New Calendering and

Coating Tools to Improve

Coated Fine Paper Quality
Henri Vaittinen
Stig Renvall
Jouni Haavisto

Agenda
Background
* Metal Belt Calendering
* Multilayer Curtain Coating
* Pre-calendering,
g, coating
g and final calendering
g

Targets of the Study

Trial
Ti lP
Program
Results
Conclusions

Metal Belt Calender

The metal belt

calender features a
smooth
th metal
t lb
belt
lt and
d
a thermo roll that
calenders both web
sides in a one-meterlong machine-direction
calendering
g zone

Symmetric process
possible both web
possible,
sides can be heated

Extended
calendering zone

Metal Belt Calender

Conventional calendering

Conventional calendering

Nip
p bet
between
ee ttwo
o rolls
o s

pressure
e, MPa

30

hard nip

25
20

soft nip

15
10
5
0
0

5
6
time, ms

10

Metal Belt Calendering

Metal Belt Calendering

Extended
calendering zone
25

hard nip

pressure
e, MPa

20

soft nip
15

10

metal belt calender

0
0

20

40

60
tim e , m s

80

100

Production experience
Start

Speed

2009
2008
2007
2006

900
xxx
600
800

Width
(m/min)

Company
(mm)

5630
xxxx
4350
4080

Shandong Bohui, China

confidential
Zhuhai S.E.Z. Hongta Rengheng, China
M-real Simpele, Finland

Multilayer Curtain Coating

Non contact contour coating
Color slots

Die lip

Multilayer Curtain Coating

Quality
* excellent coverage
* tailored
t il d surface
f
/ barrier
b i properties
ti

Raw material savings

* cheaper furnish (coverage/runnability)
* thin layer of more expensive coating
* thicker layer
y of cheaper
p coating
g for bulk,,
opacity and brightness

Operational efficiency
* less down time (no wearing parts)
* less breaks (non-contact coating)
* less waste (no blade lines /other defects)

Multilayer Curtain Coating

Woodfree base paper 60 g/m

2 layers simultaneusly, 12 + 12 g/m
Low
L
costt bottom
b tt
layer
l
More expensive glossy top layer

Precalendering
Smoothness in coated board grades is made
before coating
* traditionally multinip wet-stack calender or MG
cylinder before coating
* no calendering
l d i or lilight
ht calendering
l d i after
ft coating
ti
S
Smoothness
th
off coated
t d paper grades
d is
i made
d
after coating
* single hard nip before coating
* multinip calendering after coating

Targets of the Study

Is it possible to improve the quality of coated fine paper

using
i the
th new tools?
t l ?
* metal belt precalendering
* multilayer
y curtain coating
g

Is it possible to create the smoothness in coated fine

paper before coating?
* heavy precalendering
* light final calendering

Finishing
g of Coated Fine Paper
p
Traditional concept
hard nip

blade
coating

multinip
calender

New concept?
metal belt
calender

multilayer
curtain
t i coating
ti

two-nip
soft
ft calender
l d

Trial program
Precalendering

Hard nip

Soft nip

Shoe nip

Metal belt

* 1 nip
* 150 / 100 C
(212 / 302 F)
* 40
40...110
110 kN/
kN/m
(228...628 PLI)

* 1 nip
* 150 C (303 F)
* 40...220 kN/m
(228 1256 PLI)
(228...1256

* 2 nips
* shoe 60 / 150 mm
(2.36 / 5.90)
* 150 C (303 F)
* 400 kN/m
(2284 PLI)

* 1 nip
* 150 / 100 C
(212 / 302 F)
* 40
40...100
100 kN/
kN/m
(228...570 PLI)

Coating

Blade coating

Multilayer curtain coating

* 12 g/m / side
( 8.1 lbs/3300 sqft / side)

* two layers: (6 + 6) g/m / side

( (4+4) lbs/3300 sqft / side)

Final
g
calendering

Multinip calender

Soft calender,

* 5 nips, 255 kN/m (1456 PLI)

* 145 C
C (293 F)

* 2 nips, 300 kN/m (1714 PLI)

* 185 C
C (365 F)

Printing

Sheet-fed offset printing, 4 printing units

1) black, 2) cyan, 3) magenta, 4) yellow

Results of Study

Caliper development
Non precalendered sheet densifies more during final calendering
Non-precalendered
106

Precalendering

104

no precalendering

102
100

hard nip 40 kN/m

Ca
aliper, m

98
96

metal belt calender 100 kN/m

94
92

Coating
g
blade coating 12 g/m /side

90
88

Final calendering

86

5 nips,
p , 145 C,, 255 kN/m

84
82
80
base paper

precalendered
l d
d

blade
coated
t d

final
calendered
l d
d

Results after final calendering

Metal belt precalender gives lower PPS roughness

PPS s10 rroughness,

m

1.5

Precalendering + Coating

1.4

no precalendering + blade coating

1.3

hard nip + blade coating

1.2

soft nip + blade coating

11
1.1

2 shoe nips + blade coating

1.0

metal belt calender + blade coating

0.9
0.8
0 76
0.76

Final calendering
5 nips, 145 C, 255 kN/m
0 78
0.78

0 80
0.80

0 82
0.82

0 84
0.84

Paper Bulk, cm/g

0 86
0.86

0 88
0.88

Results - Rewetting test

Bendtsen roughness before and after surface moisturizing
Precalender
l d concept

Bendtsen
d
roughness,
h
ml/min
l/
Before
After
Difference

Hard nip, (150 C, 150 kN/m)

83

120

+36

Soft nip (150 C, 300 kN/m)

78

111

+33

Metal belt calender (150 C, 70 kN/m)

90

114

+24

Metal belt calender ((150 C,, 100 kN/m))

65

87

+23

less re-roughening when moisturized for metal belt calendered paper

more stable surface with metal belt calendering

Results after final calendering

Multilayer curtain coating gives high gloss
86

Precalendering + Coating
no precalendering + blade coating

84

hard nip + blade coating

Gloss
s 75 deg., %

82
soft nip + blade coating
80

2 shoe nips + blade coating

78

metal belt calender + blade coating

hard nip + curtain coating

76
metal belt calender + curtain coating
74

Final calendering
5 nips, 145 C, 255 kN/m

72
08
0.8

09
0.9

10
1.0

11
1.1

12
1.2

13
1.3

PPS s10 roughness, m

14
1.4

15
1.5

Results after printing

Metal belt precalender and curtain coating gives
low mottling values

more mo
ottling
less mo
ottling

PapEye motttling value

5.0

Precalendering + Coating
no precalendering + blade coating

4.8

hard nip + blade coating

4.6

soft nip + blade coating

4.4

2 shoe nips + blade coating

4.2

metal belt calender + blade coating

hard nip + curtain coating

4.0

metal belt calender + curtain coating

3.8

Final calendering
5 nips, 145 C, 255 kN/m

36
3.6
72

74

76

78

80

82

Gloss 75 deg., %

84

86

Results after final calendering

Multinip calendering gives higher gloss and lower PPS values
1.7
Precalendering + Coating
1.6
PPS s10 rroughness,
m

hard nip + blade coating

1.5

metal belt calender + blade coating

1.4
1.3

metal belt calender + curtain coating

12
1.2
Final calendering
1.1

2 nips, 185 C, 300 kN/m

1.0

5 nips, 185 C, 255 kN/m

0.9
0.8
0 76
0.76

0 78
0.78

0 80
0.80

0 82
0.82

0 84
0.84

Paper Bulk, cm/g

0 86
0.86

0 88
0.88

Conclusions

Conclusions 1/2
Heavy precalendering has only minor effect on final bulk
with multinip final calendering
* non-precalendered paper densifies more during finishing
* effect of precalender on bulk is higher with lighter final calendering

Metal belt precalender improves smoothness and

printability
*
*
*
*

less re-roughening during coating

uniform coating layer
l
low
fi
finall PPS roughness
h
low mottling values after printing

Conclusions 2/2
Metal belt precalender + multilayer curtain coating gives
high gloss and excellent printability
* glossing pigment in top layer
* more uniform coating color layer
* PPS
S s10
s 0 roughness
oug ess level
e e is
s co
comparable
pa ab e to
hard nip precalender + blade coating (common technology today)

M
Multinip
lti i final
fi l calender
l d gives
i
clearly
l l higher
hi h gloss
l
and
d
lower PPS than a two-nip soft calender
* metal belt precalender and/or murtilayer curtain coating can not fully
compensate for a lighter final calendering