The role of absorbed hemicelluloses on final paper properties and printability

Abstract

Hemicelluloses isolated from eucalyptus wood were adsorbed onto both bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp and pine kraft pulp as part of a general strategy to investigate their role on final sheet mechanics and physical properties. The tensile indices increased upon hemicelluloses addition and respectively reached a maximum at 9 mg/g and 10 mg/g hemicelluloses adsorption for bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp and pine kraft pulp, whereas the tear index increased depending on the pulp type. The air permeability and surface roughness of the bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp slightly decreased, however, brightness and opacity did not changed. SEM analysis shows that hemicelluloses adsorption increases bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp fibers interaction, whereas the effect of hemicelluloses addition on the beaten pine kraft pulp is unclear. The hemicelluloses adsorption also affected printability. It was found that print through for the bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp hand sheet slightly decreased, but for the bleached pine kraft pulp hand sheet it was unaffected. Print densities were not influenced.