Paper removed by time

Recognizing that one day papers would become overwhelming in the office, a group of Canadian chemists created a self-erasing paper. The paper information is automatically deleted after one day, allowing the paper to be printed again.

Each of us consumes about 91 kg of paper, which is about 20,000 pages. Paper will not be the backbone of information but becomes a means of sharing, used to exchange, compose or view information.

'21% of the copies were thrown into the trash on the day of printing and 44.5% of the 1,200 pages that a person printed in a single office month were used only once , "Brinda Anthropologist Said Dalal of the Xerox Research Center in Palo Alto (Canada).

The self-erasing process does not work with toner cartridges and uses a light yellow, low-resolution print made with a purple ink. The information printed on this paper automatically disappears within 16 hours, even in shorter time if paper is hot.

Researchers say the method uses color-changing components that absorb light at a certain wavelength, allowing the paper to gradually return to its original state. Only the life of the page restricts reuse.

So far, the method is still at its prototype stage and researchers are looking at ways to make it more economical than traditional paper.