Should We Worry About Thermal Paper Proliferation?

 Everywhere you go, from retail stores to movie theaters and from public transport vehicles to petrol pumps among others, the servicing personnel are eager to give you a receipt for the transactions you do. Any old timer with memories going back to the 70s, 80s and 90s would be pleasantly surprised by this new enthusiasm of point of sale (POS) personnel in giving away receipts for transactions. Moreover, the receipts are given away instantly, printed from compact, hand-held printers, a little larger than calculators. If the eagerness for transparency is admirable, the efficiency of instant bill generation is positively impressive. And yet, some folks refuse the receipts as if these are infectious objects.

Process of thermal printing
The paper used to print the receipts instantly, is known as thermal paper and the compact hand-held printer is a direct thermal printer. Contrary to conventional printing, here the printer doesn't use any consumables like ink, dye or ribbon; instead it uses heat to produce the print output or what we commonly refer to as printed matter. How? Well, as already mentioned, thermal paper has a chemical coating on the side where the printing takes place. When exposed to heat, it produces images or scribbles or whatever the heat exposure directs it to do.

On a thermal printer, the print head is designed to transfer heat in a controlled manner after being programmed to produce the desired print output. There is a small slot for a thermal paper roll, which is just about the size of a camera film reel, to fit into the printer. For the user, there can't be anything simpler since the thermal paper roll can slide into the slot just as easily as a camera film reel slides into a camera. This printer can be integrated to a large cash register or it can function as a standalone billing device. It's convenient and fast for both users and customers; so why are some folks skeptical? 

Hazardous chemical coating on the receipts
The controversy surrounding the thermal paper receipts is related to Bisphenol-A, a supposedly hazardous chemical compound, about which, opinion is divided among the experts. Some proclaim it to be hazardous, while others don't. However, the debate still hasn't gained traction in the mass media on a scale that could make everyone conscious about any issue with the compound, at least here in India. Understandably, it has not been long that thermal paper has been in use in India on any meaningful scale and so, awareness about it's likely hazards is not there, as much as it is elsewhere.

While the debate rages on, it would be naive to just overlook the possible hazards to humans, of direct exposure to thermal paper. It functions as a color developer in thermal paper, where it is present as 'free' and in non-polymerized state, which is supposedly more hazardous than when it is present on plastic and polymer products. In this 'free' state, humans exposed to BPA run the risk of absorbing it through their skins. Now, that's surely worrying although those arguing against the existence of any such risk put forth their own views about BPA on thermal paper. The likely outcome is rather serious - cancer, lung and kidney infection among other worrisome conditions.

As an end user and a customer, who likes convenience and efficiency, I would not like to let go off the thermal paper printer that the retail store or petrol pump personnel use. However, I can't overlook the fact that many countries have banned the use of BPA in all forms. Here in India, we are on a growth path with many retail segments going through sustained periods of boom; we need the efficiency to sustain that boom. The debate on BPA in India is as good as absent and it's not surprising. We still live hazardous lives - drive like maniacs on the roads, are oblivious to product adulteration and generally don't understand a whole lot of risks. Seems BPA is going to be with us for some more time.