What are the differences between sulfur-free paper and tracing paper?

In daily life and various professional fields, we often come into contact with a wide variety of papers. Among them, sulfur-free paper and tracing paper may not be well known to the general public, but they play important roles in specific industries. Have you ever wondered what the differences are between sulfur-free paper and tracing paper?  And which industries are they respectively suitable for?
In terms of composition, sulfur free paper is a special kind of paper that does not contain sulfides or any sulfur-containing compounds.  It is usually made from wood pulp or other cellulose materials.  Tracing paper, on the other hand, is a semi-transparent paper, and its specific composition is relatively complex, which endows it with some unique properties.
When it comes to their characteristics, the differences between the two are quite obvious. The most prominent characteristic of sulfur-free paper is its "sulfur-free" nature. This characteristic gives it good chemical stability. Since sulfur and acidic substances can cause the corrosion and yellowing of paper, leading to a decline in the quality and damage of documents, sulfur-free paper can effectively avoid such situations. It also has the feature of being dustproof and will not shed debris. Tracing paper, however, has high transparency, is resistant to sunlight and high temperatures, is transparent but not bright, waterproof, not easy to turn yellow, has a smooth surface, and contains no particulate impurities.

Tracing Paper

These characteristics determine their different applicable industries. Sulfur-free paper is mainly applied in fields with high requirements for item preservation. For example, in the preservation of artworks, many museums and collectors will choose sulfur-free paper to package precious paintings, handicrafts and other artworks when preserving them, to prevent the sulfur in the paper from causing damage to the artworks. In the electronic product packaging industry, sulfur-free paper is also frequently used for packaging silver-plated products such as circuit boards, LEDs, printed circuit boards, and hardware terminals. It can prevent sulfur from reacting with silver and causing adverse effects. In addition, in the food packaging field, due to its safety and stability, sulfur-free paper is also used for packaging some food products with strict packaging requirements.
Tracing paper also has a wide range of application areas. In the printing and plate-making industry, tracing paper is an essential material. Its firm texture, dense and slightly transparent nature, strong resistance to the penetration of oil and water, airtightness, and high wet strength make it well meet the needs of printing and plate-making. Tracing paper is also often used in fields such as manual drawing, pen/inkjet CAD plotters, engineering electrostatic copying, laser printing, and art printing. Because of its good transparency and stability, it can clearly present the drawing content and is not easy to deform, making it suitable for various drawing and printing operations. In the fields of gift packaging and photo album pages, the transparent and beautiful characteristics of tracing paper have also been fully utilized, adding a unique texture to the products.

Sulfur Free Paper