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Editorial: Special pulping and engineering issues of TAPPI Journal yield important recovery cycle research, TAPPI Journal June 2024
ABSTRACT: The June issue of TAPPI Journal, which is dominated by recovery cycle topics, is the last PEERS issue organized by Dr. Peter Hart, the fomer editor-in-chief who passed away this past May. Peter, who was heavily involved with TAPPI’s Pulp Manufacture Division and various pulping-related committees, also started working with conference technical program planning starting in 2005 with the Engineering, Pulping and Environmental (EPE) Conference, which was the precursor to the more recent Pulping, Engineering, Environmental, Recycling and Sustainability (PEERS) Conference. He was also involved with other conference planning, including that for the International Pulp Bleaching Conference. In addition, Peter was a yearly attendee of such conferences starting as far back as 1990.
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Considerations in managing wastewater odor at pulp and paper operations, TAPPI Journal March 2022
ABSTRACT: Many pulp and paper mills are, at least periodically, faced with the release of odors that can migrate offsite and be considered a nuisance by nearby residents. At chemical pulp mills, perceptible odors associated with reduced sulfur compounds (RSCs) are common, many of which are highly perceptible owing to their low odor thresholds. As releases of RSCs and other odorous substances from production processes are progressively controlled, the proportional contribution from wastewater treatment systems to areal odors can increase. This review paper summarizes important fundamentals of odor generation, source identification, and control. Common odorous substances are identified, and mechanisms for their generation are summarized. Approaches for measuring odorous substances are detailed to enable more effective management, and various odor control strategies are discussed.
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Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) — Fibrous substrates, TAPPI Journal September 2023
ABSTRACT: Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been implemented during the finishing process of textiles such as upholstery, clothing, personal protective equipment, and sports gear to provide water resistance. Currently, PFAS are still present at quantifiable levels in consumer products and food, even though many companies have started to phase out PFAS treatment with non-toxic water repellant replacements given the possible detrimental health effects suggested by current research. This paper is a detailed review that focuses on how PFAS are implemented in textile production and sources of PFAS contamination during chemical treatments. This review also addresses current legislation on PFAS emissions and trade regulations to decrease exposure of consumers due to toxicokinetics and mechanisms of action through-out the body that are still not well understood. This paper includes a literature review on possible PFAS related health conditions shown from past research and contains suggested toxicity levels, exposure routes, duration, and pathways detailed to the best of our ability.
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Continuous digester rapid thinning, TAPPI Journal June 2024
ABSTRACT: Carbon steel continuous digesters built after the early 1980s are fully stress relieved, so stress corrosion cracking has been less of a concern. However, these newer digesters were designed to run modified cooking processes that have turned out to be much more corrosive than those running with conventional cooking. This corrosion is mainly associated with softwood digesters and appears to be flow related. Average corrosion rates of 40 mil/year are possible on the exposed shell between the wash and extraction screens. The corrosion patterns are visually distinct from surfaces in the upper digester and below the wash screens. This paper goes into practical detail on where it occurs, the causes, visual identification, inspection planning and results evaluation, and finally, how to mitigate this damage, which consists of applying a corrosion resistant barrier. Some discussion on dealing with general corrosion throughout the digester is included.
Journal articles
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Modeling the dynamics of evaporator wash cycles, TAPPI Journal July 2024
ABSTRACT: Kraft pulping is a process that utilizes white liquor, composed of sodium sulfide (Na2S) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH), for wood delignification and pulp production. This process involves washing the dissolved organics and spent chemicals from the pulp, resulting in the generation of black liquor. Prior to its use as fuel in the recovery boiler, the black liquor is concentrated in multiple-effect evaporators. During the evaporation process, the inorganic salts present in the liquor become supersaturated and undergo crystallization. Fluctuations in sodium, carbonate, sulfate, and oxalate can give rise to severe sodium salt scaling events, which significantly impact the thermal efficiency of the evaporators, and ultimately, pulp production. Dynamic modeling provides insights into fluctuations in liquor chemistry in the evaporators. The primary objective of this study was to employ dynamic modeling to evaluate the effects of wash liquor recovery from evaporator wash cycles. The dynamics associated with wash cycles encompass variations in the concentrations of salts and solids in the recovered wash liquor, changes in the flow rate of wash liquor recovery, and fluctuations in liquor volume within the liquor tanks. The dynamic model was developed using Matlab Simulink and applied to the evaporation plant of a pulp mill in South America. By utilizing one month of mill process data, the model enabled the evaluation of fluctuations in liquor chemistry due to evaporator wash cycles. The developed model has demonstrated the potential to estimate the concentration of key ions responsible for scaling and to contribute to enhancements in evaporator washing strategies.
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Alternative “green” lime kiln fuels: Part II—Woody biomass, bio-oils, gasification, and hydrogen, TAPPI Journal May 2020
ABSTRACT: This paper is the second of a two-part series on “green” lime kiln fuels. The first part of this work reviews the use of pulp mill and recovery byproducts as either full or partial replacement of oil or natural gas in the kiln. The second part reviews the use of various forms of woody biomass, bio-oils, gasification and hydrogen as potential carbon neutral or carbon-free lime kiln fuels. Several of these options require specialized burners to supply the fuel to the kiln and high-quality metallurgy to withstand the acidic conditions of the fuel.
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Exergy and sensibility analysis of each individual effect in a kraft multiple effect evaporator, TAPPI Journal October 2019
ABSTRACT: The multiple effect evaporator (MEE) is an energy intensive step in the kraft pulping process. The exergetic analysis can be useful for locating irreversibilities in the process and pointing out which equipment is less efficient, and it could also be the object of optimization studies. In the present work, each evaporator of a real kraft system has been individually described using mass balance and thermodynamics principles (the first and the second laws). Real data from a kraft MEE were collected from a Brazilian plant and were used for the estimation of heat transfer coefficients in a nonlinear optimization problem, as well as for the validation of the model. An exergetic analysis was made for each effect individually, which resulted in effects 1A and 1B being the least efficient, and therefore having the greatest potential for improvement. A sensibility analysis was also performed, showing that steam temperature and liquor input flow rate are sensible parameters.
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Kinetics of sulfur dioxide-alcohol-water (SAW) pulping of su
Kinetics of sulfur dioxide-alcohol-water (SAW) pulping of sugarcane straw (SCS), TAPPI JOURNAL June 2017
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Effects of different soda loss measurement techniques on brownstock quality, TAPPI Journal July 2024
ABSTRACT: The efficiency of the kraft recovery plant, bleaching process, and paper machine are affected when black liquor carryover from the brownstock washers is not controlled well. Measuring soda loss within a mill can vary from using conductivity, either in-situ or with a lab sample of black liquor filtrate squeezed from the last stage washer, to measuring absolute sodium content with a lab sodium specific ion probe or spectrophotometer. While measuring conductivity has value in tracking trends in black liquor losses, it is not an acceptable method in reporting losses in absolute units, typically in lb/ton of pulp. This is further complicated when trying to benchmark soda loss performance across a fleet of mills with multiple washer lines. Not only do the testing methods vary, but the amount of bound soda on high kappa pulps can be significant. This variability creates inconsistent results, and studies are needed to understand the effect of different testing methods on the pulp quality. In this study, soda loss is expressed as sodium sulfate (Na2SO4). Four different methods to measure soda content in pulp off commercial brownstock washers were studied: full digestion (FD), washing soaking overnight and washing (WSW), soaking in boiling water and stirring 10-min (SW-10), and squeeze-no wash (Sq). Total, washable, and bound sodium sulfate calculations were determined for each soda content measuring technique using inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). Results showed bound and washable sodium sulfate amounts significantly depend on which soda measurement technique was used. In addition, the soda results were correlated with the pulp kappa numbers. As the kappa number increases, bound soda increases, regardless of the soda measurement method used. Impacts of high sodium sulfate in brownstock are also discussed.
Journal articles
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Utilization of kraft pulp mill residuals, TAPPI Journal February 2022
ABSTRACT: Kraft pulp mills produce on average about 100 kg of solid residuals per metric ton of pulp produced. The main types of mill waste are sludge from wastewater treatment plants, ash from hog fuel boilers, dregs, grits, and lime mud from causticizing plants and lime dust from lime kilns. Of these, about half is disposed of in landfills, which highlights the need and potential for waste recycling and utilization. Sludge is either incinerated in hog fuel boilers to generate steam and power or used in various forms of land application, including land spreading, composting, or as an additive for landfill or mine waste covers. The majority of hog fuel boiler ash and causticizing plant residues is landfilled. Alkaline residuals can be conditioned for use in land application, manufacture of construction materials, and production of aggregates for road work. This technical review summarizes residuals utilization methods that have been applied in pulp and paper mills at demonstration- or full-scale, and therefore may act as a guide for mill managers and operators whose goal is to diminish the costs and the environmental impact of waste management.