Optimizing hemicelluloses pre-extraction in eucalyptus kraft pulping:A pathway towards enhancing pulp mill biorefineries

A critical pathway towards enhancing pulp mill biorefineries is to integrate the extraction and utilization of hemicelluloses into the pulping processes.Hence,an industrial pre-extraction strategy for hemicelluloses targeting eucalyptus kraft pulping process was developed.Alkaline solution or pulping white liquor was used to pre-extract hemicelluloses before the actual pulping process.The response surface methodology(RSM)technique was applied to investigate the most suitable conditions to maximize the yield of these hemicelluloses while simultaneously minimizing the damage to pulp yields and properties.Temperature(105 to 155℃),alkali concentration(3%to 8%),sulfidity(20%to 30%)and retention time(19 to 221 min)were combined to evaluate their effects on hemicellulose yields and chemical structures.The optimal pre-extraction conditions identified in this work(5.75%NaOH concentration,25%sulfidity at 135℃for 60 min)successfully allowed recovering 4.8%of hemicelluloses(based on the wood dry mass)and limited damages to pulp yields and properties.The cellulose content in pulp can even be increased by about 10%.Hemicellulose emulsification properties were also evaluated,which were comparable to synthetic emulsifiers.This study provides an industrial pathway to effectively separate and utilize wood hemicelluloses from the pulping process,which has the potential to improve the economy and material utilization of pulp and paper mills.

A field experimental study of lignin sand stabilizing material(LSSM) extracted from spent-liquor of straw pulping paper mills

A new technique was introduced for sand stabilization and re-vegetation by use of lignin sand stabilizing material(LSSM). LSSM is a reconstructed organic compound with lignin as the most dominant component from the extracts of black-liquor issued by straw pulp paper mills. Unlike the polyvinyl acetate or foamed asphalt commonly used for dune stabilization, the new material is plant-friendly and can be used with virescence actions simultaneously. The field experimental study was conducted since 2001 in China's Northwest Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region and has been proved that LSSM is effective in stabilizing the fugitive dunes, making the arenaceous plants survive and the bare dune vegetative. The advisable solution concentration is 2% and the optimal field spraying quantity is 2 5 L/m^2 The soil nutrients of the stabilized and greened dune, such as organic matter, available phosphorous and total nitrogen are all increased compared with the control treatment, which is certainly helpful to the growth of arenaceous plants. The technique is worthwhile to be popularized because it is provided not only a new method for desertification control but also an outlet for cleaning contaminants issued from the straw paper mills.

Pulping of Wheat Straw with Caustic Potash-Ammonia Aqueous Solutions and Its Kinetics

A pulping technology of wheat straw with aqueous ammonia and diluent caustic potash was investigated.Because its strong alkalinity, the addition of caustic potash not only reduced the quantity of NH3 consumed and cooking time, but also enriched the black liquor with nutrients such as potassium and nitrogen, which could be used as fertilizer for agriculture. Various pulping conditions including composition of cooking liquor, liquor-to-solid ratio,maximum cooking temperature, time to reach the maximum temperature and time at the maximum temperature were studied systematically to determine the suitable pulping conditions. Results of the cooking course showed that there were three distinct delignification phases, namely, the bulk delignification phase from the beginning of cooking to 100 ℃, the supplementary delignification phase from 100 ℃ to 155 ℃ for 45min and the third delignification phase till the end of cooking. The rate of delignification was found to be first order with respect to residual lignin and 0.34 order with respect to [OH-]. The activation energy of the delignification reaction was 29.75 kJ·mol-1 and the rate equation of delignification was also obtained.

Parameters Influencing Haematological, Serum and Bio-Chemical References in Livestock Animals under Different Management Systems

Serum bio-chemical and haematological indices constitute important panels in the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of livestock diseases via the investigations of myriads of parameters influencing these blood and serum bio-chemical indices. Serum bio-chemical indices, haematological indices and blood electrolytes are critical physiological indices which have health implications on the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of livestock diseases especially in animals bred under different management systems. It is important to stress that cascades of parameters of both genetic and non-genetic origin greatly have direct and in-direct health implications on serum bio-chemical indices and blood electrolytes in livestock animals and subsequently on their health/ production performances. Laboratory blood tests would be a vital tool to help detect any deviation from normal state of wellbeing in animals. Therefore, this review intends to provide base line information to establish certain haematological and serum bio-chemical indices as standard references which can be employed as alternative therapy for diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of cascades of diseases plaguing livestock animals bred under different management systems especially under the harsh condition of the tropics. Hence, it is important to establish standard values for the various blood and serum bio-chemical indices base on parameters of non-genetic origin;age, sex, physiological state, stress level, management systems, medication, health status, nutrition, hormone, climate, etc. and genetic parameters which include the breed and genotype of the animal among others obviously affect the blood and serum profile of healthy animal which subsequently influence their production performance and efficiency.

Study on Refining Performances in Chemi-mechanical Pulping of Mixed Poplar and Eucalypt Woodchips

The refining performances of mixed poplar and eucalyptwoodchips(mixture ratio 6:4)were investigated at medium and highpulp consistency via chemi-mechanical pulping(CMP).The specificrefining energy consumption(SEC),fiber fraction proportion,andCanadian standard freeness(CSF)were determined to evaluate the effectsof pulp consistency and NaOH dosage on the refining performancesof mixed poplar and eucalypt woodchips.While the dosage of NaOHfor impregnation was maintained constant,the SEC and shive contentincreased with increasing pulp consistency.Different fractions obtainedfrom the Bauer-McNett classifier showed that higher pulp consistencycould be expected to yield more long fibers and shive in the stock.Upon increasing the NaOH dosage,the shive content and SEC reducedsignificantly.When the NaOH dosage was increased to 6%,the resultsindicated that it was difficult to reduce the shive content to less than 1%athigh pulp consistencies(25%~35%),whereas 0.18%shive fraction couldbe achieved at a medium pulp consistency(15%).

Combustion and Sulfur-fixing Performance of Pulping Black Liquor Coal-water Slurry

The effects of adding pulping black liquor and other additives to coal-water slurry(CWS) on the sulfur-fixing performance of the resultant mixture(pulping black liquor coal-water slurry) were evaluated. The experimental results demonstrated that the ash content of the black liquor coalwater slurry decreased as the addition of pulping black liquor in the mixture increased. Nevertheless, the addition amount should be appropriately selected to ensure that the black liquor coal-water slurry had a moderate calorific value. Addition of black liquor improved the combustion performance of CWS by lowering the ignition point and stabilizing the combustion process; moreover, the sulfur-fixation ratio after combustion increased by 12 to 16 percentage points than that of CWS, and the content of high-melting-point salt in the ash from CWS after adding black liquor was low. The sulfur-fixing ratio of CWS after adding a sulfur-fixing agent was effectively increased by 25 to 30 percenatge points, but with compromise of the fluidity and stability of the CWS; thus, the addition amount of a sulfur-fixing agent should be optimized.

Sulfite-Formaldehyde Pulping and Oxygen Delignification of Wheat Straw

In this study,wheat straw pulp was prepared by sulfiteformaldehyde(SF) pulping combined with oxygen delignification to develop a sustainable methodology for chemical pulping of straw materials.The bleachability of oxygen-delignified SF pulp was also evaluated by hypochlorite bleaching.The results indicated that the Na_2SO_3 charge played an important role in lignin removal during SF pulping as well as oxygen delignification.The efficiency of oxygen delignification of wheat straw SF pulp was markedly high.After the oxygenation stage,the Kappa number decreased by over 50%(the original Kappa number of SF pulp was lower than 30) when the Na OH charge was in the range of 3%~5%.The optimal conditions for preparing bleached pulp via combined SF pulping and oxygen delignification involved the use of 12% of Na_2SO_3 and 3% of Na OH,respectively.Pulp with relatively high brightness,a low Kappa number,as well as an acceptable viscosity could be obtained when oxygen-delignified SF pulp was bleached with hypochlorite under a low active chlorine dosage.

Effects of Ethanol Addition and Biological Pretreatment on Soda Pulping of Eulaliopsis binata

Morphological characteristics and proximate chemical analysis of E. binata showed it as a suitable raw material for writing and printing grade paper. Maximum pulp yield (43.58%) of kappa number 17.38 with 0.9% screening rejects was obtained at 12% of active alkali (as Na2O) pulping temperature 130&degC, cooking time 120 min and solid to liquor ratio 1:4. During bio-soda pulping of E. binata, pulp yield decreased slightly while pulp brightness, tensile index, burst index and double fold numbers were improved by 4.1%, 24.94%, 14.03% and 48.45% respectively compared to soda pulping. During ethanol-soda pulping of E. binata, pulp yield, pulp brightness, tensile index, burst index and double fold numbers were improved by 3.9%, 6.6%, 32.18%, 35.40% and 77.31% respectively compared to soda pulping.

Co-Production of High-Grade Dissolving Pulp,Furfural,and Lignin from Eucalyptus via Extremely Low Acid Pretreatment and Pulping Technologies and Catalysis

Hemicellulose and lignin are not reasonably utilized during the dissolved pulp preparation process.This work aimed to propose a process for the co-production of dissolving pulp,furfural,and lignin from eucalyptus.High-grade dissolving pulp was prepared from eucalyptus using a combination of extremely low acid(ELA)pretreatment,Kraft cooking,and elementary chlorine-free(ECF)bleaching.The obtained pre-hydrolysate was catalytic conversion into furfural in a biphasic system,and lignin during Kraft cooking and ECF was recovered.The process condition was discussed as well as the mass flow direction.The results showed that ELA pretreatment could effectively remove 80.1%hemicellulose.Compared with traditional hydrothermal pretreatment,the ELA pretreatment significantly increased the xylose yield from 5.05 to 14.18 g/L at 170℃ for 2 h,which had practical significance for furfural production.The 82.7%furfural yield and 82.9%furfural selectivity were obtained from xylose-rich pre-hydrolysate using NaCl as a phase modifier in a biphasic system with 4-methyl-2-pentanone(MIBK)as an organic phase by ion exchange resin catalysts at 190℃ for 2 h.Subsequently,the pretreated eucalyptus was subjected to Kraft cooking,and the optimal alkali amount was 14%.Then,the Kraft pulp was bleached using the O-D1-EP-D_(2) sequence,and dissolving pulp was obtained with an ISO brightness of 86.0%,viscosity of 463 mL/g,andα-cellulose content of 95.4%.The Kraft lignin which has a potential application was investigated by 2D-HSQC NMR and 31P NMR.The results showed that the S/G ratio of Kraft lignin was 1.93,and the content of phenolic hydroxyl groups was 2.53 mmol/g.Moreover,based on the above proposed process,30.5 g dissolving pulp,5.5 g furfural,and 21.2 g lignin per 100 g eucalyptus chips(oven dry)were produced.This research will provide new catalysis and pulping technical routes for dissolving pulp,furfural,and Kraft lignin products,which are in great demand in the chemical industry.

Biodegradation Behavior of Starch in Simulated White Water System of Old Corrugated Cardboard Pulping Process

Considering the serious barriers/issues induced by the accumulated starch generated in white water system of old corrugated cardboard(OCC)pulping process,large amounts of accumulated starch in white water would be decomposed by microorganisms and could not be utilized,thereby resulting in severe resource wastage and environmental pollution.This study mainly explored the effects of biodegradation/hydrolysis conditions of the two types of starch substrates(native starch and enzymatically(α-amylase)hydrolyzed starch),which were treated via microorganism degradation within the simulated white water from OCC pulping system and their biodegradation products on the key properties were characterized via X-ray diffraction(XRD),Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy(FT-IR),and gel permeation chromatography(GPC)technologies.The effects of system temperature,pH value,starch concentration,and biodegradation time on starch biodegradation ratio and the characteristics of obtained biodegradated products from the two types of starches were studied.In addition,the effect ofα-amylase dosage on the biodegradation ratio of enzymatically hydrolyzed starch and its properties was investigated.It was found that the native starch presented a maximal degradation ratio at a system temperature of 55℃and pH value range of 5-7,respectively,the corresponding starch concentration within simulated white water system was 200 mg/L.Whereas the enzymatically hydrolyzed starch exhibited a highest degradation ratio at a system temperature of 50℃and pH value of 5.5,respectively,and the corresponding starch concentration within simulated white water system was 100 mg/L.It was verified that native starch is more readily bio-hydrolyzed and biodegradation-susceptive by microorganisms in simulated white water system of OCC pulping process,while the enzymatically hydrolyzed starch exhibits better biodegradation/hydrolysis resistance to the microbial degradation than that of native starch.This study provides a practical and interesting approach to investigate the starch hydrolysis or biodegradation behaviors in white water system of OCC pulping process,which would greatly contribute to the full recycling and valorized application of starch as a versatile additive during paperboard production.

THE PULPING AND PAPERMAKING CHARACTERISTICS OF YOUNG L.GMELINI AND B.PLATYPHYLLA

5, 10, 15, and 20 year old Larix gmelini and Betula platyphylla were used as pulping raw material in the research. The examination of young L. gmelini and B. Platyphyllafibrous structures showed that the fiber length and ratio of length to width of 5 years old L. gmelini noticeably differed from that of mature L. gmelini. but that of 5 year old B. platyphyllawere nearby equal to that of mature B. platyphylla. The research results indicated that 15 years old B. platyphylla and 20 year old L. gmelini were best suited to pulping among the eight experimental raw materials; 10 years old B. platyphylla and 15 year old L. gmelini were optimal to the ratio of beating degree increment and corresponding beating time. The pulp characteristics of 15 year old B. platyphylla and 20 year old L. gmelini were similar to those of mature wood, and it was feasible to consider 15 years to B. platyphylla and 20 years to L. gmelini as their rotation period; 10 years and 15 years as their thinning cycles for the papermaking forest base.

Pulping of Wheat Straw with Caustic Potash-Ammonia Aqueous Solutions and Its Kinetics

A pulping technology of wheat straw with aqueous ammonia and diluent caustic potash was investigated. Because its strong alkalinity, the addition of caustic potash not only reduced the quantity of NH3 consumed and cooking time, but also enriched the black liquor with nutrients such as potassium and nitrogen, which could be used as fertilizer for agriculture. Various pulping conditions including composition of cooking liquor, liquor-to-solid ratio, maximum cooking temperature, time to reach the maximum temperature and time at the maximum temperature were studied systematically to determine the suitable pulping conditions. Results of the cooking course showed that there were three distinct delignification phases, namely, the bulk delignification phase from the beginning of cook- ing to 100℃, the supplementary delignification phase from 100℃ to 155℃ for 45min and the third delignification phase till the end of cooking. The rate of delignification was found to be first order with respect to residual lignin and 0.34 order with respect to [OH - ]. The activation energy of the delignification reaction was 29.75kJ·mol-1 and the rate equation of delignification was also obtained.

NEW PULPING METHOD FOR LINERBOARD

In the research Pinus koraiensis and Lorix gmelini were used as raw materials,with the analysis of L9 (34) experimental design and pulping mechanism, the optimal pulping technological parameters and corresponding AS-AQ pulp properties were obtained. The results showed that the ylelds of Pinus koraiensis and Larix gmelini AS-AQ pulp were much higher than that of corresponding kraft and has an environmental advantage over kraft. AS-AQ pulping Produces pulps with strength properties comparable to kraft.

Effects of supercritical ammonia on bamboo pulping

We investigated the effects of supercritical ammonia on pulping of bamboo in a preliminary study,using testers such as differential scanning calorimetry（DSC）,scanning electron microscopy（SEM）,X-ray diffraction（XRD） and energy dispersive spectroscopy（EDS）.The results indicate that under supercritical conditions at 185-190°C,it is possible for the ammonia to realize bamboo pulping.Compared with conventional kraft pulping,the products can meet the quality requirements of industrial paper.

Conditioned medium from human dental pulp stem cells treats spinal cord injury by inhibiting microglial pyroptosis

Human dental pulp stem cell transplantation has been shown to be an effective therapeutic strategy for spinal cord injury.However,whether the human dental pulp stem cell secretome can contribute to functional recovery after spinal cord injury remains unclear.In the present study,we established a rat model of spinal cord injury based on impact injury from a dropped weight and then intraperitoneally injected the rats with conditioned medium from human dental pulp stem cells.We found that the conditioned medium effectively promoted the recovery of sensory and motor functions in rats with spinal cord injury,decreased expression of the microglial pyroptosis markers NLRP3,GSDMD,caspase-1,and interleukin-1β,promoted axonal and myelin regeneration,and inhibited the formation of glial scars.In addition,in a lipopolysaccharide-induced BV2 microglia model,conditioned medium from human dental pulp stem cells protected cells from pyroptosis by inhibiting the NLRP3/caspase-1/interleukin-1βpathway.These results indicate that conditioned medium from human dental pulp stem cells can reduce microglial pyroptosis by inhibiting the NLRP3/caspase-1/interleukin-1βpathway,thereby promoting the recovery of neurological function after spinal cord injury.Therefore,conditioned medium from human dental pulp stem cells may become an alternative therapy for spinal cord injury.

Cultivating High Efficient Bacteria of Degrading Pulping Wastewater by Ultraviolet Mutagenic Technology

Instead of pure bacteria, induction mutation of activated sludge by ultraviolet (Uv) was studied and used to treat pulping wastewater by continuous- flow. The result showed the mutagenic activated sludge had remarkable effect and application potential in pulping wastewater treatment. Comparing with common activated sludge, the mutagenic activated sludge was more suitable for lignose decomposition and had high decomposing efficiency.

Effects of Ethanol Pulping on the Length of Bamboo Cellulose

On the conditions of different ethanol concentration, acids and catalyzers, the effects of ethanol pulping on the cellulose length of bamboo were studied. The results indicates that ethanol pulping has remarkable effects on the length of cellulose, which is clearly reduced with adding ethanol and acid. The margin of length of cellulose become smaller with the increase of the catalyzer. When the ethanol concentration was 70%, the concentration of acid was 0.3% and some NaOH was used as catalyzer, the length of cellulose was the longest.

Recovery of Excessive NH_3 in Black Liquor from NH_4OH-KOH Pulping of Wheat Straw

Aqueous ammonia mixed with caustic potash as wheat straw pulping liquor was investigated. The caustic potash not only roduced the NH3 usage and cooking time, but also provided a potassium source as a fertilizer in the black liquor. Excessive NH3 in black liquor from wheat straw NF4OH-KOH pulping process was recovered by batch distillation with a 98% recovery rate of free NH3 under atmospheric pressure and constant reflux. The temperature at the bottom of the column was controlled at 104 - 105 ℃. After removal of free NH3, the black liquor contained 8.4 g/L NH3-N and 7. 04 g/L total potassium, with a substantial amount of ammoniacal lignin, and it could be used as a liquid fertilizer for farming. The height equivalent to a theoretical plate （HETP） of a rectifier for recovering free NH3 was calculated. The diameter and height of packing of the rectifier based on a daily consumption of 75 t oven-dry wheat straw were estimated.

New Advanced Technology on Waste Resourcelization of the Black Pulping Liquor

Combining the characteristics of the black pulping liquor that contains a lot of lignin and other biomass resources, the technology of comprehensive waste utilization is employed. The reconstructive preparation of modified urea-formaldehyde glue by adding black pulping liquor and the application in extruding the medium density fibre board using this modified urea-formaldehyde glue is researched. Results show that when applying the preparation technology that alkaline reaction and then weak acid reaction, the appropriate preparation process is as follows： the adding urea process is divided into three stages （proportion 2 ： 1 ： 1） ; the pH value is 8.0, and the reaction time is 40 min in the addition reaction stage; the pH value will be naturally reduced to 3.5 -5.0, and the reaction time is 45 min in the aggregation reaction stage; the pH value is 8.0 in the urea complement stage. And the optimal condition of the reconstructive preparation the modified ureaformaldehyde glue is adding the condensed black pulping liquor after hydroxymethylation in the beginning of polycondensation reaction by 5% proportion. The application in extruding medium density fibre board with this modified urea-fosmaldehyde glue is proved feasible.

Effects of Ultrasonic Treatment on Kraft Pulping of Bamboo

By applying ultrasound at different stage of kraft pulping process, the properties of kraft pulp produced by ultrasonic treatment were studied and compared with those by conventional method. The results indicated that, while the performances of the pulp were close to conventional kraft pulp, the chemical-to-wood ratio decreased from 20% to 17.5%, cooking time was shortened from 140 to 120 rain, and the yield increased. When the ultrasound came into play at the 90th minute during pulping process, the properties of the produced bamboo fiber were the most desirable.