Essential Properties of Paper and Ink for Cartography

Posted on Oct 11, 2025 in Technology

Paper and Ink: Features for Cartographic Mapping

This document details the general features and characteristics of paper and ink used in mapping and printing processes.

Paper Composition and Fiber Sources

Paper is a felted fabric, formed by fine, very short woven threads or fibers. These are typically vegetable fibers. Until the mid-19th century, they were made of cotton, flax, and hemp. At present, wood plant fibers are used, such as low-density eucalyptus or conifer species like pine, or plants like esparto. Textile rags are reserved for high-quality paper. Leaves and corn stalks, which allow a high degree of transparency, give rise to parchment.

Essential Characteristics of Cartographic Paper

The characteristics required of paper materials for cartographic use are:

  1. Dimensional Stability: This refers to the degree of contraction or expansion of a material when it experiences a change in temperature and humidity.
  2. Ink Adhesion: The material must not only retain the ink but must also accept a sufficient amount to provide an opaque image.
  3. Translucency: This refers to the ease of vision through the material. Keep in mind that often many layers are made, and some images are reproduced on separate sheets, making it advisable to see through the layers.
  4. Ability to Delete: The ability to remove ink without damaging the surface of the drawing to make corrections.
  5. Mechanical Resistance: Some drawings must withstand repeated coiling, uncoiling, and handling. It is therefore necessary to use a resilient material.
  6. Wet Strength: Many color maps require different types of pointers and inks. A material that wrinkles excessively when wet is not suitable for such purposes.

Standard Paper Terminology and Units

Offset paper used for printing the IGN map series contains 60% to 80% chemical pulp, with the remainder being fillers.

  • Waste Paper: Heavy paper used for wrapping.
  • Folio (Statement): A sheet of paper folded in half. A folio has four pages and two sheets.
  • Quire (Quatrain): The result of folding a folio.
  • Booklet: Five sheets.
  • Ream: A package of 500 sheets.
  • Bale: A set of 10 reams.
  • Hand: 1/20 of a ream, equal to 25 sheets.

Ink Technology: Composition and Characteristics

Ink is a dye material applied to a surface for receiving the print impression on the paper. Printing ink, like writing or drawing ink, is an optimal mix of three elements: a colorant, a vehicle, and a fixative.

The Three Essential Components of Printing Ink

  • Colorant (Dye or Pigment): These come from natural products or chemical decomposition. Interesting features include resistance to water, acid, and organic solvents.
  • Vehicle (Varnish): These are natural or synthetic oils. Diluted or thickened vehicles are used for offset printing and screen printing. Liquid carriers are used for gravure and flexographic inks. The vehicle determines the fluidity and drying properties of the ink.
  • Fixative: Materials such as rubber, lacquers, and resins, which allow the dye to permanently adhere to the paper surface.

During manufacturing, substances called additives (or loads) are often incorporated to give the ink certain special properties. Common additives include dryers, antioxidants, and plasticizers.

Specific Printing Ink Types

Printing inks are generally consistent and have a vehicle based on linseed oil or synthetic oil, with the exception of newspaper ink, which is more fluid and uses a mineral oil vehicle.

  • Offset Inks: These are manufactured from vegetable or synthetic oils. They are greasy, refusing to mix with the water used in the non-printed parts of the plate. The dye is more intense to compensate for the loss of density resulting from the transfer from the plate to the rubber blanket, and then from the rubber blanket to the paper.
  • Gravure Inks: These are liquids consisting of a vehicle based on alcohol essence (similar to flexographic inks). They dry almost immediately.
  • Screen Printing Inks: These are fat inks of medium consistency (like Vaseline) and must be adapted to the sieve form of this procedure to pass the ink impression. Drying is very long.

Special inks are manufactured specifically for unique printing processes.