A furnish sheet lists the pulp blend, such as hardwood kraft, softwood kraft, mechanical or recycled fiber, plus filler level and every additive dose for the grade. Optical properties trace straight back to it: mechanical fiber brings opacity with lower brightness, short hardwood fibers help formation and scattering, and fillers and dyes set shade and opacity. A furnish change is the first suspect when optical numbers move.
Furnish went to 30 percent recycled this week, which is why b-star and the dirt count both went up.
Also heard as
- stock recipe
Related terms
Filler
Fine mineral powder added to papermaking stock to raise opacity, brightness and smoothness and to cut cost.
Fines
Fiber fragments and small particles that pass a fine screen and have an outsized effect on sheet optics.
Shade
The exact color of a paper grade measured against its approved standard, for whites as well as tinted sheets.
Grade change
Switching a paper machine from one product to another while it keeps running.