The history of paper making goes back to over 2000 years while first official
report on the manufacture of paper was reported in China in 105 AD.
The knowledge of paper manufacturing spread westward, along with the silk
and trade routes, reaching India is round 605 AD.
Pulp and paper production has increased globally and will continue to increase
in the near future and is one of the largest manufacturing sectors in the world.
Pulp and paper industry is one of the oldest industries in India.
With a 20 mills and installed capacity of one lakhs tonnes per annum at the
time of independence the paper industry have made continuous strides and
now there are about 380 mills with a production of 4.0 million tonnes
Raw Material:
Paper industry consumes a wide variety of raw materials – cellulosic
derived from forest, agricultural residues and waste paper; non-
cellulosic coal, chlorine, lime, sodium hydroxide, sodium sulphide,
fuel oil, talcum powder etc.
Major raw materials used by paper industry is bamboo, wood,
bagasse, waste paper and agricultural residue like wheat straw, rice
straw, jute sticks, hemp, kenaf, grasses, sea weed etc.
Apart from this, paper industry consumes large amount of chemicals
like caustic soda, sodium sulphide, sodium carbonate, chlorine,
hypochlorite, mineral acid; coal, talcum powder etc
In principle, paper is made by:
1) pulping, to separate and clean the fibers;
2) beating and refining the fibers;
3) diluting. to form a thin fiber slurry, suspended in solution;
4) forming a web of fibers on a thin screen;
5) pressing the web to increase the density of the material;
6) drying to remove the remaining moisture; and
7) finishing, to provide a suitable surface for the intended
end use.
Pulp and paper are made from cellulosic fibers (i.e., fibers from
trees) and other plant materials, although some synthetic
materials may be used to impart special qualities to the finished
product.
Most paper is made from wood fibers, but rags, flax, cotton
linters, and bagasse (sugar cane residues) are also used in some
papers.
Used paper is also recycled, and after purifying and sometimes
deinking, it is often blended with virgin fibers and reformed again
into paper.
Other products made from wood pulp (cellulose) include diapers,
rayon, cellulose acetate, and cellulose esters, which are used for
cloth, packaging films, and explosives.
Wood is composed of: 1) cellulose, 2) lignin, 3) hemicellulose, and 4)
extractives (e.g., resins, fats, pectins, etc.).
Cellulose, the fibers of primary interest in papermaking, comprises about 50
percent of wood by ovendry weight.
Lignin, which cements the wood fibers together, is a complex organic chemical
the structure and properties of which are not fully understood, It is largely
burned for the generation of energy used in pulp and paper mills.
The pulping process is aimed at removing as much lignin as possible without
sacrificing fiber strength, thereby freeing the fibers and removing impurities
that cause discoloration and possible future disintegration of the paper.
Hemicellulose is similar to cellulose in composition and function. It plays an
important role in fiber-to-fiber bonding in papermaking. Several extractives
(e.g., oleoresins and waxes) are contained in wood but do not contribute to its
strength properties; these too are removed during the pulping process.
The fiber from nearly any plant or tree can be used for paper. However, the strength and
quality of fiber, and other factors that can complicate the pulping process, varies among
tree species.
In general, the softwoods (e.g., pines, firs, and spruces) yield long and strong fibers that
impart strength to paper and are used for boxes and packaging.
Hardwoods, on the other hand, generally have shorter fibers and therefore produce a
weaker paper, but one that is smoother, more opaque, and better suited for printing.
Both softwoods and hardwoods are used for papermaking and are sometimes mixed to
provide both strength and printability to the finished product.
THE PULP AND PAPER MILL
Although there are several chemical and mechanical pulping methods used for
delignifying wood (table 2-l below), separating fibers, and removing discoloration,
all integrated pulp and paper mills involve the same general steps in the
manufacture of pulp and paper.
These steps include:
1 ) raw material preparation (e.g., debarking and chipping);
2) Mechanical and/or chemical separation of the wood fibers [i.e., grinding,
refining, or digestion (cooking)] to dissolve the lignin and extractives;
3) removal of coloring agents (primarily residual lignin) by bleaching; and
4) paper formation and manufacture.
A typical layout of a mill using the kraft chemical pulping process is shown in figure 2-1.
Mechanical, semichemical, and sulfite pulp mills differ in detail, particularly in wood
preparation, fiber separation, and bleaching, but many of the downstream refining,
bleaching, and papermaking processes are similar.
In addition to the primary steps in pulp and paper manufacture, each mill has extensive
facilities to produce and reclaim chemical agents used in the pulping process; collect,
process, and burn lignin and waste wood to produce energy; and remove and treat wastes
from process water for release into the environment.
The kraft process (also known as kraft pulping or sulfate process) is a process for conversion
of wood into wood pulp, which consists of almost pure cellulose fibers, the main component of
paper.
Steps in the Pulp and Papermaking Process
1) Raw Material Preparation: Wood received at a pulp mill may be in several
different forms, depending on the pulping process and the origin of the raw material. It
maybe received as bolts (short logs) of roundwood with the bark still attached, as chips
about the size of a half-dollar that may have been produced from sawmill or veneer
mill waste or pre-chipped from debarked roundwood elsewhere, or as waste sawdust in
the case of some pulping processes.
2) Fiber Separation: The fiber separation stage is the point at which the several pulping
technologies diverge. In kraft chemical pulping, the chips are fed into a large pressure
cooker (digester), into which is added the appropriate chemicals (white liquor). The chips
are then cooked (digested) with steam at specific temperatures long enough to separate
the fibers and partially dissolve the lignin and other extractives.
After digestion, the cooked pulp (brown stock) is discharged into a pressure vessel (blow
tank) where the steam and volatile materials are siphoned off.
The cooking liquor, that by this time has turned dark brown from the dissolved lignin (black
liquor), is returned to the chemical recovery cycle, In the chemical recovery plant, the
lignin in the black liquor is burned for the cogeneration of energy, and the chemicals are
recovered, purified, reconstituted, and returned to the digester as white liquor for reuse.
The brown stock containing the recovered fibers (having the consistency of cooked
oatmeal) is washed with water, screened to remove undigested wood, and cleaned to
remove other foreign matter.
It is then ready for bleaching and further processing. Fiber separation in mechanical
pulping is less dramatic. In the stone groundwood process, debarked logs are forced
against rotating stone grinding wheels that are constantly washed by a stream of
water. The ground pulp is then screened to remove course debris, thickened, and
stored for the papermaking process.
Chips are used to produce refiner pulp and thermomechanical pulp. In both processes
the chips are ground by passing them through rapidly rotating disk grinders.
Thermomechanical pulp is refined (ground) under pressure after the chips are
pretreated with steam (chemical thermomechanical pulp uses chemicals and steam for
pretreatment). After further refining in a second stage, the pulp is screened, cleaned,
and most of the process water is removed in preparation for papermaking.
3) Bleaching or Brightening: Since the raw pulp (brown stock) still contains an
appreciable amount of lignin and other discoloration, it must be bleached to produce
light colored or white papers preferred for many products.
Bleaching is normally done in several stages (multistage bleaching).
Through chlorination and oxidation the fibers are further “delignified” by solubilizing
additional lignin from the cellulose.
A number of bleaching agents may be used these include chlorine gas, chlorine
dioxide, sodium hypochlorite, hydrogen peroxide, and oxygen.
Bleaching of mechanical pulp is much different than that for chemical pulp.
Mechanical pulping leaves the lignin and the cellulose intact, whereas the purpose of
chemical pulping is to chemically separate the lignin from the cellulose fibers and
remove it from the pulp.
A major advantage of mechanical pulping is the high yields of pulp that can be
achieved from a given volume of wood. Therefore, bleaching or brightening of
mechanical pulps is designed to minimize the removal of the lignin that would reduce
fiber yields.
Chemicals used for bleaching mechanical pulps selectively destroy coloring impurities but
leave the lignin and cellulosic materials intact, These include sodium bisulfite, sodium or
zinc hydrosulfite (no longer used in the United States), calcium or sodium hypochlorite,
hydrogen or sodium peroxide, and the Sulfur Dioxide-Borol Process (a variation of the
sodium hydrosulfite method).
Papermaking
The bleached or unbleached pulp may be further beaten and refined to cut the fibers
and roughen the surface of the fibers (fibrillate) to improve formation and bonding of the
fibers as they enter the paper machine.
Before entering the paper machine, water is added to the pulp slurry to make a thin
mixture normally containing less than 1 percent fiber. The dilute slurry is then cleaned in
cyclone cleaners and screened in centrifugal screens before being fed into the ‘‘wet end”
of the paper-forming machine.
In the paper making process, the dilute stock passes through a headbox that
distributes the fiber slurry uniformly over the width of the paper sheet to be formed.
The “web” of fiber that will make the new paper sheet is formed on a continuously
moving bronze or polymer screen (Fourdrinier) or between two such wire screens.
Water drains from the slurry through the mesh of the screen, the wet paper web is
consolidated and the paper sheet gains some strength through fiber bonding.
The wet sheet of paper is continuously lifted from the screen (couched) and
transferred to a woven felt belt where additional water is squeezed from the paper
sheet by pressure rollers,
The remaining water is removed on steam-heated cylinders. When the paper is dry it
may be treated with stabilizing materials and surface finishes to improve durability
or printability.
Pulping Technologies
Mechanical Pulping Processes
There are six basic mechanical pulping processes:
1 ) stone groundwood,
2) refiner,
3) Thermomechanical pulping,
4) chemical mechanical,
5) defibrated or exploded pulping, and
6) recycled paper.
Mechanical pulping is generally used with softwoods because of
the added strength imparted by the long fiber length of softwood
species. Some hardwoods require chemical pretreatment
(chemical mechancial pulping) to produce a suitable groundwood
pulp. Fibers separated mechanically are substantially damaged
in the process and therefore make weaker paper or paperboard.
Mechanical pulps are used principally to manufacture newsprint, printing papers,
towelling, tissue, and coated specialty papers that do not require high-strength.
Secondary uses include wallpaper and paperboard. Small amounts of chemical pulp are
often mixed with groundwood pulp for additional strength.
Recycled pulp is used mainly for the manufacture of folding boxboard (gray board),
tissue, corrugated board, and newsprint. Paper products made from defibrated pulp
include hardboards, construction boards, and roofing papers.
Chemical Pulping
Chemical pulping involves treating wood chips with chemicals to remove the lignin and
hemicellulose, thus separating and cleaning the fibers.
Delignification gives the fibers greater flexibility, resulting in a substantially stronger
paper (because of greater contact between the fibers in the finished sheet) than can be
manufactured from high-lignin fibers produced by mechanical pulping.
Paper strength and durability is gained at the expense of fiber yield. Chemical processes
may yield only half the fiber that can be recovered by the use of mechanical pulping
techniques.
Two major chemical pulping processes are currently in commercial use:
1) kraft (sulfate) pulping, and 2) sulfite pulping.
The kraft process dominates the pulp and paper industry, accounting for 76%
of the pulp produced for paper and paperboard in 1984.
Paper produced from kraft pulp accounts for most of the bleached boxboard and
linerboard used by the packaging industry
Kraft Pulping—Kraft pulping involves treating wood chips and sawdust with a
sodium sulfide and sodium hydroxide solution.
The highly alkaline chemical and wood mixture is cooked with steam under
pressure (digested) for between 1 and 3 hours.
Digestion may be either a continuous process or treated in discontinuous
‘‘batches.’ Most of the lignin and some of the hemicellulose is dissolved, leaving
the remaining cellulose fibers separated. The cooking liquor containing the
dissolved lignin and other extractives (black liquor) is routed to a chemical
recovery plant where the lignin and organic wastes are burned to produce
energy needed in the pulping process
Valuable extractives (e.g., turpentine, tall oil, and resin) are separated for sale as
commodity chemicals. Process chemicals are recovered with only a relatively small loss in
volume, and after replenishment with sodium salts, they are returned to the digester for
reuse.
The brown pulp (brown stock) from the digester is washed, screened, and passed through a
battery of cleaners. If the pulp is to be bleached, it is “thickened” by removing excess water
and sent through a series of bleach operations. These can vary widely in the type of
chemicals used and their sequence. Bleached pulp is then ready for the paper
making process.
Both softwood and hardwoods can be pulped by the kraft process. Fiber recovery is largely
a function of the wood species used, the time and temperature of cooking, the degree of
bleaching, and the paper strength required.
Generally, kraft pulp recoveries from softwoods are approximately 47 % for unbleached
pulp and 44 % for bleached. Hardwood recoveries range from 50 to 52 % for unbleached
kraft pulp to 50% for bleached.
Sulfite Pulping—Lignin can be dissolved by sulfonation with an aqueous solution
of sulfur dioxide and calcium, sodium, magnesium, or ammonium bisulfite
cooked at high temperature and pressure in a digester. There are four basic
sulfite pulping processes currently in commercial use:
1) acid sulfite, 2) bisulfite, 3) neutral sulfite, and 4) alkaline sulfite.
The major differences between the sulfite processes are the levels of acidity
and alkalinity of the sulfite chemical solutions used to break down the wood and
remove the lignin.
Sulfite pulping processes are suitable only for species with low extractive
contents (i.e., those low in tannins, polyphenols, pigments, resins, fats, and
the like) because of the interference of these substances with the sulfite pulping
process.
Although calcium is the cheapest sulfite base available, it forms insoluble
compounds that cannot be reclaimed economically. Thus, calcium-based pulping
is seldom or rarely used. Because magnesium- and sodium based chemicals are
recoverable, and ammonium based chemicals are less expensive and can be
burned without harmful environmental effects, they are the most frequently
used.
Sodium-based sulfite pulping can consist of multistage cooking, successive stages of
which differ in acidity.
Because one stage optimizes chemical liquor penetration and the other the removal
of lignin, more lignin may be removed with less fiber degradation, so that fiber yields are
higher, fibers are stronger, and a wider range of wood species may be used.
Sulfite pulping dissolves some of the hemicellulose as well as the lignin.
Neutral sulfite pulping, using sodium and ammonium bases, recovers the largest
proportion of fiber (75 to 90%) of all the sulfite pulping methods.
Sulfite pulp is a light color and can sometimes be used without bleaching if high
brightness is not required.
Unbleached sulfite pulp is often blended with groundwood and other high-yield
mechanical pulps for strengthening newspaper stock. Sulfite pulp is easily bleached to
very bright pulps for writing and printing paper.
It is also used for the manufacture of dissolving pulps (through the further removal of
hemicellulose) for the production of viscose rayon, acetate fibers and films, plastic fillers,
and cellophane.
TYPES OF PAPER
Tree-free Paper
• Plants, such as hemp, kenaf and bamboo, that yield fiber faster
than trees.
• Agricultural waste such as sugar cane, straw from wheat and rice,
and byproducts
from coffee, banana and coconut plants.
RECYCLED PAPER
• Contains a percentage of fibers made from either post-consumer
waste (wastepaper) or pre-consumer waste (cleaner paper waste,
known as “broke”, from printers or the paper mill itself).
HANDMADE PAPER
• Small amounts of paper are still made by hand for prestigious applications such
as letterheads, limited-edition books, and artists’ paper, where completely random
orientation of fibers is important, particularly for watercolor paintings.
• The process is very slow and expensive, as each sheet has to be hand produced.
MOLD-MADE PAPER
• This is a high quality grade of paper usually made from cotton rag pulp on a
cylinder mold machine, rather than a Fourdrinier machine (paper making
machine).
Acid-free PAPER
• Acid-free is paper with a pH rating of 7 or higher rating of alkalinity. It has a
much longer life expectancy, and is used for books and other publications that are
intended to last in good condition. It is treated to neutralize the acids that occur
naturally in wood pulp. Where paper is not acid-free, it can yellow and deteriorate
over time.
BULKY MECHANICAL (NEWSPRINT)
• It is machine-finished paper, made mostly from groundwood pulp, or recycled
fiber used for printing newspapers and cheap landfills.
• It discolors, and becomes brittle when it is exposed to light, due to the impurities
contained in and around the fiber, that were not removed in the pulping process.
Mechanical Papers
• These contain a large proportion of mechanical wood pulp, but also some
chemical pulp to increase strength.
• Can be bleached
• Can be produced with a smooth surface by super calendering, machine finishing, or machine
glazing.
• Used for offset printing, also called WSOP (web sized offset printing).
• These papers are used for cheaper leaflets and magazines - halftones up to 120 lines ppi, or
more, can be printed satisfactorily.
Freesheet (woodfree)
• This paper is still made from wood pulp, but it is produced by the chemical, rather than the
mechanical process.
• To be described as woodfree, the chemical wood pulp content should be at least 90%.
• Strong sheets with good whiteness are produced for use as general printing and writing papers,
stationery, copying papers, and magazine papers.
• These grades will take color, but with not such good results as coated qualities.
• Includes: “bond” paper with fine formation (used for stationery), and “bank” that is a lighter
weight version of bond.
cartridge papers
• These are tough, hard, sized papers that were originally used in the production of
cartridges. The term has been extended to most rough-surfaced heavy papers, such
as papers used for drawing and painting.
BOARD
• Is used for covers to catalogues and paperback books, and for the production of
cartons.
• It may be coated or uncoated on one or two sides.
• Board weights normally start at 150lbs (150gsm grams per square meter).
• Paperback book covers are specified in point thickness ranging from 10 point
(200gsm) up to 15 or 17 point (300gsm) for larger and heavier books.
• Thicker board is used for packaging, children’s board books, or binding cased
books.
ANTIQUE
• This relates to bulky paper with a naturally rough finish (antique wove), similar to
that of an uncalendered handmade paper.
• Used in the production of books.
ANTIQUE LAID
• This has a different surface characteristic as it shows the laid lines and chain
marks of the roll within the surface.
• Not suitable for halftones or line work with large solid areas of color or fine
detail.
ENGLISH AND SMOOTH FINISHES
• Although uncoated, these are often used for publications that contain black-
and white halftones or color work.
• The smoothness of these finishes provides a receptive surface for the
reproduction of fine line illustrations and photographs.
COATED PAPERS
• Gloss art paper is coated on both sides with china clay or chalk and
calendered
to give a very high smoothness and gloss.
• It is used for the printing of halftones and color, and high-quality magazines
and promotional material.
• The base paper of cheaper coated papers can contain groundwood or recycled
fiber.
• Matt art or silk-finish coated paper, is produced in a similar way to art paper
by coating with china clay or chalk, but the calendering process is only used to
consolidate the surface rather than to produce a high gloss.
• The surface has a matt appearance but still gives excellent reproduction of
black and white haftones and four-color images without the glare effect from
gloss interfering with the ease of reading the text portions of the publication.
• Blade-coated cartridge paper is midway between being an uncoated and a
matt art paper.
• Has a lighter coating than art and matt art paper, but reproduces halftones well.
• Used for some magazine work and illustrated books.
Miscellaneous Grades
• Mills make a wide range of papers that have special sizes and uses, such as
index, bristol, tag, board and newsprint. Many are used in both the packaging
and printing industries. Several manufacturers produce specialty papers that
resist tearing and moisture. You’ve seen them as envelopes, labels, maps,
menus and textbook covers
• The paper industry refers to heavyweight, bulky stock as board. The material
is rigid, strong, hard and durable. Names such as index, bristol and tag are
common in addition to the general term “board.”
• Sometimes an additional name gives a clue to intended use. For example,
weatherproof bristol makes good lawn signs; plate bristol has a hard surface for
business cards; vellum bristol is soft with good bulk for directmail cards.
• Because there is no consensus about basic sizes for board stock, basis weights
vary greatly. Furthermore, some boards are described in caliper and others in
ply.
• Ply board, also called railroad board or posterboard, comes in
many colors and may be weatherized for outdoor use.
• Chipboard- Made from mill waste without concern for strength or
printability. This inexpensive material is used for light-duty boxes
and backings on notepads.
• Board Paper- This is very thick and used primarily for posters and
signs. It’s usually coated on one side and is available in traditional
sizes for advertising inside buses and trains.
• Bristols- These come in various finishes. Vellum bristol is used for
business-reply cards and self-mailers. Bulky and very porous, it runs
well on quick print presses.
• Index bristol is used for file and index cards as well as direct-mail pieces. Its
hard surface gives good ink holdout. Tag is a heavily calendered, dense, hard
paper for products such as labels, scoresheets and notecards.
• Newsprint- This comes from groundwood pulp and usually runs on open web
presses. It can be sheetfed, but runs slowly due to lack of body and impurities
that lead to frequent cleanings of plates and blankets. The impurities also make
this very inexpensive stock opaque but likely to yellow with age.
• Kraft- This is a cousin to newsprint made for wrappings and bags. It costs very
little, may be hard to find for commercial printing, prints slowly and comes only
in the familiar brown and manila.
• Dry Gum- This paper has glue on the back ready to activate with either
moisture or heat. Heat sensitive glues are used for labels in retail applications
such as meat packing.
• Pressure-Sensitive Papers- Often called stickyback, these are printed to make
the popular peel-off label. Almost any kind of paper is available with a self-
adhesive backing.
• Carbonless- These papers have chemical coatings that duplicate writing or
typing on an undersheet. The stock is used primarily for multipart business
forms. Sheets come in three types: CF (coated front), CB (coated back) and CFB
(coated front and back).
• Synthetic- These papers are petroleum products with smooth, durable
surfaces. They are very strong, as anyone knows who has tried to tear a
synthetic envelope. Synthetics make fine maps, covers for field guides, game
boards and other products that must withstand weather, water and hard use.
Synthetics cost about three times more than comparable premium-coated book
papers.
• Specialty papers include metallic paper coated with either mylar or powdered
metals, and synthetic paper, which is actually not paper at all, but plastic film.
These papers are expensive and may require special inks and printing
techniques.
