Nonwood Fibers Offer New Opportunities for Papermaking
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Nonwood fibers have been used in papermaking for thousands of years yet many people think paper is only made from trees. With growing concerns about the environment and sustainability, the pulp and paper industry has refocused its attention on nonwood fibers. This once-niche market offers new opportunities for mills as the demand for nonwood fiber products increases. Identifying new suitable raw materials for papermaking pulp production will be crucial for this niche to continue its rise in the marketplace.
The Canadian Prairies grow a large amount of cereal crops, including seed flax. As the bast fiber in the flax straw makes it impossible to incorporate the straw back into the soil, a study was performed to determine if it could be used for papermaking. Robert (Bob) Hurter of HurterConsult Inc. will present results of the study at TAPPI’s Pulping, Engineering, Environmental, Recycling and Sustainability (PEERS) Conference, October 27-30, 2019 in St. Louis, MO. His presentation, “Pulping and TCF Bleaching of Canadian Seed Flax Straw,” is part of the Nonwood track.
PEERS 2019 is considered the premier technical event focusing on the latest advances in technology, as well as fundamental process knowledge and control issues mills face each day. Its comprehensive technical program includes topic-specific tracks emphasizing new methods and best practices to help mills optimize operations and reach their sustainability goals.
PEERS is co-located with TAPPI’s International Bioenergy & Bioproducts Conference (IBBC) which addresses the latest technologies and processes using renewable materials from biomass to produce chemicals, fuels, and other value-added products.
The Nonwood track is considered a crossover track between both conference programs and offers attendees the opportunity to learn about new developments in the production of nonwood pulp, process optimization, and operational issues and solutions. Attendees will also gain insight into how to bring nonwoods to market.
In addition to a nonwood panel discussion, attendees will hear presentations on:
- Review of the Economics, Technologies and Products in the Nonwood Sector
- Pulping and TCF Bleaching of Canadian Seed Flax Straw
- Columbia Pulp’s State-of-the-Art Wheat Straw Pulp Mill
PEERS and IBBC are also co-located with TAPPI’s 12th Research Forum on Recycling. Attendees can attend all three conferences for the price of one. Mills receive a special mill discount.
Learn more at tappipeers.org and tappi-ibbc.org.
