Elemental chlorine-free bleaching halfa pulp

Abstract

Halfa, also known as Stipa tenacissima, is grown in North Africa and south Spain. Due to its short fiber length, paper of halfa remains bulk and takes the block letters well. In this study halfa was evaluated for bleached pulp production. Two cellulose pulps with different chemical compositions were pulped by conventional Kraft process: one from the original halfa material and the other from halfa pretreated by diluted acid. The pulp produced from halfa pretreated by diluted acid was bleached by elemental chlorine-free sequences, DEPD and DEDP. Yield, Kappa number, brightness and α-cellulose contents of bleached and unbleached pulps were evaluated. The results show that during the chemical pulping process, treated halfa was easily cooked than that original halfa. Treated halfa pulp also showed very good bleaching, showing brightness level of 94.8% ISO, yield 93.6% and α-cellulose content 96.8% with DEDP bleaching sequence compared to 83.2% ISO brightness level, 92.8% yield and 95.1% α-cellulose content for bleached pulp with DEPD bleaching sequence. On the other hand, the physicomechanical properties of pulp were not notably reduced by the bleaching process. Breaking length, tear and burst index of paper sheets were acceptable. Therefore, this halfa material could be a worthwhile choice for cellulosic fiber supply.