Dissolving pulp from jute stick.

Area of Science:

• Biorefinery
• Pulp and Paper Technology
• Sustainable Chemistry

Background:

• Jute stick, a lignocellulosic byproduct of jute fiber extraction, is currently underutilized, primarily used for rural fencing.
• Valorization of agricultural residues like jute stick is crucial for sustainable resource management and the circular economy.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the feasibility of producing dissolving pulp from jute stick using a biorefinery approach.
• To optimize the pre-hydrolysis kraft pulping process for maximizing pulp yield and quality.

Main Methods:

• Pre-hydrolysis of jute stick at 170°C for 1 hour to remove hemicelluloses.
• Kraft pulping of pre-hydrolyzed material with variations in active alkali concentration.
• Multi-stage bleaching (D0EpD1EpD1) to achieve high pulp brightness and purity.

Main Results:

• Pre-hydrolysis effectively dissolved 70% of hemicelluloses with minimal alpha-cellulose loss, maintaining sugars in oligomeric form.
• Optimized kraft pulping (16% active alkali, 2h, 170°C) yielded 36.2% pulp with a kappa number of 18.5.
• The final bleached pulp achieved 92% alpha-cellulose content and 89% brightness.

Conclusions:

• The pre-hydrolysis kraft process is a viable method for converting jute stick into high-quality dissolving pulp.
• The produced dissolving pulp meets the specifications required for rayon manufacturing.
• This study demonstrates a sustainable pathway for valorizing jute stick waste into valuable biomaterials.