Q & A

PaperShell can replace wood, plastics, fiber composites and in some cases metal sheets in a number of applications in different markets. The highest environmental and cost effect is to replace aluminium and fiber composites like glasfiber.

The range of products that the material can be used for is wide as pressing can be done in a wide thickness and 3D-geometry span. Parts can thus be both aesthetic and/or load bearing.

It consists of the same building blocks as wood or plants: Cellulose, hemicellulose (derivative), and in some cases lignin. The source is from the forest, and we collaborate with local or Swedish producers who restore cultivated forests to deciduous or natural forests. Currently, hemicellulose comes from by-products from agriculture without competing with food production.

PaperShell is mainly based on compression molding meaning that you can achieve basically the same geometries as pressed sheet metal but also complex geometries achieved with fiber composites and certain injection molding geometries.

It can achieve many of the same designs and shapes that plastics and press moulded metal sheets can.

The material has a density of 1,34 gr/cm3 but is stronger than wood and plastics having a good strength-to-weight ratio meaning less need for material. A rule of thumb is 2 mm thick component in PaperShell has the same weight and strength as a component of 1 mm aluminium but the PaperShell component will have >90% less impact and will be >10% cheaper with similar tooling cost.

Our normal span is 1,5 to 5 mm thick but we can produce parts that are 0,5 mm and all the way up to 20 mm.

The natural colour of PaperShell is light brown to almost black with a carbon colour look. It is of course possible to paint or foil PaperShell in any preferred colour but then you lose the highly valued PaperShell appearance. It’s also possible to dye the paper before pressing in darker shades of blue, red & green.

Yes – we have conducted extensive testing to evaluate performance in an outdoor environment. There is a natural wood-like ageing of the surface of the material while the mechanical performance is kept at its high original level.

Indoor it stays the same. Outdoor, without any surface treatment, it turns silver grey like wood in 3-6 months, but without the performance loss found in wood.

PaperShell has high Glass Transition Temperature (Tg) is approximately 145°C and thus long-term use at elevated temperatures is possible. We also have versions of the materials that have fire and high heat resistance.

In several ways. Input materials are 100% bio based. All or most parts are waste streams. It is long lasting, traceable and material efficient. It stores atmospheric (biogenic) carbon. Production waste is fed back into the loop. End-of-Life it can be recycled as wood or bio upcycled. Ask us because here we are really nerdy and love to help you transition towards a circular bio economy.

It’s totally biobased and contains 0,00% fossil based carbon. The production process is highly energy and resource efficient and automated. End of life it can be returned to nature and bio upcycled.

At recycling stations globally it is sorted as wood and goes into this fraction for recycling or incineration. If incinerated it realises the atmospheric carbon. However, we have collaborations in place to support creating closed loops enabling PaperShell to be returned back to nature and creating carbon neutral and regenerative circular bio solutions.

Yes, both upstream and if you want downstream as well and we have the possibility to trace each component helping you to have circular business models such as PaaS, Take-back and the like.

In Tibro, Sweden we have our R&D centre and production facility where we do co-development projects and series production. In 2023 we launched our first highly automated lines and we will finalise a new bigger factory in 2024.

We need a CAD or picture of the product/ product in mind and the number of units needed. Based on your goals and requirements we send you a quote. For more info visit: https://papershell.se/partnerships/

That depends on the geometry of the part. We can press several parts at the same time. Production capacity is already available and increasing fast as we scale. However, demand is high that’s why production capacity booking is important. Mass production of >1 000 000 components/year will be available in the coming years.

It of course depends on the component and the volume. A rule of thumb is a 2 mm thick component in PaperShell has the same weight and strength as a press molded component of 1 mm aluminium. In comparison, a PaperShell component will have >90% less environmental impact, >10% lower in price and a tooling price that is 30-50% lower than an injection molding tool.