTONBOARD
Paper manufacturing is one of the biggest water and air pollutants.
Chlorine is used in pulp bleaching, which is very harmful to human health and to the environment.
It is one of the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases.