Research Articles

A biorefinery using the process of hemicellulose pre-extraction and subsequent pulping provides a promising way for the utilization of straw biomass and resolution of problems related to silicon. In this work, hemicellulose was extracted from depithed corn stover with sodium hydroxide solution before soda-AQ pulping. Components of the extracts were quantified by ion chromatography. The parameters (alkali concentration and temperature) affecting hemicellulose pre-extraction were optimized. The main constituent of hemicellulose in corn stover was xylan, which accounted for 18.1% of the depithed raw material. More than 90% of the xylan can be extracted under the optimal conditions: NaOH concentration of 10%, temperature of 75ºC, and time of 2h. Solid fractions after extraction were subjected to soda-AQ pulping. In comparison with control pulp obtained without extraction, it was found that alkali pre-extraction could improve the brightness and decrease kappa number of the subsequent pulp, causing a slight loss of yield, viscosity, density, and burst strength, but an obvious improvement of tear strength. Moreover, the silicon content was decreased by 79.8% when the extraction conditions were set at 75 ºC with alkali concentration of 8%, suggesting that pre-extraction of hemicellulose is a potential way to solve silicon problems associated with alkaline pulping of stover.

Standard handsheets of bleached bagasse and hardwood pulps were prepared with calcium carbonate filler loading by conventional method and by in-situ precipitation. The handsheets were printed with an IGT printability tester. The effect of filler loading by in-situ precipitation on ink transfer, print density, and print-through was studied. For a given amount of ink on the printing disk or on the paper, the print density was greater and the print-through was less for in-situ precipitation of filler when compared with the conventional filler loading.

The integrated forest biorefinery (IFBR) concept provides a promising opportunity for the development of the pulp and paper industry. One proposed next generation technology for an integrated forest biorefinery is the extraction of hemicelluloses, allowing the co-production of pulp and different hemicellulose-based chemicals. In addition to paper properties, hemicelluloses are known to be important for the function of cationic papermaking additives, because they are the main source of charged groups in fibers. This paper shows that the alkaline extraction of hemicelluloses from bleached kraft pulp decreases both the total and surface charge of the pulps. It was found that the decreased fiber charge leads to increased filler retention with fixed retention aid dosage. The reduction observed in the fiber surface charge for alkali-extracted pulp was mainly attributed to the decrease in the amount of anionic groups located in fines.

Black liquor alkaline lignin and magnesium lignosulfonate were liquefied at 320 oC. The antioxidant abilities of the liquefaction products were compared with the raw materials. Results showed that the total phenol content and unit antioxidant power of both alkaline lignin liquefaction products (ALLP) and magnesium lignosulfonate liquefaction products (MLLP) were improved, and ALLP had a larger increase than MLLP. The influence of reaction time and temperature on oil yield, total phenol content, and antioxidant power of ALLP was evaluated. The total phenol content was found to have certain relationships with the antioxidant abilities. These results explore a new approach for further studies and applications of liquid antioxidant from lignins.

Triploid Populus tomentosa Carr. (Salicaceae) is a good alternative to meet the increasing need of the global pulp and paper industry. Meanwhile, the xylem of this species could be a useful bioresource to develop low molecular extractives with significant bioactive potential. In the present work, a phytochemical investigation on aqueous EtOH extractives of Triploid P. tomentosa xylem, by systematical performance of Sephadex LH-20 open column chromatography and Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC), resulted in the isolation of two phenolic acids (ρ-coumaric acid (I) and caffeic acid (II)), two flavonoids (apigenin (III) and luteolin (IV)), and three phenolic glucosides (salicortin (V), salireposide (VI) and populoside (VII)). The structure elucidation and determination of the isolated extractives were based on their spectroscopical data and physiochemical evidences. This was the first time to report the low molecular weight extractives of Triploid P. tomentosa. Various low molecular weight extractives fromTriploid P. tomentosa xylem exhibited significant antioxidative activities by DPPH and hydroxyl radical scavenging assays.

Binderless fiberboards from enzymatic hydrolysis lignin (EHL) and cotton stalk fibers were prepared under various manufacturing conditions, and their physico-mechanical properties were evaluated. Full factorial experimental design was used to assess the effect of fiber moisture content and pressing temperature on boards’ properties. In addition, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was used to obtain the glass transition temperature (Tg) of EHL. We found that both fiber moisture content and pressing temperature had significant effects on binderless fiberboards’ properties. High fiber moisture content and pressing temperature are suggested to contribute to the self-bonding improvement among fibers with lignin-rich surface mainly by thermal softening enzymatic hydrolysis lignin. In this experiment, the optimized pressing temperature applied in binderless fiberboard production should be as high as 190°C in accordance with the EHL Tg value of 189.4°C, and the fiber moisture content should be limited to less than 20% with a higher board density of 950 kg/m3 to avoid the delamination of boards during hot pressing.

Every year, significant amounts of date palm rachises are accumulated in Tunisia. The rational valorisation of this renewable resource is therefore imperative, in order to fulfil the sustainability approach. In this context, this work aims to study the potential use of date palm rachises as a raw material for papermaking and to compare it with other sources of lignocellulosic fibres, such as wood, non-wood species, and agricultural wastes. For this purpose, soda-anthraquinone pulping of date palm rachis was performed giving rise to a yield of 45% (w/w). This value is similar to that obtained by pulping non-wood materials and is higher than that corresponding to the pulping of agricultural residues. The resulting pulps were subsequently refined using a PFI mill refiner at 0, 500, 1500, and 3000 revolutions, screened through a 0.15 mm mesh size sieve and used to produce conventional handsheets. Both pulps and papers were fully characterized in terms of morphological, chemical and physical properties, according to commonly used standards. The physical properties of the prepared handsheets were very similar to those displayed by other papers made of common lignocellulosic fibres. Furthermore, the pulps exhibited a good drainability together with excellent mechanical properties of the ensuing papers. For these reasons, date palm rachises could be considered as a potential source of fibres for papermaking applications.

Kinetic parameters of growth and laccase activity of five ATCC strains of Pleurotus ostreatus in submerged fermentation were evaluated. The best strain for laccase production and the time of maximum laccase activity were also determined. The greatest laccase activity (37490 U/L), laccase productivity (78 U/L h), specific growth rate (0.026/h), and specific rate of laccase production (119 U/gX h) were observed with the strain of P. ostreatus ATCC 32783. In general, the isoenzyme patterns were different in all the cases; however, all the strains showed two laccase bands in the same position in the gel. Not all strains responded in the same way to the addition of Cu in the culture medium. In general, the sensitivity to Cu could be used to select strains having high laccase activity for commercial exploitation.

The possibility of using treated oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) fibres as substrate for cellulase production by Aspergillus terreus was studied using shaking flask fermentation. The effect of different chemical pretreatments, i.e. formic acid, acetic acid, propylamine, phosphoric acid, and n-butylamine, on the suitability of OPEFB fibres as fermentation substrate was investigated. The findings revealed that pretreatment with these chemicals significantly (P<0.05) increased the cellulose and reduced the lignin contents prior to enzymatic hydrolysis. However, fermentation using OPEFB fibres pretreated with phosphoric acid gave the highest cellulase production, which was related to high cellulose content. Further improvement in cellulase production was obtained when the chemically pretreated OPEFB fibres were subsequently treated hydrothermally (autoclaved at 160oC for 10 min) and then biologically (using effective microorganisms). The final activity of the three main components of cellulase (FPase, CMCase, and β-glucosidase) obtained in fermentation by A. terreus using optimally treated OPEFB fibres was (0.77 U mL−1, 8.5 U mL-1, and 6.1 U mL-1), respectively. The production of all these three major components of cellulase using pretreated OPEFB fibres (i.e. chemical, hydrothermal, and biological) were about three times higher than those obtained from fermentation using untreated OPEFB fibres.

This study investigated dimensional stability properties of oriented strandboard (OSB) panels faced with fire retardant treated (FRT) veneers. The beech (Fagus orientalis Lipsky) veneers were treated with monoammonium phosphate (MAP), diammonium phosphate (DAP), lime water (LW), and a borax/boric acid (BX/BA) (1:1) mixture. Dimensional stability tests were performed according to ASTM D-1037. The results revealed that facing veneers impregnated with fire-retardant chemicals had significant effects on the linear expansion (LE) properties. The lowest LE value was obtained from the panels faced with MAP treated veneers, while the highest LE value was found in the panels faced with BX/BA treated veneers. The FRT treated veneer facing technique also affected the thickness swelling (TS) properties of the OSB panels. The panels faced with LW treated veneers had the highest TS, whereas the panels faced with MAP treated veneers had the lowest TS values.