| 1. |
- Abdel Hady, Ahmed Wagih Abdallah, 1990, et al.
(författare)
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In situ microstructural evolution of spruce wood during soda pulping using synchrotron X-ray tomography
- 2022
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Ingår i: Holzforschung. - : Walter de Gruyter GmbH. - 1437-434X .- 0018-3830. ; 76:7, s. 611-621
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A new laboratory reactor to perform in situ studies of structural changes in wood during soda pulping using synchrotron X-ray tomography is presented. The reactor is of recirculation type to provide stable reaction conditions and mimic the industrial situation. Experiments have been performed using this reactor in situ at a synchrotron microtomography beamline to provide sequences of 3D images from which measurement of wood cell wall thickness have been possible for the first time. The results showed that the cell wall thickness increased significantly in the early stage of pulping (<10 min), which is due to the transportation of cooking chemicals through the tracheids, resin channels and pits into the cell wall, which is swollen with the increased pH. Subsequently, the cell wall thickness reduces over the processing time up to 60 min with a high rate, which is inferred to be due to the dissolution and transport of lignin and hemicellulose from the secondary walls, allowing for better transportation of active chemicals deep through the cell wall layers. After 60 min processing, the cell wall thickness reduction rate reduced, as dissolution of lignin and hemicelluloses from the cell walls ceased, while the remaining dissolution occurs mainly at the middle lamella.
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| 2. |
- Abdel Hady, Ahmed Wagih Abdallah, 1990, et al.
(författare)
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Micro/nano-structural evolution in spruce wood during soda pulping
- 2021
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Ingår i: Holzforschung. - : Walter de Gruyter GmbH. - 1437-434X .- 0018-3830. ; 75:8, s. 754-764
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Alkaline delignification of wood tissue is the core of the global pulping technology and the most prominent large-scale separation of the main wood components. This work aims at improved understanding of the interplay between the topochemistry of alkaline pulping and the associated morphological changes. Morphology and chemical structure of partially soda-delignified wood chips were studied combining X-ray tomography (XRT), X-ray diffraction analysis and compositional characterization (lignin and carbohydrate content). The XRT studies of wet samples (providing 3D structural information without interfering drying effects), allowed observation of the cell wall separation as an increasing amount of lignin was removed with the increasing pulping time. Comparison between the microstructure of the surface and the central parts of the treated chips showed a more delignified microstructure at the surface, which highlights the dependence of the delignification process on the mass transport (hydroxide ions and lignin fragments) through the wood tissue. The crystallite size of cellulose increased in the <200> crystal planes during the early stage of pulping while there was little effect on the <110> plane.
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| 3. |
- Ahlbom, Anders, 1993, et al.
(författare)
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On the hydrothermal depolymerisation of kraft lignin using glycerol as a capping agent
- 2023
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Ingår i: Holzforschung. - : Walter de Gruyter GmbH. - 1437-434X .- 0018-3830. ; 77:3, s. 159-169
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Depolymerisation of kraft lignin under hydrothermal conditions was investigated at short residence times (1–12 min) with glycerol being used as a capping agent. The weight average molecular weight (M w) of the products decreased within the first minute of residence time, with the inter-unit ether linkages breaking accordingly. Furthermore, the M w of the product fractions decreased at increasing residence times, while the char yield increased. Short residence times thus appear to be beneficial for mitigating the formation of char. Also, addition of NaOH reduced the yield of char. Although the addition of glycerol caused a decrease in the M w of the products, it seemed to increase the yield of char and therefore might not be a suitable capping agent for kraft lignin depolymerisation.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Ahlbom, Anders, 1993, et al.
(författare)
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Towards understanding kraft lignin depolymerisation under hydrothermal conditions
- 2021
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Ingår i: Holzforschung. - : Walter de Gruyter GmbH. - 1437-434X .- 0018-3830. ; 76:1, s. 37-48
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Kraft lignin depolymerisation using hydrothermal liquefaction suffers from the formation of char, resulting in a decreased product yield as well as causing operational problems. While this may be mitigated by the addition of capping agents such as phenol and isopropanol, other reaction parameters, for example reaction time and temperature, are also important for the product yields. In this work, the effect of short reaction times on the hydrothermal liquefaction of kraft lignin in an alkaline water and isopropanol mixture was investigated at 1-12 min and 290 °C. The results show that there were swift initial reactions: the major ether bonds in the lignin were broken within the first minute of reaction, and the molecular weight of all product fractions was halved at the very least. Longer reaction times, however, do not cause as pronounced structural changes as the initial reaction, indicating that a recalcitrant carbon-carbon skeleton remained in the products. Nevertheless, the yields of both char and monomers increased slowly with increasing reaction time. The swift initial depolymerising reactions were therefore followed by slower repolymerisation as well as a slow formation of monomers and dimers, which calls for careful tuning of the reaction time.
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| 6. |
- Ahlbom, Anders, 1993, et al.
(författare)
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Using guaiacol as a capping agent in the hydrothermal depolymerisation of kraft lignin
- 2023
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Ingår i: Nordic Pulp and Paper Research Journal. - 2000-0669 .- 0283-2631. ; 38:4, s. 619-631
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The depolymerisation of softwood kraft lignin was investigated, under hydrothermal conditions at 290 °C and 250 bar, with guaiacol in the reactor feed to evaluate its impact on the formation of char and on the molecular weights of the products. The effect of residence time was investigated in the time span 1-12 min. Lignin is depolymerised during the process and guaiacol is both formed and consumed during the reaction, with clearly noticeable changes as early as in the first minute of reaction. Although the addition of guaiacol in the reactor feed causes a reduction in the weight average molecular weight of the products, the yield of char increases. Longer residence times result in repolymerisation of the reaction products as well as a further increase in the yield of monoaromatic components and char.
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| 7. |
- Ahlbom, Anders, 1993, et al.
(författare)
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Using Isopropanol as a Capping Agent in the Hydrothermal Liquefaction of Kraft Lignin in Near-Critical Water
- 2021
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Ingår i: Energies. - : MDPI AG. - 1996-1073 .- 1996-1073. ; 14:4
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this study, Kraft lignin was depolymerised by hydrothermal liquefaction in near-critical water (290-335 degrees C, 250 bar) using Na2CO3 as an alkaline catalyst. Isopropanol was used as a co-solvent with the objective of investigating its capping effect and capability of reducing char formation. The resulting product, which was a mixture of an aqueous liquid, containing water-soluble organic compounds, and char, had a lower sulphur content than the Kraft lignin. Two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance studies of the organic precipitates of the aqueous phase and the char indicated that the major lignin bonds were broken. The high molar masses of the char and the water-soluble organics, nevertheless, indicate extensive repolymerisation of the organic constituents once they have been depolymerised from the lignin. With increasing temperature, the yield of char increased, although its molar mass decreased. The addition of isopropanol increased the yield of the water-soluble organic products and decreased the yield of the char as well as the molar masses of the products, which is indicative of a capping effect.
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| 8. |
- Arandia, Kenneth Gacutno, 1990, et al.
(författare)
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Fouling characteristics of microcrystalline cellulose during cross-flow microfiltration: Insights from fluid dynamic gauging and molecular dynamics simulations
- 2023
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Ingår i: Journal of Membrane Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 1873-3123 .- 0376-7388. ; 669
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The fouling behaviour of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) particles on polyethersulfone (PES) membranes was investigated using fluid dynamic gauging (FDG) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Experimental cross-flow microfiltration (MF) of a dilute MCC suspension at 400 mbar transmembrane pressure using 0.45 μm PES membranes revealed an estimated fouling layer thickness of 616 ± 5 μm for both fouled and re-fouled membranes at an applied shear stress of 37 ± 2 Pa. A decline in pure water flux was observed after each membrane cleaning and flushing procedure, indicating that highly resilient layers were formed close to the membrane surface. A possible explanation for the formation of resilient cellulose layers was obtained through MD simulations of the free energy profiles, which predicted deep energy minima at close interparticle separations of the cellulose–cellulose and cellulose–PES systems. The consequence of this energy minima is that attractive and repulsive forces are in balance at a specific distance between the particles, suggesting high binding energy at close interparticle distances. This implies that a certain force is needed to remove the layer or redisperse the cellulose particles. MD simulations also suggested that contributions made by repulsive hydration forces negatively influenced the adsorption of cellulose particles onto the PES membrane. These results highlight how experimental FDG measurements, when complemented with MD simulations, can provide insights into the fouling behaviour of an organic model material during cross-flow filtration.
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| 9. |
- Arandia, Kenneth Gacutno, 1990, et al.
(författare)
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Monitoring Membrane Fouling Using Fluid Dynamic Gauging: Influence of Feed Characteristics and Operating Conditions
- 2023
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Ingår i: Membranes. - 2077-0375. ; 13:10
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recent studies on membrane fouling have made considerable progress in reducing its adverse effects. However, a lack of comprehensive studies focusing on the underlying fouling mechanisms remains. This work aims to address a part of this gap by investigating the influence of feed suspension chemistry and operating conditions on the fouling characteristics of microcrystalline cellulose. Fluid dynamic gauging (FDG) was employed to monitor the properties of fouling layers under varied conditions. FDG results revealed that the cohesive strength of fouling layers increased in the direction towards the membrane, which can be associated with the higher compressive pressures exerted on foulants deposited near the surface. At lower pHs and higher ionic strengths, reduced electrostatic repulsions between particles likely resulted in particle agglomeration, leading to the formation of thicker cakes. In addition, thicker cake layers were also observed at higher feed concentrations, higher operating transmembrane pressures, and longer filtration times. The cross-flow velocity influenced the resilience of fouling layers significantly, resulting in thinner yet stronger cake layers in the transition and turbulent flow regimes. These findings regarding the influence of feed characteristics and operating conditions on the fouling behavior can be beneficial in developing effective antifouling strategies in membrane separation processes.
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| 10. |
- Belkheiri, Tallal, 1985, et al.
(författare)
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Effect of pH on Kraft Lignin Depolymerisation in Subcritical Water
- 2016
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Ingår i: Energy & Fuels. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1520-5029 .- 0887-0624. ; 30:6, s. 4916-4924
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Softwood kraft lignin was depolymerized using subcritical water (623 K and 25 MPa) in a continuous small pilot unit. ZrO2 and K2CO3 were used as catalysts, and phenol was used as capping agent to suppress repolymerization. The effect of pH was investigated by adding KOH in five steps to the feed. The yield of water-soluble organics increased with pH. The yield of bio-oil was also influenced by the pH and varied between 28 and 32 wt %. The char yield on the zirconia catalyst showed a minimum at pH 8.1. The yield of suspended solids was low at pH below 8.1 but increased at higher pH values. The oxygen content in the bio-oil was only 15 wt %, compared to about 26 wt % in the kraft lignin.
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