The classic open forming table: stock from the headbox lands on a long horizontal wire and drains through foils, table rolls and suction boxes until the couch. Because drainage goes only downward, Fourdrinier paper shows more two-sidedness than paper from twin-wire or gap formers. The name honors the Fourdrinier brothers, who financed development of the first continuous paper machine.
Number 3 is an open Fourdrinier, so expect more two-sidedness than the gap former next door.
Also heard as
- Fourdrinier machine
- flat wire
- Fourdrinier table
Related terms
Wire
Endless woven plastic fabric on which the paper web is formed and drained.
Headbox
Pressurized box that spreads stock in a thin, even jet across the full width of the forming wire.
Two-sidedness
Difference in properties between the two faces of a paper sheet, such as color, brightness, gloss or texture.
Dry line
Visible line on a Fourdrinier table where the wet sheet's surface turns from glossy water to dull matte.
Couch
Suction roll at the end of the forming section where the wet web is dewatered and leaves the wire.