Designation: D685 − 17Standard Practice forConditioning Paper and Paper Products for Testing 1This standard is issued under the f i xed designation D685; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year oforiginal adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. Asuperscript epsilon (´) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.1. Scope*1.1 This practice def i nes the standard atmospheres fornormal preconditioning, conditioning, and testing of paper andpaper products, paperboard, f i berboard, and containers madefrom them. It also specif i es procedures for handling thesematerials in order that they may reach equilibrium with therespective atmosphere.1.2 This practice does not include special conditioning andtesting atmospheres, such as those that attempt to simulatetropical or arctic environments.1.3 This standard does not purport to address all of thesafety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is theresponsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-priate safety and health practices and determine the applica-bility of regulatory limitations prior to use.1.4 This international standard was developed in accor-dance with internationally recognized principles on standard-ization established in the Decision on Principles for theDevelopment of International Standards, Guides and Recom-mendations issued by the World Trade Organization TechnicalBarriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.2. Referenced Documents2.1 ISO Standards: 2ISO 187 Paper, Board and Pulps—Standard Atmosphere forConditioning and Testing and Procedure for Monitoringthe Atmosphere and Conditioning of Samples2.2 TAPPI Standard: 3TAPPI T400 Sampling and Acceptance of a Single Lot ofPaper, Paperboard, Containerboard or Related ProductTAPPI/ANSI T402 Standard Conditioning and Testing At-mosphere for Paper, Board, Pulp Handsheets and RelatedProducts3. Signif i cance and Use3.1 The preconditioning requirement is important becausephysical properties of a sample at 50 % relative humiditydepend upon whether the sample is brought to 50 % from ahigher or lower relative humidity. A detailed discussion of theimportance of preconditioning may be found in Annex A1.3.2 The conditioning and testing atmospheres are importantbecause both temperature and relative humidity have signif i -cant effects on the physical properties of paper and board. Amore detailed discussion of the importance may be found inAnnex A2.3.3 This standard is technically identical to TAPPI T-402.4. Standard Atmospheres4.1 Preconditioning Atmosphere—10 to 35 % relative hu-midity and 22 to 40°C (see Annex A1 and Annex A2).4.2 Conditioning Atmosphere—50.0 6 2.0 % relative hu-midity and 23.0 6 1.0°C.4.3 Testing Atmosphere—Same as 4.2.N OTE 1—Average values must fall within these limits. Momentaryf l uctuations and measurement limitations may cause individual measure-ments to vary up to +2°C (+3.6°F) and +5 % relative humidity withoutsignif i cant impairment of test precision.5. Apparatus5.1 Preconditioning Chamber—A room or cabinet in whichsample sheets or specimens may be individually exposed tocirculating air at the preconditioning relative humidity andtemperature.N OTE 2—For smaller sheets or specimens, the required preconditioningmay be achieved easily with a simple cabinet, if no other means areavailable. If this cabinet is operated in a room maintained at 50 % relativehumidity and 23°C and so designed that room air is drawn through it, andif the air entering and in the cabinet is heated to a temperature of 39 61°C, the relative humidity in the cabinet will be in the required range (thatis, 20 6 3 % relative humidity). Commercially available forced-ventilation “ovens” should prove satisfactory. Input air to the oven shouldbe drawn from the standard room, output should be vented outside of thestandard room.5.1.1 For many papers and boards, approximately the samepreconditioning moisture content obtained by the above pro-cedure may be achieved by using a sealed cabinet operated in1 This practice is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee D10 on Packagingand is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee D10.21 on Shipping Containers andSystems - Application of Performance Test Methods.Current edition approved April 1, 2017. Published June 2017. Originallyapproved in 1942. Last previous edition approved in 2012 as D685 – 12. DOI:10.1520/D0685-17.2 Available from American National Standards Institute (ANSI), 25 W43rd St,4th Floor, New York, New York 10036, http:/www.ansi.org.3 Available from Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI)15 Technology Parkway South, Norcross GA 30092, http://www.tappi.org.*A Summary of Changes section appears at the end of this standardCopyright © ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959. United StatesThis international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles for theDevelopment of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.1 Copyright by ASTM Int'l (all rights reserved); Sat Oct 7 02:57:51 EDT 2017Downloaded/printed byUniversity of Edinburgh (University of Edinburgh) pursuant to License Agreement. No further reproductions authorized.
