| 1. |
- Björkqvist, T., et al.
(författare)
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Towards optimal defibration : Energy reduction by fatiguing pre-treatment
- 2012
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Ingår i: Nordic Pulp & Paper Research Journal. - 0283-2631 .- 2000-0669. ; 27:2, s. 168-172
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A motive for fatiguing wood prior to defibration would be to reduce the energy consumption needed in mechanical pulping processes. Therefore, the effects of fatiguing pre-treatment were here studied on wood samples, on defibration and also on produced paper. The results indicate that pre-fatiguing changes the mechanic response of wood to be more favorable for harsh defibration which in turn is positive for the process efficiency.
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| 2. |
- Berg, Jan-Erik, et al.
(författare)
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Low-consistency refining of mechanical pulp in the light of forces on fibres
- 2015
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Ingår i: Nordic Pulp & Paper Research Journal. - 0283-2631 .- 2000-0669. ; 30:2, s. 225-229
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of this investigation was to find new approaches to evaluate the performance of low-consistency refiners. Data from a paper mill producing TMP from Norway spruce was used in order to find a possible way to calculate the power split between the zones in a TwinFlo refiner. An assumption of equal amount of fibres captured between overlapping bars was found successful in order to develop equations for the power split. The equations predicted equal power in both zones at equal disc gaps. The power was found to increase approximately linearly with decreasing disc gap over the range, 0.1-0.2 mm. The power split was essential to know for calculating refining intensities expressed as specific edge load and forces on fibres in the two zones. The reduction in fibre length was about 5% at 0.17 mm disc gap or at 0.03 N forces on fibres or at 0.7 J/m specific edge load. Disc gap, forces on fibres and specific edge load was found to predict fibre shortening approximately equally upon changes in power and flow rate through the refiner.
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| 3. |
- Engberg, Birgitta A., Docent, 1975-, et al.
(författare)
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Abrasive refining of spruce TMP and CTMP fibers
- 2022
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Ingår i: Proceedings of the International Mechanical Pulping Conference. ; , s. 57-62
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Most of the earlier proposed ways to reduce energy con-sumption in high consistency refining requires operating at a small disc gap. However, a small gap is often associated with a severe fiber length reduction and often lead to unsta-ble refining and a small operational window. To address these issues, the idea of utilizing abrasive segments surfaces is here revisited. Abrasive refiner segments, consisting of abrasive surfaces in combinations with traditional bars and grooves or flat abrasive surfaces without any bars or grooves, were evaluated in both pilot and mill scale. From the trials it could be concluded, that particularly stable refin-ing was achieved with less power variations compared to when using standard segments, even when refining at very small disc gaps. The lw-mean fiber length of the pulps was not reduced or only slightly reduced, even when refining at very small disc gaps. Tensile index could be increased more efficiently or equally efficient as when using standard seg-ments. Improved energy efficiency could be achieved when combining the abrasive surface with high intensity treat-ment.
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| 4. |
- Engberg, Birgitta A., Docent, 1975-, et al.
(författare)
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New Sustainable Method to Produce Pulp Fibres ‐ Deep Eutectic Solvent‐Assisted Mechanical Pulping
- 2021
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Ingår i: Accelerating the progress towards the 2030 SDGs in times of crisis. - Östersund : Mittuniversitetet. - 9789189341173 ; , s. 2131-
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Mechanical pulps are widely used in the manufacture of printing paper grades and also to a lesser extent in packaging materials and hygiene products. An advantage of mechanical pulps in general is the high yield (95‐97%) of the production processes, which implies a resource efficient way of producing fibre‐based products. A major drawback when producing mechanical pulps for printing qualities is the high electric energy consumption needed. However, the mechanical action associated with the liberation of fibres from the wood matrix can be facilitated if the middle lamella lignin is softened, leading to lower energy input and less fibre damages. The lignin can be softened by chemicals and high process temperatures, like in the chemi‐thermomechanical process (CTMP) and the high‐temperature‐chemi‐thermomechanical process (HT‐CTMP), where sodium sulphite is utilized. The pulps from these processes are best suited for packaging materials and tissue products. In this study, an alternate chemical treatment using deep eutectic solvents (DES) was explored. The DES used was bio‐based, non‐toxic, non‐corrosive, and could be recycled. The main goal was to facilitate the refining process and possibly create a new quality of mechanical pulp, not to remove lignin or hemicellulose. Wood chips were pre‐steamed and then soaked in DES, to ensure a sufficient impregnation. The conditions of the DES treatment were much less severe than those of a chemical pulping process, i.e. low temperature, neutral or nearly‐neutral pH, and a short residence time. The excess DES was removed by washing the chips with water before the chips where fed into a refiner. According to fibre quality analyses, the DES‐treated fibres were longer and less damaged than the control. The DES‐treated fibres also demonstrated significantly higher dewatering capacity than fibres without DES‐treatment produced at the same specific energy input in the refiner. These facts indicate that the fractures during fibre liberation to a higher extent occurred in the middle lamella, similar to when producing CTMP. A maintained high yield of the DES‐treated pulp was confirmed by chemical analysis. In conclusion, this initial study show that DES‐assisted mechanical pulping appears to be an interesting alternative for producing a mechanical pulp with different fibre properties. An aim for future work would be to tailor the DES‐treatment to alter fibre properties in a more controlled manner preferably so that market shares could be taken from the today dominating low‐yield (<50%) processes.
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| 5. |
- Engstrand, Per O., 1955-, et al.
(författare)
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Filling the Gap - Final Report
- 2014
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Executive SummaryAs energy prices continue to rise long-term it is very important to come up with suggestions toefficiency-improving solutions based on modifications of the existing refining technology withoutlarge investments. There are several suggestions to relatively large modifications of processsolutions, in design of refiner plate patterns, chip pre-treatment and chip feed strategies to existingrefiners, but these suggestions are often expensive and difficult to implement as the knowledge ofthe mechanisms prevalent in the refiner gap is still insufficient.To help solving this problem FSCN and CIT initiated the research project “Filling the Gap” togetherwith the companies Dametric, Holmen, Metso Paper, Norske Skog, Pöyry, SCA and Stora Enso cofinancedby the Swedish authorities Vinnova and the Swedish Energy Agency. The research projectwas designed with the intension to show how to improve the electric energy efficiency of chiprefining by means of utilizing fundamental knowledge of wood material properties relevant for chiprefining in relation to refining hypotheses and in combination with output variables from new andimproved refining zone measurement methods as; exact gap distance, temperature-, force- and fibrematerial radial distributions combined with the traditional out/in-put variables normally used. Thepotential of the above mentioned ideas as well as the specific goal of this project was to show how toreach 25% efficiency improvement in existing refiners and at the same time reduce refiner causedstops by >50% and plate wear also by >50%.The data produced within the project was utilized in two ways:1. To optimize refining conditions in a static way, i.e. optimization of conditions to maximizeenergy efficiency to reach the functional fibre properties aimed for.2. To maximize process stability and minimize quality variations at the functional fibreproperties aimed for.The general conclusion from the project is that we can show that there are great opportunities toimprove electric energy efficiency in refining according to the goal by means of using the abovementioned measurement techniques. More specifically the full-scale trials performed during theperiod 2010 – beginning of 2013 showed the possibility to improve the electric energy efficiency by25% at similar functional properties of the pulp, i.e. a reduction in electricity consumption by 20%. Inorder to implement similar strategies in other TMP or CTMP lines it will just as in this case benecessary to use the same measurement system and evaluation techniques together with verythorough and statistically well controlled pulp/fibre evaluation techniques. It would of course beinteresting to implement the same techniques on as many other production lines as possible withinthe participating companies, but it must be emphasized that the procedure is very demanding. Eachproduction line needs to perform a corresponding detailed process analysis as the one performed inthe mill case study of this research project. Furthermore it would also be necessary to utilize therefiner gap measurement techniques, especially the combination of temperature profile and gapdistance measurements, in a modern but still simple process control system making it easier for theoperator to continuously run the process in a more energy efficient mode. Implementation of thetechniques evaluated in pilot scale within this research project, i.e. fibre distribution and force3distribution measurements, would of course have potential to further improve the process efficiencyas well as improve the fibre property level.
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| 6. |
- Fallahjoybari, Nima, et al.
(författare)
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CFD Simulation Of Pulp Flow In Rotating And Non-Rotating Grooves
- 2022
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Ingår i: Proceedings of the International Mechanical Pulping Conference. ; , s. 24-
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The present study deals with the numerical simulation of softwood pulp flow in the rotating and non-rotating grooves in an aim to investigate the fluid flow and forces acting on a representative surface mounted in the groove. The viscosity of softwood pulp in different consistencies is available from the experimental measurements reported in the literature providing the opportunity to examine the effects of fiber consistency on the velocity and pressure distribution within the groove. The simulations are carried out in OpenFOAM for different values of gap thickness and angular velocity from which the pressure coefficient and shear forces values are obtained. It is found that the pressure increases at the stagnation point located at the gap entrance in the non-rotating groove due to tangential motion of the upper wall which induces the helical motion of the pulp flow in the groove’s cavity. However, such an effect is not observed in the rotating cavity close to the groove inlet. Meanwhile, by moving further along the channel length toward the outlet the helical motion is enhanced and an increase in the pressure is observed at the stagnation point. The shear forces over the representative surface are found to be independent of representative surface’s location and it is in the same level in the rotating and non-rotating grooves. In addition to the numerical simulations, an analytical discussion is also presented to provide a deeper understanding of pressure coefficient and shear forces variations with different parameters in the rotating and non-rotating grooves.
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| 7. |
- Fallahjoybari, Nima, et al.
(författare)
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Large eddy simulation of turbulent pulp flow in a channel
- 2020
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Ingår i: Journal of Non-Newtonian Fluid Mechanics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0377-0257 .- 1873-2631. ; 285
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Large eddy simulation (LES) of turbulent flow of concentrated fiber suspension or pulp is carried out to investigate the flow and turbulence structures in a channel. The simulations are carried out for the turbulent flow of Eucalyptus pulp suspension using OpenFOAM for three fiber concentrations (c = 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5) and six different Reynolds numbers (6 <= Re-s <= 16,600). It is observed that the variation in flow regime is similar in the two lower fiber concentrations while the flow regime is highly affected by fiber concentration for c = 2.5. Visualizations of vortical structures for different Reynolds numbers and fiber concentrations are used to investigate different flow regimes. Variation of apparent viscosity with Reynolds number and fiber concentration is also presented to show its effect on the turbulent properties of fiber suspension flow. It is shown that the deviation of turbulent velocity profile from that of a Newtonian flow increases with an increase in Reynolds number and fiber concentration. Also, the extend of buffer layer increases at higher Re. Using the calculated turbulent velocity profile, the values of constant in logarithmic velocity profile is proposed for fiber suspension. Finally, a discussion is presented on the variation of turbulent intensities and Reynolds stress with Reynolds number and fiber concentration.
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| 8. |
- Ferritsius, Olof
(författare)
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Beyond averages – some aspects of how to describe a heterogeneous material, mechanical pulp, on particle level
- 2021
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- For a more profound understanding of how a process works, it is essential to have a relevant description of the material being processed. With this description, it will be easier to evaluate and control processes to produce more uniform products with the right properties. The focus of this thesis is on how to describe mechanical pulps in ways that reflect its character.Mechanical pulps are made from wood, a highly heterogeneous material. Common practice within the pulping industry and academy is to describe mechanical pulps and its wide variety of particles in terms of averages. The energy efficiency of the mechanical pulping process is usually calculated without taking into account the characteristics of the wood fed to the process. The main objective of the thesis is to explore ways to make more detailed descriptions of mechanical pulps. A second objective is to propose useful ways to visualise these descriptions.The studies were carried out in full-scale mill operations for TMP of publication grades and CTMP for board grades with Norwegian spruce as raw material. The particles in the pulps were analysed in an optical particle analyser for several properties such as length, curl, wall thickness, diameter,and external fibrillation for 10,000 to 60,000 particles per sample to cover their wide property variation. The data was analysed by factor analysis, a method to reduce the multidimensional data space, and also compared with data simulations.Several examples were identified where averages based on wide and skewed distributions may hide useful information and therefore result in misleading conclusions regarding the fibrous material and process performance. A method was developed to calculate the distribution of a common bonding factor, BIND (bonding indicator) for individual particles. This factor is calculated from external fibrillation, wall thickness and diameter measured in an optical particle analyser. Distributions of BIND is one way to characterize and visualise the heterogeneity of mechanical pulp. A characteristic BIND-distribution is set in the primary refiner stage, depending on both wood and process conditions and remains mostly intact through the process.It was demonstrated that both BIND-distributions and 4D maps of the measured property distributions could be used to assess the tails of the distributions (extreme values), energy efficiency, and fractionation efficiency in a new way. It was even possible to get a measure for energy efficiency for a primary stage refiner, since a method was developed where the wood raw material was evaluated in the same way as the pulp discharged from the refiner.It was demonstrated that the average length-length-weighted fibre length, commonly referred to as the average weight-weighted fibre length, is a relevant way to express the amount of long fibres, i.e. “length factor”. The commonly used average length-weighted fibre length may lead to erroneous conclusions. Through data simulations of curl and fibre length on particle level it was found that today’s analysers may underestimate the true length of the particles, especially if they are prone to be curled. As a result, theranking of pulps may be altered.It was concluded that although there is an ISO standard, or long-time used property, it does not necessarily imply that it is a relevant method. Misleading conclusions may be drawn based on current methods; here, modifications of these methods are suggested.The main contribution of this study is the finding that that a highly heterogeneous material such as mechanical pulps could be described in new ways through visualisation of data in 4D maps. These maps reveal casualconnections and more pertinent questions may be raised in thecommunication along the chain product-pulp-wood.Going beyond averages may reveal discrepancies in the process and material that were previously unknown, and lead to a more profound understanding. It seems that the mechanical pulping process can be even further simplified than previously expected. It has been concluded that to operate the process more efficiently, and for make products with just the right quality, the main focus should be on the raw material and the primary refiner stage from a heterogeneity point of view.
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| 9. |
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| 10. |
- Ferritsius, Olof, et al.
(författare)
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Heterogeneity of Thermomechanical and Chemi-thermomechanical Pulps described with distributions of an independent common bonding factor on particle level
- 2022
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Ingår i: BioResources. - : BioResources. - 1930-2126. ; 17:1, s. 763-784
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Particles in mechanical pulp show a wide variety but are commonly described using averages and/or collective properties. The authors suggest using distributions of a common bonding factor, BIND (Bonding INDicator), for each particle. The BIND-distribution is based on factor analysis of particle diameter, wall thickness, and external fibrillation of several mechanical pulps measured in an optical analyser. A characteristic BIND-distribution is set in the primary refiner, depending on both wood and process conditions, and remains almost intact along the process. Double-disc refiners gave flatter distributions and lower amounts of fibres with extreme values than single-disc refiners. More refining increased the differences between fibres with low and high BIND. Hence, it is more difficult to develop fibres with lower BIND. Examples are given of how BIND-distributions may be used to assess energy efficiency, fractionation efficiency, and influence of raw material. Mill scale operations were studied for printing-grade thermomechanical pulp (TMP), and board-grade chemi-thermomechanical pulp (CTMP), both from spruce.
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