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Understanding the energy and emission implications of new technologies in a kraft mill: Insights from a CADSIM Plus simulation model, TAPPI Journal June 2024
ABSTRACT: Kraft mills play a vital role in energy transition because they have significant potential to reduce their own energy utilization and produce energy/products to decarbonize other sectors. Through biomass combustion and potential biogenic carbon emissions capture, these mills can contribute to offsetting emissions from other sectors. This research investigates the departmental and cross-departmental implications of technology upgrades on energy, steam, emissions, water, and chemicals using a CADSIM Plus simulation model. The model provides a comprehensive analysis of mass and energy balances, offering valuable insights into the benefits and limitations of each technology. The model facilitates scenario analysis and comparisons of process configurations, enabling data-driven decision-making for sustainable and competitive operations. Six high-impact technologies, including additional evaporator effects, weak black liquor membrane concentration, belt displacement washer for brownstock washing, oxygen delignification, and improvements to the pulp machine shoe press and vacuum pumps, are evaluated. Individual technologies resulted in energy savings of 1.2% to 5.4%, biomass consumption reductions of 8.6% to 31.6%, and total emissions reductions of 1.6% to 5.9%. Strategic decision-making must consider existing mill limitations, future technology implementation, and potential production increases. Future research will explore product diversification, biorefineries, and pathways to achieve carbon-negative operations, aiming to reduce emissions and secure a competitive future for kraft mills.
Black liquor evaporators upgrade — How many effects?, TAPPI Journal April 2023
ABSTRACT: Black liquor evaporation is generally the most energy intensive unit operation in a pulp and paper manufacturing facility. The black liquor evaporators can represent a third or more of the total mill steam usage, followed by the paper machine and digester. When considering an evaporator rebuild or a new system, the key design question is how many effects to include in the system. The number of effects is the main design feature that deter-mines the economy of the system and the steam usage for a given evaporation capacity. A higher number of effects increases steam economy and reduces energy cost to a point, but additional effects also have higher initial capital cost and increased power costs. This research paper uses life-cycle cost analysis (LCCA) as a method to determine the optimum number of evaporator effects for a new evaporator system. The same basic principles and method can also apply to existing evaporator rebuild projects.
Editorial: Vipin Varma joins TJ Editorial Board as expert on environmental and sustainability topics, TAPPI Journal October 2022
ABSTRACT: TAPPI and the TAPPI JOURNAL (TJ) editorial staff would like to welcome a new member to the TJ Editorial Board, Vipin Varma, Ph.D., who is vice president, Manufacturing Programs, at the National Council of Air and Stream Improvement (NCASI), headquartered in Cary, NC, USA. NCASI develops technical information that is critical for forest products companies to meet and surpass their environmental and sustainability goals. Vipin will provide expertise on environmental, sustainability, air emissions, and water topics relevant to the pulp and paper industry. In his position on the TJ Editorial Board, he succeeds Paul Wiegand, NCASI’s vice president for Water and Chemical Management Programs, who served from 2007 to 2022.
Research on improving the basis weight measurement accuracy of tissue paper based on PSO-BP neural network, TAPPI Journal October 2022
ABSTRACT: The near-infrared (NIR) sensor can be used for measuring the basis weight and moisture of tissue paper, but the measurement accuracy is not ideal for this paper grade. The weight range of the tissue is 10~30 g/m2, indicating that it is a low gram weight paper. The temperature and humidity of the production environment significantly impact an NIR sensor. This paper focuses on improving the measurement accuracy of tissue paper basis weight. In order to reduce the influences of temperature and humidity, a mathematical model based on a particle swarm optimization back propagation (PSO-BP) neural network is proposed. In comparison with multiple linear regression measurement models, the basis weight measurement error with the PSO-BP model is within ± 0.5 g/m2. This model can effectively improve the measurement accuracy and has a good effect on overcoming the basis weight nonlinear effect caused by the changes in ambient temperature and humidity.
Effects of orders of addition in nanocellulose–cationic starch– colloidal silica systems for papermaking, TAPPI Journal October 2022
ABSTRACT: Two orders of addition were compared when preparing paper handsheets from recycled copy paper furnish in combination with nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC), cationic starch, colloidal silica, and cationic retention aid (cPAM; cationic polyacrylamide). Faster dewatering and higher fine-particle retention were obtained at equal optimized dosages of additives when the colloidal silica was added last, after addition of the cPAM. The same order of addition also provided a higher gain in the paper’s tensile strength. However, higher paper stiffness was achieved when the colloidal silica was instead added to the NFC, after its pretreatment with cationic starch. Results were consistent with the principle that papermaking additives added shortly before sheetforming tend to have the largest effects on drainage and retention. The results also demonstrated a sensitivity to the relative dosages of positively and negatively charged additives.
Journal articles
Magazine articles
Determining operating variables that impact internal fiber bonding using Wedge statistical analysis
ABSTRACT: In this study, Wedge statistical analysis tools were used to collect, collate, clean up, plot, and analyze several years of operational data from a commercial paper machine. The z-direction tensile (ZDT) and Scott Bond tests were chosen as representative of fiber bond strength. After analyzing thousands of operational parameters, the ones with the most significant impact upon ZDT involved starch application method, starch penetration, and the amount of starch applied. Scott bond was found to be significantly impacted by formation and refining. Final calendering of the paper web has also shown an impact on internal fiber bonding.
Journal articles
Magazine articles
A novel predictive method for filler coflocculation with cellulose microfibrils, TAPPI Journal November 2019
ABSTRACT: Different strategies aimed at reducing the negative impact of fillers on paper strength have been the objective of many studies during the past few decades. Some new strategies have even been patented or commercialized, yet a complete study on the behavior of the filler flocs and their effect on retention, drainage, and formation has not been found in literature. This type of research on fillers is often limited by difficulties in simulating high levels of shear at laboratory scale similar to those at mill scale. To address this challenge, a combination of techniques was used to compare preflocculation (i.e., filler is flocculated before addition to the pulp) with coflocculation strategies (i.e., filler is mixed with a binder and flocculated before addition to the pulp). The effect on filler and fiber flocs size was studied in a pilot flow loop using focal beam reflectance measurement (FBRM) and image analysis. Flocs obtained with cationic polyacrylamide (CPAM) and benonite were shown to have similar shear resistance with both strategies, whereas cationic starch (CS) was clearly more advantageous when coflocculation strategy was used. The effect of flocculation strategy on drainage rate, STFI formation, ash retention, and standard strength properties was measured. Coflocculation of filler with CPAM plus bentonite or CS showed promising results and produced sheets with high strength but had a negative impact on wire dewatering, opening a door for further optimization.
Journal articles
Effects of localized environment on eucalyptus clone chemica
Effects of localized environment on eucalyptus clone chemical composition, TAPPI JOURNAL September 2016
Conference papers
Current Steam Turbine Technology and its Applicability in th
Current Steam Turbine Technology and its Applicability in the Pulp and Paper Market, 2017PEERS
Conference papers
Plant and Boiler Energy Efficiency Evaluations, 2017PEERS
Plant and Boiler Energy Efficiency Evaluations, 2017PEERS