These documents have been developed by INGEDE and its research partners. They are carefully revised when necessary; please make sure you use the most recent version.
Latest update: Revision of INGEDE Method 11 in January 2018 (see also INGEDE News January 2018).
INGEDE Method 1
Test sheet preparation of pulps and filtrates from deinking processes (Update Dec 2014)
Pulp made of paper for recycling typically contains printing inks which influence its optical properties. Cleaning and flotation remove small impurities and printing inks whereby the removal efficiency depends also on the printing process applied. For the determination of the residual ink content, the reflectance of light in the near infrared region is measured. The reflectivity of light gives indication of the fine and filler content which influences the light scattering coefficient and of the ink content that alters the light absorption coefficient. The calculation of scattering coefficients requires paper specimens with an opacity less than 95 % (ISO 9416) that is fulfilled best by machine papers.
Pulp samples taken along the deinking process or pulp samples from deinkability tests (INGEDE Method 11) have to be treated. This INGEDE Method describes the preparation of filter pads where fine and ink losses during preparation are negligible. Filter pads are opaque which hin-ders the calculation of the light scattering coefficient s. Assuming a constant light scattering coefficient is not a recommended approach due to the fact that light scattering varies from pulp to pulp, for example, when the ash content changes. INGEDE Method 1 therefore describes the preparation of handsheets using recirculated water. The method can be used for industrial as well as for laboratory pulp samples.
INGEDE Method 2
Measurement of optical characteristics of pulps and filtrates from deinking processes (Update Dec 2014)
Domas scanner size classification file: ingede2.kls
This INGEDE method describes procedures for measuring and calculating various optical
characteristics of pulps and filtrates from deinking processes by means of filter pads and handsheets. The method is applicable for industrial as well as for laboratory samples.
INGEDE Method 3
(n/a; now included in revision of INGEDE Methods 1 and 2)
INGEDE Method 4
Analysis of macrostickies in pulps (Updated April 2013)
Domas scanner size classification file: ingede4.kls
Stickies in pulps originate from tacky components in paper for recycling. They cause problems during paper production and converting as well as quality defects.
This INGEDE Method is used to analyse macrostickies in pulps.
INGEDE Method 5
Evaluation of Printing Ink Detachment by Hyperwashing with the Haindl-McNett Classifier (Nov 2002)
This INGEDE method describes a procedure for analysing how effectively printing ink is removed from deinking material. This method uses hyperwashing to remove printing ink which is no longer bound to fibres from the pulp suspension, and analyses the hyperwashing residues with regard to optical properties (including cleanliness).
INGEDE Method 6
Determination of Potential Secondary Stickies by Cationic Precipitation (June 2009)
Tacky contaminants are an important issue in producing and converting paper and board, mainly when using recovered paper as raw material. Secondary stickies – meaning stickies which are formed in the production process – are regarded as very critical.
Industrial processes normally show an anionic charge, unless moved into the cationic range by additives. In these anionic processes the potential secondary stickies can be measured by cationic precipitation.
There is a good correlation between the potential secondary stickies and problems arising from the secondary stickies, particularly when the gravimetric result is completed by a judgement of the shape and tackiness of the precipitate.
The test method covers the analysis of Potential Secondary Stickies by cationic precipitation. It is applicable for pulp and water samples in industrial processes for the production of paper and board. The consistency of the sample should not be higher than 5 %.
INGEDE Method 7
Visual Inspection for Recovered Paper for Deinking, Unbaled Delivery (April 2009)
For paper mills using recovered paper for deinking, the quality of recovered paper is very important. Therefore it is desired to inspect as many deliveries as possible. Gravimetric inspection is very accurate but also time consuming. However, the time available for entry inspection is relatively short.
This method provides a practical, quick, reliable and impartial procedure to quantify the portion of unusable material and the composition of a delivery. It mainly applies to recovered paper grade 1.11 according to EN 643 but can also be used for other grades.
This INGEDE method describes a procedure to visually inspect the quality of recovered paper for deinking which is delivered unbaled. The method is suitable for assessing the main components of a recovered paper delivery and for contents of total unwanted material from 1 % to 8 %.
INGEDE Method 8
Entry Inspection Deinking Grade Paper for Recycling in Bales (July 2013)
INGEDE has set up several methods for the entry inspection of paper for recycling. A unique procedure is INGEDE Method 7, in which loose paper for recycling is assessed visually and the composition as well as the content of unwanted material is calculated from the visual result. INGEDE Method 14 serves as gravimetric verification or as a stand-alone method for gravimetric inspection. This INGEDE Method 8 refers in large parts to these two methods and describes only parameters specific to bales and sampling from bales.
This INGEDE method describes a procedure how to select and how to open bales of deinking grades and how to make bale-specific assessments. The further inspection has to be done by applying INGEDE Methods 7 or 14.
INGEDE Method 9
(n/a; now included in revision of INGEDE Methods 1 and 2)
History of INGEDE Method 9 (members only)
INGEDE Method 10
(n/a; now included in revision of INGEDE Methods 1 and 2)
INGEDE Method 11
Assessment of Print Product Recyclability — Deinkability Test (NEW: January 2018) History of INGEDE Method 11 (members only)
The concept of “Deinkability Scores” to evaluate results from INGEDE Method 11 test can be found on the EPRC website.
Good recyclability of print products is crucial for the sustainability of the graphic paper loop. It belongs to the focal work of INGEDE to safeguard and improve recyclability of the input to be used by the recycling paper mills.
One of the measures is to provide tools for the assessment of the recyclability in the two aspects:
- Deinkability
- Screenability of adhesive applications.
The industrial deinking process is complex since it has to cope with different types of inks, and it also has to remove impurities and unwanted materials of all kind. The key process steps for deinking are the detachment of the ink film from the paper, the ink fragmentation into a suitable size range and removal from the pulp slurry. This gives a sufficient and reliable indication on how a print product will perform in an industrial deinking plant.
Flotation is the most widely used technology for ink removal in the paper recycling process. Households are the main source of deinking grade paper for recycling (in many locations, small businesses are allowed to use the same collection systems as households) in deinking plants producing deinked pulp for newsprint, publication and other printing and writing papers. This material has a significant content of papers which are based on mechanical pulp. Such papers usually are pulped in an
alkaline environment and the ink is removed by flotation. Typically, the ink collector is fatty acid based.
A second group of papers used in deinking are medium and high‐quality grades, sourced from offices as well as printing and converting operations. If the raw material is mainly wood free, then near neutral or neutral process conditions, which are not within the scope of this method, are used. However, most print products end up in household collection or are mixed with this material and therefore have to be deinkable under alkaline conditions.
This method has been developed for the uniform assessment of the deinkability of individual print products. The method intentionally dispenses with additional or alternative process steps as dispersing, post‐flotation, washing and bleaching. The deinkability of a printed paper product according to this simple method allows a good prediction of its suitability for deinking on an industrial scale even if the quality levels in a related assessment scheme, e. g. the Deinking Scorecard of the European Paper Recycling Council, are far less demanding than actual industrial quality requirements.
INGEDE Method 12
Assessing the Recyclability of Printed Products — Testing of Fragmentation Behaviour of Adhesive Applications (Updated Jan 2013)
The concept of “Removability Scores” to evaluate results from INGEDE Method 12 test can be found on the EPRC website.
A good recyclability of printed products is a crucial feature for the sustainability of the graphic paper loop. It belongs to the focus of INGEDE activities to safeguard and improve recyclability.
One of the measures is to provide tools for the assessment of the recyclability in the two aspects:
- Deinkability
- Screenability of adhesive applications.
Therefore a set of methods was developed which simulate unit operations of a deinking plant and allow conclusions about the behaviour of a printed product and the adhesive applications in a deinking plant.
This procedure deals with the fragmentation behaviour of adhesive applications after pulping as one aspect of recyclability assessment.
The method is based on the general requirement that it should be possible to separate adhesive applications mechanically. The fragmentation behaviour determines the screenability (see EPRC Scorecard “Assessment of Print Product Recyclability – Scorecard for the Removability of Adhesive Applications”).
This INGEDE method describes a procedure for testing the fragmentation behaviour and screenability of adhesive applications on paper products. It is suitable for known and for unknown amounts of adhesives in the recycled paper sample.
INGEDE Method 13
Assessment of the Recyclability of Printed Products – Testing of the Macrosticky Formation Rate of Adhesive Applications (June 2009)
This INGEDE method aims to characterise adhesive applications behaviour (on a weight basis) in terms of macrosticky formation rate during disintegration. For the application of this method it is necessary to know the content of adhesive application in the printed product to be tested. The portion of the adhesive, which is not recovered by this method, is also a measure for microstickies and potential secondary stickies. Thus the test result can be also considered as estimation for not screenable adhesive particles.
INGEDE Method 14
Gravimetric Determination of Recovered Paper Composition (April 2009)
This INGEDE method describes a procedure to gravimetrically determine the composition of recovered paper for deinking. It mainly applies to recovered paper grade 1.11 according to EN 643. To be more specific and informative, the allocation criteria may be further differentiated as it is possible in the case of visual inspection.
A sample of a recovered paper is separated manually into different fractions and their portions are determined by weight.
INGEDE Method 16-1
Testing recovered paper to cause red colouration in pulp and filtrates. Part 1: Visual assessment (New Jan 2011)
This INGEDE method is used to analyse paper products on whether they show the tendency to cause any red colouration in deinked pulps. This test is primarily used as an entry inspection.
The samples are pulped under alkaline condition at defined pH. The samples are dewatered over a paper filter, then the filtrate is used to evaluate the red colouration visually.
INGEDE Method 17
Assessment of microsticky test methods (Jan 2011)
This INGEDE Method describes a procedure to evaluate the efficiency of microsticky test
methods. It serves to characterize methods of measuring the microsticky content regarding their
ability to detect the presence of microstickies in recovered paper pulps and identify them.
INGEDE Method 18
(INGEDE members only)
Entry inspection of paper for recycling — Catalogue to identify printing and finishing technologies (Feb 2015)
Some printed products which are not suitable for deinking can pollute a significant larger quantity of paper for recycling for deinking mills. Therefore it is helpful to recognise and identify these printed products already at the entry inspection.
Particularly water based flexographic newspapers, inkjet prints, UV cured products and liquid toner prints are detrimental. The other relevant printing methods are listed for the sake of completeness and for the possibility of distinguishing.