Mild enzymatic treatment of bleached pulp for tissue production

Abstract

Effects of cellulase enzymatic treatment followed by mechanical beating were evaluated relative to the properties of cellulase-derived tissue pulps and handsheets. When different cellulase concentrations (0.0012 FPU/g, 0.0018 FPU/g, and 0.0024 FPU/g) of oven dried pulp (a 65/35 w/w ratio of beech to eucalyptus) were used for tissue production, a slight deterioration of the morphological characteristics was observed. Thus, a possibility of controlling the changes in the degree of polymerization of cellulose, as well as the fiber properties (in particular the length and coarseness) appeared. With an increased treatment time and enzyme concentration, these effects increased. The enzyme activity did not affect the apparent density of the paper, but the porosity drastically increased. The zero-span strength of the enzymatically treated pulps decreased with an increase in treatment time and amount of cellulase. However, mechanical beating improved the bonding between the cellulase fibers, which helped prevent the eventual decrease in mechanical properties of the handsheets. With the use of cellulase, the proposed moderate changes to fiber structure were achieved, giving the possibility of predicting and controlling the properties of tissue paper.