Stock Preparation

Description of Unit
Processes
ENCH4PM- Papermaking Technology
Kamini Govender
211506055
2015

Introduction

Stock preparation occurs at the beginning of the

papermaking process.

Figure 1: Process Flow Diagram of the Papermaking

Process

Introduction

Stock preparation is the interface between the pulp

mill/warehouse and the paper machine .

Pulp Mill

Raw stock

Stock Preparation

Paper
Machine

Finished stock

Objectives

Treat and modify the raw material stock

Finished stock meets the requirements of the paper machine

and paper quality demands.

Produce an uniform papermaking finished stock :

stable paper machine operation

high standard of paper quality

Unit Processes

Pulping -Pulp is dispersed into water to form slurry.

Refining (or Beating)- Fibres are subjected to mechanical action to

develop their optimal papermaking properties

Addition of Chemical Additives and Auxiliaries -A wide variety of

mineral and chemical substances added, to improve strength and
quality of paper or to assist the papermaking process.

Metering and Blending -The various fibrous and non-fibrous furnish

components are continuously combined and blended to form the
papermaking stock.

Process Flow Diagram

Figure 2: Process Flow Diagram of Stock

Preparation
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PULPING AND DILUTION

Recycled Pulp:

Comes from
newsprint.

recycled

waste

paper,

board

and

Type of pulp that completely or partially consists of

recycled fibres

fibres can have very different origins and therefore

also very different characteristics

Collected paper must first be sorted into different

categories.

Newsprint, tissue and paperboard are the products

primarily produced using recycled paper as raw
material.

also called deinked pulp (DIP). DIP is recycled paper

which has been processed by chemicals, thus
removing printing inks and other unwanted elements.
The process is called deinking.

Figure 3: Pulping and

Dilution
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PULPING AND DILUTION

Figure 4: Collected Recycled paper

PULPING AND DILUTION

Virgin Pulp :

is wood pulp from trees just cut down instead of being from a recycled source

Pulping of wood can be done in two ways: mechanically or chemically.

Mechanical pulp:

separates fibers from each other by mechanical energy applied to the

wood causing the gradual break of the bonds between the fibers and the
release of fiber bundles, single fibers, and fiber fragments.

the wood is processed into fibre form by grinding it against a fast

rotating stone or by chipping the wood into tiny pieces.
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PULPING AND DILUTION

Chemical Pulping :

the

wood

chips

are

cooked

in

chemical

solution

at

elevated

temperature and pressure to remove the lignin and leave behind the
fibres.

The fibres in the resulting pulp are very clean and undamaged
compared to mechanical pulping.

The yield of chemical pulping amounts to approximately 50%, lower

than mechanical pulping since some of the fibres are dissolve and
degraded in chemical pulping.

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PULPING AND DILUTION

Broke Pulp :

pulp that has been through the paper

machine (or part-way through)

for some reason was not finished and

shipped

typically consists of material released

from a break on the machine, trim from
normal operations .

normally, this paper is re-pulped and

returned to the process as broke.

Figure 5: Pulping and

Dilution
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PULPING AND DILUTION

Pulps

are

subjected

to

mechanical

action

that

disperses dry, compact fibres into a water slush,

slurry or suspension.

Extent of re-pulping

sufficient to enable the slurry to be pumped

Adequate to totally separate and disperse all

fibres

Pulping operation can be batch or continuous.

The different pulps going to the pulper have different

energy

requirements.

Broke

pulp

requires

energy in most cases compared to virgin pulps.

less

Figure 5: Pulping and

Dilution
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PULPING AND DILUTION

Common types of pulpers : Low and High Consistency Pulpers

Figure 6: Low Consistency

Pulper

Figure 7: High Consistency

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Pulper

PULPING AND DILUTION

Generally, energy requirements can be minimised by operating at the

highest practical consistency (up to 18%) and at temperatures above
50C (lower viscosity).

As consistency is increased , defibering is improved and energy

consumption is significantly reduced.

In some cases , the pulper is not able to produce sufficient defibration

(defibering, deflaking or disintegration). A deflaker is then used.

breaks the remaining flakes or fibre bundles into separate, wet,

flexible, and externally fibrillated fibres.
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REFINING (OR BEATING)

Refining

is

one

of

the

most

important

operations

when

preparing papermaking fibers .

The term beating is applied to the batch treatment of stock in a

Hollander beater or one of its modifications.

The

term

refining

is

used

when

the

pulps

are

passed

continuously through one or more refiners, whether in series or

in parallel.

The terms refining and beating are used interchangeably.

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REFINING (OR BEATING)

Refining develops different fiber properties in different ways for

specific grades of paper.

Aims to develop the bonding ability of the fibers without

reducing their individual strength by damaging them.

So the refining process is based on the properties required in

the final paper.

Different types of fiber react differently because of differences

in their properties.
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REFINING (OR BEATING)

The refining process must take into account

the type of fibers.

During beating and refining, fibers randomly

and

repeatedly

undergo

tensile,

compressive, shear and bending forces.

Effects of these forces:

removal of the primary wall, formation

of
fiber debris or fines

Penetration of water into the cell wall

Increased fiber flexibility

Increased strength of fiber-to-fiber bonds

Reduced pulp drainability

Figure 8: Effect of refining

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REFINING (OR BEATING)

Types of Refining equipment:

Beaters:

Beating includes fibre separation, cutting and fibrillation or

brushing effect.

However the action of the beater is primarily of rubbing or

crushing nature.

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Figure 9: Hollander Beater

Figure 10: Hollander Beater

REFINING (OR BEATING)

Types of Refining equipment:

Refiners:

Beaters have been replaced with refiner

advantage

of

low

space

requirement

and

less

energy

consumption

Refiners can be used on continuous basis where fibres flow

parallel to the bars of the rotor.

Two types of Refiners:

Conical Refiner

Disc Refiner ( more recent)

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REFINING (OR BEATING)

Conical Refiner:

Figure 11: Conical Refiner

Figure 12: Conical Refiner

20
blades

REFINING (OR BEATING)

Disc Refiner:

Figure 13: Disc Refiner

Figure 14: Refining Discs

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REFINING (OR BEATING)

Disc Refiners advantages :

Lower energy consumption

More compact- small space requirement

Easier to maintain

Greater versatility in refiner disc design

Objective of refining : to develop and modify the pulp fibers in an

optimal manner for the demands of the final paper product.

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ADDITION OF CHEMICAL ADDITIVES

Essential that the final paper produced has a

number of characteristics and properties suitable
for that specific paper use.

These properties can not be obtained with fibre

alone .

Not sufficient to use different types or blends of

plant fibres to create different products with the
necessary conditions.

Need the addition of non-fibrous products to obtain

the desired properties .

Two types of non-fibrous products:

Additives

Figure 15: Stock Blending and

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Mixing

ADDITION OF CHEMICAL ADDITIVES

Additives:

These are products added to the manufacturing process in order to

change the characteristics of the paper.

The most commonly used are :

Loads and Pigments : inorganic by nature (of mineral origin) . Chemical

composition is basically the same , the essential difference is the particle
size, Pigments are smaller . Loading is applied to the mass whilst pigments
are applied to the surface. Improves opacity and whiteness.

Loads : Talc and calcium sulphate

Pigments : Calcium carbonate and Titanium dioxide

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ADDITION OF CHEMICAL ADDITIVES

Colorants: gives paper a specific colour, improving the tone of the paper at
the same time.

Resins: provide resistance in wet conditions.

Binding agents: Type of adhesive , binds the pigments and fibres together.

Sizing agents: Control penetration of liquids

Dry and Wet strength adhesives: Improve the tensile strength and
stiffness.
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ADDITION OF CHEMICAL ADDITIVES

Auxiliaries:

Does not change the properties of the paper significantly.

Main purpose being to facilitate work and help in the manufacturing

process.

The most commonly used are :

Anti-foaming agents: remove or impede the formation of the foam that

is usually produced in different points of the paper machine.

Microbicides: prevent the possible growth of bacteria/ microorganisms.

Retention agents : improve binding of the different additives to the

pieces of fibre

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METERING AND BLENDING OF

FURNISHES
The various fibrous and non-fibrous furnish components

are

continuously combined and blended to from papermaking stock.

Accurate proportioning of pulps and additives into a uniform blend

depends:

Control of consistency /concentration

Flowrate of each component stream

Pulp component added- controlled dilution steps and mixing stages

are necessary to achieve the desired level of control

Traditional Batch systems now using continuous automated systems

Systems rely on modern consistency control loops and magnetic flow

meters to regulate control valves .
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METERING AND BLENDING OF

FURNISHES

Figure 16: Typical Stock Proportioning

system

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METERING AND BLENDING OF

The blended furnish is then delivered to
FURNISHES

the machine stock chest.

The machine chest typically contains

the final furnish mixture , in some cases
small concentrations of additives may be
added just prior to the paper machine.

Machine

chest

stock

is

continuously

circulated before being transferred into

the paper machine approach system.

Figure 17: Stock Blending and

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Mixing

REFERENCES

Smook GA (1992d) Preparation of papermaking stock. Handbook for

Pulp & Paper Technologists, 2nd edn. Angus Wilde Publications,
Vancouver, p 194

P. Bajpai (2012), Biotechnology for Pulp and Paper Processing,

Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, Chapter 2

TORRASPAPEL,S.A. (2008). About Paper : Paper Manufacturing.

Retrieved from About Paper: www.torraspapel.com. 1 August 2015.

Sappi Idea Exchange. (2014). The Paper Making Process - From wood
to coated paper. Retrieved from SAPPI:
www.ideaexchange.sappi.com/knowledgebank. 1 August 2015.
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THE END
THANK YOU

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