Eucalyptus wood has become one of the most important sources of fiber for the pulp and paper industry, due to its fast growth and suitable fiber properties. The sector of high-yield pulps can also benefit from such interesting aspects, but the high energy demand for the mechanical refining process shows to be a drawback for large-scale utilization of Eucalyptus for that purpose. Studies regarding the relationship between wood properties and the refining energy are scarce, especially those concerning the effects of fiber wall structure and chemistry on the defibration energy. So far, we have found indications that lignin structure may have an important effect on the refinability of wood, and the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of the lignin structure on Eucalyptus wood refinability during thermomechanical pulping, where no chemicals are applied. This strategy was chosen to preserve the native lignin structure as unaltered as possible.

Effect of lignin structure on the refinability of eucalyptus wood

243rd National Meeting (2012)

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