Voith develops new sensor to measure formation directly in the wire section

HEIDENHEIM, Germany, June 11, 2009 (Press Release) - Formation is crucial to quality in the paper manufacturing process. It is decisive for the uniformity of the paper structure. If it fluctuates, it will impact on other quality parameters. Accordingly, sufficient stiffness and good printability are only achieved with good formation.

However, until now formation measurement was problematic, especially in the production of board and packaging grades. Certainly, measurement could be done before the reel with commercially available sensors, but there the product was already multi-layered. The paper maker thus had no data on the individual layers, for instance, the uppermost layer, the top layer, whose quality is decisive for printing results later.

In order to shed light on this problem, Voith Paper Automation developed a new formation sensor called OnV FlocSpotter that makes much earlier measurement possible, i.e., directly in the wire section. With multi-layer machines, formation of each individual layer can thus be inspected separately on the wire fabric before it is joined together with the other layers. The paper maker can therefore achieve maximum control over the sheet formation process and get the information necessary to intervene in the process and regulate it at the earliest possible point. This can be achieved by adjusting the various corresponding stock and machine parameters (e.g., consistency, dosage of the retention agent or speed difference between jet and wire).

The advantage is obvious: the uniformity of the board web is increased with better formation, printability and therefore increased product quality, and the manufacturer benefits from fewer complaints from the printing plants.

In addition, with OnV FlocSpotter formation limits can be set to a specified level of quality. The operator can then change machine settings as long as the formation remains within the specified range. In this way, raw materials, process chemicals and energy consumption may be reduced.

As well as high-quality board and packaging grades, OnV FlocSpotter is also suitable for graphic papers as using it in the wire section can speed up reactions to fluctuations in the furnish or changes in process parameters.

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