Eucalyptus globulus stumpwood as a raw material for pulping

Abstract

In this study, Eucalyptus globulus stumpwood samples collected from six different sites in Portugal were evaluated for their ease of pulping, using two delignification processes (kraft and alkaline sulfite-anthraquinone-methanol (ASAM)). Morphologically, the stumpwood included fibers with a mean length of 0.930 mm, diameter of 21.4 μm, lumen width of 9.1 μm, and cell-wall thickness of 6.1 μm. The Runkel ratio varied between 1.0 and 1.9, and the slenderness ratio ranged between 50.6 and 35.1. ASAM pulps presented higher yields and kappa numbers (49.3% and 36, respectively) when compared to kraft pulps (42.7% and 14, respectively). Extractive-free material increased pulp yield (51.7% and 47.5% for ASAM and kraft, respectively) and decreased kappa number (18 and 11). The kraft pulps showed a coarseness of 0.096mg/m, curl of 5.2%, and 16.7% kinked fibers, while for the ASAM pulps, these values were 0.105mg/m, 5.2%, and 16.3%, respectively.