Digital BW, The Print

Does anyone have any reliable information on the expected archival  
qualities of polypropylene printing "paper"?

Just for the 'L' of it I bought a roll of a polypropylene "banner  
product" from Breathingcolor.com.

It is an slightly warm-white material treated on one side to take  
pigmented ink. It is a matte surface, probably "brightened". It is,  
of course, incredibly tear-resistant.

With MIS UT-3d ink I got about a 1.60 black density when I profiled  
it. Next to the same image on Epson Enhanced Matte, it looks very  
good, although the image lacks EEM's slight warmth of tone.

A PH-tester pen indicates no acidity in the matte printing surface.  
Beathingcolor makes no claims as to longevity, of course, since it is  
offered because of its physical properties that make it good for what  
will probably be rather short-term use.

Polypropylene is not supposed to have good UV resistance (in a  
chemistry lab, anyway), but this should not be an issue for a mounted  
or stored print.

Calumet sells polypropylene sleeves for the archival storage of  
negatives, so it is not inherently unstable or dangerous to fairly  
delicate materials like photo emulsions.

Sooooo.... is there any reason to believe this would not, in all  
likelihood, be relatively stable over the next century or two?

Even if it is not good for the long-term, it sure as heck is great  
stuff for prints that will end up in the hands of little kids or  
stuck onto someone's refrigerator!

Myron

That product yellows very quickly. Otherwise it is a decent material.
The really heavy weight stuff is about as durable as I have ever seen.
When the say grommets are not needed and to just poke a hole and tied
a cord for hanging, they really mean it. Really stinking strong.