Paper towel

File:Paper towel.jpg

A paper towel is an absorbent, disposable towel made from paper.{{cite web|url=https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/paper-towel |title=PAPER TOWEL | meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary |publisher=Dictionary.cambridge.org |date=2022-05-25 |accessdate=2022-05-31}} In Commonwealth English, paper towels for kitchen use are also known as kitchen rolls, kitchen paper, or kitchen towels.{{cite web|url=https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/kitchen-roll?q=kitchen-towel |title=KITCHEN ROLL | meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary |publisher=Dictionary.cambridge.org |date=2022-05-25 |accessdate=2022-05-31}} For home use, paper towels are usually sold in a roll of perforated sheets, but some are sold in stacks of pre-cut and pre-folded layers for use in paper-towel dispensers. Unlike cloth towels, paper towels are disposable and intended to be used only once. Paper towels absorb water because they are loosely woven, which enables water to travel between the fibers, even against gravity (capillary effect). They have similar purposes to conventional towels, such as drying hands, wiping windows and other surfaces, dusting, and cleaning up spills. Paper towel dispensers are commonly used in toilet facilities shared by many people (such as at schools or shopping malls), as they are often considered more hygienic than hot-air hand dryers{{cite web |url=https://www.nhs.uk/news/lifestyle-and-exercise/paper-towels-may-be-more-hygienic-than-air-dryers/ |title=Paper towels may be more hygienic than air dryers - NHS |website=NHS|date= June 2013 |access-date= 14 January 2019}} or shared cloth towels.

History

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In 1907, the Philadelphia-based Scott Paper Company developed the first restroom tissues.{{Cite web |last=Subramanian |first=Samanth |author-link=Samanth Subramanian |date=April 25, 2019 |title=Hand dryers v paper towels: the surprisingly dirty fight for the right to dry your hands |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/apr/25/hand-dryers-paper-towels-hygiene-dyson-airblade |access-date=March 19, 2024 |website=The Guardian}} They started the paper towel industry when they began selling Sani-Towels and used advertising to convince the public that paper towels were essential for personal hygiene.{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ybrOEAAAQBAJ |title=We Are What We Sell: How Advertising Shapes American Life. . . and Always Has [3 Volumes] |date=2014 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |editor-last=Coombs |editor-first=Danielle Sarver |page=130 |isbn=978-0-313-39245-0 |editor-last2=Batchelor |editor-first2=Bob}}

In 1919, William E. Corbin, Henry Chase, and Harold Titus began experimenting with paper towels in the Research and Development building of the Brown Company in Berlin, New Hampshire.{{cite web |url=http://www.northcountrynhstories.org/story_Rebecca_Rule.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717144629/http://www.northcountrynhstories.org/story_Rebecca_Rule.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 17, 2011 |title=It felt like death |access-date=December 30, 2011 }} By 1922, Corbin perfected their product and began mass-producing it at the Cascade Mill on the Berlin/Gorham line.{{cite web| url= http://www.conwaydailysun.com/node/8484/18664| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130926045719/http://www.conwaydailysun.com/node/8484/18664| url-status= dead| archive-date= September 26, 2013| title= Once Upon a Berlin Time| access-date=December 30, 2011 }} This product was called Nibroc Paper Towels (Corbin spelled backwards{{cite web| url= http://www.laconiadailysun.com/files/pdfarchivenew/BerlinPDF/2011/2011MillSupplement.pdf| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120421103206/http://www.laconiadailysun.com/files/pdfarchivenew/BerlinPDF/2011/2011MillSupplement.pdf| url-status= dead| archive-date= April 21, 2012| title= Beginnings of the Cascade Paper Mill| access-date=December 30, 2011 }}). In 1931, the Scott Paper Company introduced their paper towel rolls for kitchens.

Paper towels are commonly used for drying hands in public bathrooms. In the 21st century, however, electric jet-air dryers have threatened their dominance. While there is no clear scientific consensus over which method is more hygienic, the paper towel industry and hand dryer manufacturers such as Dyson have each attempted to discredit each other by funding studies which spur sensationalist headlines and running advertisements. The public relations battle has also been fueled by animosity between both sides.{{Cite web |last=Vincent |first=James |date=April 22, 2016 |title=Dyson vs Big Paper Towel: the battle over hand-drying hygiene |url=https://www.theverge.com/2016/4/21/11479038/dyson-hand-dryer-hygiene-paper-towel-debate |access-date=March 19, 2024 |website=The Verge}}

Production

Paper towels are made from either virgin or recycled paper pulp,{{cite web |url= http://www.quickerpickerupper.com/faq.shtml#4|title= Frequently Asked Questions |publisher= quickerpickerupper.com |access-date=2007-06-28 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070609222029/http://www.quickerpickerupper.com/faq.shtml#4 |archive-date = 2007-06-09}} which is extracted from wood or fiber crops. They are sometimes bleached during the production process to lighten coloration,Sasser, Sue Lynn. [http://fcs.tamu.edu/money/your_money/cdm/2001_2002/paper_towels_01_02.pdf Paper Towels] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060906042906/http://fcs.tamu.edu/money/your_money/cdm/2001_2002/paper_towels_01_02.pdf|date=2006-09-06}} from the Texas A&M website. Retrieved on June 29, 2007 and may also be decorated with colored images on each square (such as flowers or teddy bears). Resin size is used to improve the wet strength. Paper towels are packed individually and sold as stacks, or are held on a continuous roll, and come in two distinct classes: domestic and institutional. Many companies produce paper towels. Some common brand names are Bounty, Seventh Generation, Scott, Viva, and Kirkland brand among many others.

Market

Tissue products in North America, including paper towels, are divided into consumer and commercial markets, with household consumer usage accounting for approximately two thirds of total North American consumption.{{cite web|title=Tissue market continues to grow |url=http://www.risiinfo.com/magazines/pulp-paper/magazine/october/2008/PPMagOctober-Tissue-market-continues-to-grow.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081216014855/http://www.risiinfo.com/magazines/pulp-paper/magazine/october/2008/PPMagOctober-Tissue-market-continues-to-grow.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2008-12-16 |work=Pulp & Paper Int'l Digital Edition |date=October 2008 |publisher=RISI |access-date=2009-10-31 |author=Brad Kalil, Director of Tissue }} Commercial usage, or otherwise any use outside of the household, accounts for the remaining third of North American consumption. The growth in commercial use of paper towels can be attributed to the migration from folded towels (in public bathrooms, for example) to roll towel dispensers, which reduces the amount of paper towels used by each patron.

Within the forest products industry, paper towels are a major part of the "tissue market", second only to toilet paper.

Globally, Americans are the highest per capita users of paper towels in the home,{{cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2018/12/paper-towels-us-use-consume/577672/|title=Americans Are Weirdly Obsessed With Paper Towels|last=Pinsker|first=Joe|date=2018-12-10|website=The Atlantic|language=en-US|access-date=2018-12-11}} at approximately {{convert|24|kg}} yearly consumption per capita (combined consumption approximately Orders of magnitude (mass)#106 to 1011 kg per year). This is 50% higher than in Europe and nearly 500% higher than in Latin America. By contrast, people in the Middle East tend to prefer reusable cloth towels, and people in Europe tend to prefer reusable cleaning sponges.

Paper towels are popular primarily among people who have disposable income, so their use is higher in wealthy countries and low in developing countries.

Growing hygiene consciousness during the COVID-19 pandemic led to a boost in paper towel market growth.{{citation needed|date = December 2021}}

Environmental issues

Paper towels are a global product with rising production and consumption.{{cite web|url=http://www.pulppapermill.com/guidelines-to-choosing-best-paper-towels/|title=Guidelines to choosing best paper towels|date=16 August 2015|access-date=29 August 2017}} Being second in tissue consumption only to toilet paper (36% vs. 45% in the U.S.), the proliferation of paper towels, which are mostly non-recyclable, has globally adverse effects on the environment.{{cite web|publisher=Stanford Magazine|title= Taking Paper Towels to the Compost Pile: Nitty-gritty|author=Jingshi Wu|url=https://alumni.stanford.edu/get/page/magazine/article/?article_id=29083}} However, paper towels made from recycled paper do exist, and are sold at many outlets. Some are manufactured from bamboo, which grows faster than trees.

Electric hand dryers are an alternative to using paper towels for hand drying.{{cite web|url=http://www.innovateus.net/content/how-much-tissue-paper-does-american-household-use-day|title=How much tissue paper does an American household use in a day?|website=www.innovateus.net|access-date=29 August 2017}} However, paper towels are quicker than hand dryers: after ten seconds, paper towels achieve 90% dryness,{{Clarify|date=December 2021|reason=not clear what 90% dryness means}} while hot air dryers require 40 seconds to achieve a similar dryness.{{cite web|url=http://blog.oceanconservancy.org/2012/10/12/paper-towels-whats-the-big-deal-anyway/|title=Paper Towels – What's the Big Deal Anyway?|website=Ocean Currents|access-date=2017-03-06}} Electric hand dryers may also spread bacteria to hands and clothing.TÜV Produkt und Umwelt GmbH Report No. 425-452006 [http://www.europeantissue.com/pdfs/090410%20T%C3%9CV%20-%20Study%20of%20different%20methods%20used%20for%20drying%20hands%20Sept%202005.pdf A report concerning a study conducted with regard to the different methods used for drying hands; September 2005]{{Cite journal|last1=Huang|first1=Cunrui|last2=Ma|first2=Wenjun|last3=Stack|first3=Susan|date=1 August 2012|title=The Hygienic Efficacy of Different Hand-Drying Methods: A Review of the Evidence|journal=Mayo Clinic Proceedings|language=en|volume=87|issue=8|pages=791–798|doi=10.1016/j.mayocp.2012.02.019|pmc=3538484|pmid=22656243|doi-access=free}}Ngeow YF, Ong HW, Tan P. Dispersal of bacteria by an electric air hand dryer. Malays J Pathol. 1989 Aug;11:53-6.