Air Doctor Mottle A paper coating defect caused by excessively high solid content or high viscosity of

coating solution or poor adjustment of doctor.

Alum Spot

Paper sheet having small undissolved alum crystals.

Backing Roll Mark

A paper coating defect caused by the building up of coating in areas along the machine

direction where low spots occur in the coating back-up roll.

Blackened Paper A defect in paper caused by crushing in the calender such that fibers are pressed so

closely that number of light reflecting surfaces decreases so much that paper becomes

transparent.

Blade Cut A blade scratch that cuts deeply into or through the web.

Blade Scratch A very fine, hair like indentation in a coated surface that runs in the machine direction,

caused by a particle of varied origin becoming lodged behind the blade during coating.

Blistering (Coated Paper)

Caused when water vapours can not escape fast enough through coating layers in the

coating dryer section of the heat-set press.

Burst

The defect in paper characterized by rapture in the web not extended to edges. It is

caused by too high web tension between a hard and soft section of the reel during

winding and results in a machine direction shearing force that exceeds the strength of

paper.

Calender Cut A mark or cut occurring in the paper sheet as a result of wrinkles in the web while being

calendered.

Calender Mark Paper defects caused by faulty calender roll surfaces or extraneous matter which has

entered the nips and stick to its surface.

Cloudy Paper

Paper with unevenness in look-through.

Cockling

When the surface of the paper has wave like appearance.

Contraries

Presence of any foreign substance such as sand, dirt etc.

Crack

1. A defect in coated paper, caused by the separation of the coating layer on the formation

of fissures in the surface of the coating due to printing or other converting process.

2. Crack at fold: Fissures in the crease when any paper is folded along a fold line. May be

due to separation of coating or separation of fibers. More prevalent when the paper has

been over-dried. In boards it may occur along score-folds even though the scoring has

been done to minimize cracking at the fold. The term is also applied when coatings crack

without fiber failure during a folding operation.

Cracked Edge

A paper web and fourdrinier wire defect occurring as small breaks on the edges, with

very little migration towards the center.

Crazing Defects in paper coating, appearing as short, random, intersecting cracks in the coating

surface.

Crease

1. Deformation remaining from a fold over.

2. Cross direction wrinkles( Washboard): Fold over of a web in the cross machine

direction, giving a crease running in the machine direction.

3. Blade crease: A crease essentially in the machine direction devoid of coating in the

creased area.

4. Calender Crease: Usually a sharp crease caused by passage through the Calender of a

crease or of a fold generated at the Calender; often cut through when it is preferable to

call it a Calender out.

5. Smoothed crease: A flattened-out crease running mainly in the machine direction. Can

occur at the wet press section, dryer (dryer wrinkles), size press, winder or sheeter.

Crush A rippled paper surface defect that is caused by the use of too high pressure and/ or too

high moisture in the press section.

Damp Streaks

Streaks caused by uneven pressing or drying during paper manufacturing.

Dead Spots

Paper sheet having any dull areas in an otherwise highly glossy surface.

Drag Spots

Irregular streaks or long thin lumpy areas on the paper's surface.

Edge Cut

Edge tears fold over during the winding operation. It may be caused by dull slitter that

nicks the edge after which the stress of winding will cause the tear to open or the reel is

bumped on the edge.

Fish Eye

A paper defect appearing as glazed, translucent spot caused by slime, fiber bundles,

and/or improperly prepared chemical additives in the stock.

Fuzz Fibrous projections on the surface of a sheet of paper, caused by excessive suction,

insufficient beating or lack of surface sizing. Lint appears in much the same manner but

is not attached to the surface.

Lint Lint originates from loosely bonded surface fibers. This is also called fuzz or fluff also.

Lint can cause fiber build up in the printed image areas when the lint mixes with ink.

Missing Coating (Coated Paper)

Coating is missing at spots or in machine direction due to some problem at coater.

Paper Dust

Cut or Broken fibers, fines, fillers depositing on paper during cutting or slitting.

Pin Holes

Imperfections in paper which appear as minute holes upon looking through the sheet.

They originate from foreign particles, which are pressed through the sheet.

Piping Defect in reels, consisting of ridges running around the circumference, due to moisture

take-up by the surface layers or uneven binding or hard and soft spots.

Poor Joint

1. The joint tape is not properly placed and therefore sticks to the paper underneath.

2. The two webs are not put in line with each other and therefore paper protrude at the

end of the reel.

3. The joint tape is not covered by the paper or the backing. The tape stick to other paper

layer and may cause a break.

Poor Slitter Cut

Caused by dull or chipped off slitter. The cut appear irregular or rough. It gives the reel

end a wavy or shaggy appearance.

Roping

Paper defect appearing as a machine direction wrinkle in the sheet.

Longitudinal wrinkles in a coated paper.

Shiners

Transparent spots in a sheet of paper caused by squeezing partly cooked fiber bundles

and splinters during calendering.

Slime Holes

A hole in paper, characterized by brownish translucent material around the edges. Caused

by a lump of slime which has formed in stock system from the growth microorganisms,

then becoming detached and flowing onto the paper machine wire with the fiber to form a

non-fibrous area.

Slivers Small splinters of wood in a sheet of paper.

Snailing Streaks or snake like marks on the surface of a sheet.

Spongy Papers Paper that is too compressible or ink absorbent for its intended purpose.

Table Rolls Mark Basis weight variations of web caused by waves on the wire created by table rolls.

Tacky Speckles Types of contaminants found in de-inked pulp caused by plastic adhesive -like particles

originating from heat seal coating, backing adhesive etc.

Trash in Roll

Any foreign material such as loose piece of paper, dust, dirt etc. caught up or blown in to

a roll of paper during manufacturing or rewinding.

Trim in Roll A paper roll defect caused by the rewinder slitter trim shaving inadvertently being wound

up in the roll.

Uneven Caliper or Thickness (Not due to basis weight variation)

Variation in thickness on spot or in cross direction. May be caused by defective or

improper crowning of press/calender rolls.

Uneven Winding A random edge formed at the end of a paper roll during rewinding caused by the lateral

movement of the sheet and/or core.

Wild Formation

Paper sheet with uneven, random distribution of fibers, yielding a mottled appearance on

look-through.