Researchers have developed a breakthrough non-toxic thermal paper coating using wood-derived lignin and plant sugars.
Researchers at EPFL have demonstrated that wood-derived materials can meet the technical requirements for thermal paper coatings. This research shows that lignin, a primary element of wood, can be paired with a sensitizer made from plant sugars to produce functional paper for receipts and labels.
The study follows previous work by Luterbacher involving the extraction of lignin from plants without causing its structural destruction. These plant-based formulations are intended to serve as a substitute for traditional chemicals that carry toxic signatures.Thermal paper is a widely utilized material found in shipping labels, medical records, and tickets. The global market for this product was valued at $4 billion in 2022 and is expected to reach $6 billion by 2030. Despite its utility, the chemicals used in its production often enter water and soil through handling and recycling processes. “For decades, the most common developers have been bisphenol A and, more recently, bisphenol S ,” said the researchers in a press release.Both substances are known to disrupt hormone signaling in living organisms and are frequently detected in individuals who handle receipts often.Replacement is quite challengingReplacing these bisphenols is a technical challenge because any alternative must remain stable, printable, and cost-effective. A suitable developer must react at the specific temperature used by printers, mix effectively with other coating ingredients, and prevent background discoloration during storage. While many bio-based materials have been proposed in the past, they typically fail to meet these specific stability and reactivity requirements.To create a viable alternative, the EPFL team utilized lignin because it contains chemical groups capable of acting as color developers. However, isolated lignin is naturally dark and chemically irregular, which usually makes it unsuitable for high-quality printing. To resolve this, the researchers applied a controlled extraction technique known as sequential aldehyde-assisted fractionation. This method produces light-colored lignin polymers by reducing the presence of dark, color-absorbing groups that would otherwise interfere with the visual clarity of the printed text.In addition to the developer, thermal paper requires a sensitizer to facilitate the interaction between the dye and the developer when heat is applied. The team avoided petroleum-based sensitizers by using diformylxylose, a molecule derived from a plant cell wall sugar called xylan. “They then applied the resulting mixtures as thin coatings onto paper and tested them using controlled heating and commercial printers,” added the press release.Impressive performance and safetyThe resulting lignin-based coatings produced clear images with color density values that align with the requirements for commercial thermal paper. During stability testing, the paper remained functional after being stored near a window for several months, and printed logos remained readable after one year. While the image contrast did not yet reach the level of fully optimized commercial paper, the results matched the performance of existing BPA-based products.Safety evaluations showed that these lignin developers have estrogen-like activity that is two to four orders of magnitude lower than that of BPA. Additionally, the sugar-based sensitizer demonstrated no estrogenic or toxic profile under the conditions tested by the researchers. This study indicates that non-edible biomass can be processed through simple steps to create safer formulations for everyday items like labels and receipts.
Thermal Paper Toxic Chemicals Wood
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