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Recycling begins with separation and recoveryOf all the disposable post-consumer material that is made into new products, paper is among the easiest to recycle. Due to significant efforts by businesses and individuals to recycle paper products, about 56 percent of the paper consumed in the U.S. was recovered in 2007, saving 3.3 cubic yards of landfill space per ton. The individual fibers of paper are degraded somewhat with each new use, so paper has a finite lifespan--usually about seven generations. But, since 79 percent of American paper mills use at least some recovered fiber, fewer trees have to be cut down to provide a steady supply of paper. -
Shredded paper ready to be recycledRecycling paper begins with recovering paper and the intent to recycle. The early stages of making new paper from old paper look a bit like doing a load of laundry. Shredded paper is mixed with water and mechanically agitated to produced clumpy pulp. This is filtered through screens to remove foreign particles and spun so that objects heavier than the paper fibers will be separated by centrifugal force. These steps of pulping, screening and centrifugal cleaning produce a paper slurry that is a bit like thin gravy.
Next, air bubbles are passed through the slurry, separating the paper from any residual ink, which gathers as a foam on the surface. The slurry is again mechanically agitated to break down any particles that may remain in the slurry and rinsed in water. Finally, before new paper is made, the slurry may be bleached, which removes color and creates the uniform white tone associated with new paper. Many paper recyclers prefer not to bleach their paper slurry, however, to emphasize its origin in recycled material. -
Pulling sheets from slurry in a low-budget paper-making operationMaking new paper from the recycled paper slurry is an identical process to the manufacture of virgin paper. Depending on the ultimate use of the paper, this may involve the addition of certain chemicals to make it less absorbent. The slurry is then screened again and dried, and usually pressed into long thin sheets that are eventually rolled and cut into the recognizable sheets or rolls of paper. In a low-tech environment, individual sheets can be pulled by hand into molds and set to dry.
