Utilization of Fibers Recovered from the Biorefinery

Renewal Resources and Biorefineries Conference

York, UK2006

Mark Lewis University of WashingtonBill McKean University of WashingtonMike Wetzel University of Washington

FuelIndustrial ChemicalsMedicinalsFiber

Biomass

Wheat straw

Wood

Arundo donax

Why These Three Biomaterials?Wood

Major industrial useWell developed infrastructureWell characterized morphology and chemistryCompatible with coproduct production at existing manufacturing sites

Wheat StrawSame as wood aboveLarge amount of underutilized residue

Arundo DonaxNone of the aboveExtremely high biomass productivity

Potential economic source of energy, fuel, chemical, and pulp fibersInvasive species

ExtractedWoodWood

Overall Kraft Mill Biorefinery Product Balance and Economics

Acetic Acid 23 x 106 l/yr

Ethanol 72 x 106 l/yr

Extraction

Fermentation

Distillation

Pulp

Wash

Liquor Evap

Inorganic Recovery

Fischer Tropsch

Gasifydesulfurize

1.1 x 106 barrels Fischer Tropsch Fuels

Inc. Capital Cost = € 210 x 106

Inc. Operating Cost = € 25 x 106 / yrNet Revenue = € 80 x 106 / yr

Basis: 730 Mt pulp/day

1455 Mt wood/day2/3 hardwood1/3 softwood

150 Mt bark/day

0

10000

20000

30000

40000

50000

Wheat Douglas fir Hybridcottonwood

Eucalyptus Arundodonax

kg/h

ecta

re/y

r

1800-44004480

13450 18000

44800

Species Growth and Productivity (WA)

Potential Washington Agro-Industry Manufacturing ConfigurationNumbers refer to List of Current/Potential Stakeholders – see next page

9,10

16,20,22

7,10,11,13,14,15,24

7,10,12,13,23,24

16,17,18,191,2,3,4,5,6,8,9

– In development stage– Nearly commercial (2006), needs some optimization– Process presently commercial/needs R/D for bio-sugar feed and glycerin– Research/Development

8

16,17,18,19

21

List of Current/Potential Stakeholders* Indicates Sources of Funding for Joint UW/WSU Biomass Projects (1993-2006)

1) WSU Crop/Soil Science2) Wheat Growers/Commissions3) Alfalfa Seed Producers4) Other (Canola, Arundo Donax,

etc.)5) Farm Equipment

Manufacturers6) Fertilizer/Chemical Suppliers7) Weyerhaeuser8) Washington State Dept. of

Ecology9) U.S. DOE, USDA10) Sonoco11) Michelsen Packaging

Company12) Columbia River Pulp

13) Boise14) PNW Newsprint Manufacturers15) Grays Harbor Paper16) IPCI17) Arkema Group18) Nike19) U.S. Polyester/Polyurethane

Producers20) PNW Biodiesel Manufacturers21) Energy Producers/Consumers22) Dairygold and Other Cheese

Mnfg – Yakima Valley23) Washington State Orchards24) Keyes Fiber

***

*

**

***

*

**

*

Arundo as a Papermaking Fiber

Potential100 million tons/year production US30 million tons/year hardwood production35 million tons/year recycled

RealityHardwood market southern US and PNWRecycle possible switch to non-wood fibers

More environmentally friendlyMore cost effective

Arundo as a Papermaking Fiber

Niche marketNon-wood fibers selling at a premiumGood initial market while building demand and fiber supply

Hardwood replacementHardwood sells at $630/ton

Recycle replacementShortage of deinked market pulp $650/ton

Softwood substituteSoftwood sells at $700/ton Arundo has viable long fiber

Arundo as a Papermaking Fiber

TechnicalEasy to pulp

Less Chemical ChargeShorter pulping time

Easy to bleach25% less Chlorine Dioxide than wood at equal brightness

Chemical Savings+large potential for more savings

Energy Savings+ large potential for more savings

Arundo Plantation

Pulping Conditions for 7/8 inch Chip Size Compared to Wood Chips

Material 7/8 inch Arundo

Hardwood Typical

Softwood Typical

H-Factor 850 1200 1800 Temp(C) 170 170 170 Liquor/Material 4.5 4.5 4.0-4.5 EA(%) 15 17 18 Sulfidity(%) 24.4 25.0 25.0 Kappa No 17.6 25 28 Rejects(%) 3.6 3.0 1.5

Unbleached Unbleached UnbleachedKappa O2 Kappa Brightness Zero Span Index

Tan Oak 15.4 8.8 26.2 0.589Arundo sp. 12 6.1 30.3 0.628

Tan Oak vs. Arundo donax1000 H Factor Kraft Cook

Arundo vs. Hardwood

Furnish HD/SFT AD/SFTTrial 2 4Basis Weight 77.40 77.40Caliper (mils) 6.62 6.71Opacity 83.43 83.27Brightness 76.9 83.1Elong. 2.91 1.85TEA 33.2 33.7Peak Load 4952.8 7574.8Elong. 1.92 3.89TEA 19.1 47.4Peak Load 4370.1 4437.3MD Tear 31 38.5CD Tear 31.2 55.2Porosity 2 3.1MD Stiffness 221.36 379.60CD Stiffness 77.34 117.35MD Fold 7.6 111.25CD Fold 9.8 23.75Burst 20.25 25.6

Arundo as a Chemical Feedstock

Biorefinery PotentialHigh Hemicellulose contentLignin usesFiber supply

Schematic Of Wheat Plant Parts

Internodes : 56.2%Nodes : 6.1%Leaves/sheath : 37.7%

On mass basis for WA Winter wheat

leaf

node

internode

grain

≈ 0.05 MtIon – Exchange Removalof Non-Carbohydrate

Impurities

Sugars by XylanaseTreatment

Catalytic Hydrogenation

Internode

2.61 Mt

Whole straw

4.64 Mt

Conceptual Process For Integrated Power, Fuel, Chemical, and Pulp Fiber Production

StrawPreprocessing

Basis: 1 Mt OD Pulp

Hot WaterExtraction of

Hemicellulose

PulpProduction

ExtractedInternode

2.0 Mt

Pulp

1.0 Mt

Field DepositNodes, Leaves/Sheath

Poweror

Composite Products

0.61 Mt

Mixture of alcohol/glycol products≈ 0.5 Mt

1.0 Mt

Dissolved plant materialTo agricultural soilapplication

2.0 Mt

BioactiveProducts

Technical Issues

What’s KnownTransportationWill this work Quest for BrightnessLiquor treatmentTrial Run OpportunitiesAnswers within sight

What’s Known

Straw Pulping is not newMajor fiber source in ChinaFiber length similar to hardwoodEasily pulpedHard to conveyEnough wheat and alfalfa straw in Washington for all paper produced, not just copy paper

Previous Failed Efforts

Traditional pulping technology is too expensiveSilica is a major recovery issueLiquor utilization

Fiber Sourcing

TransportationEconomically viable with 100 milesBorderline at 150

Will this work on Commercial Machines?

Two very successful commercial runs in 2005 making unbleached paperboard Most papermakers recognize that if they can get good fiber they can make good paperLast US Straw papermachine closed in 1959 (pre-environmental regulations)

Pilot Machine Trial ResultsLinerboard

Burst Strength

0.00

50.00

100.00

150.00

200.00

250.00

300.00

350.00

400.00

450.00

500.00

0 25 50 75

% Wheat Straw

Burs

t Stre

ngth

(kpa

)

Pilot Machine Trial ResultsLinerboard

Short Span Compression

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

0 25 50 75

% Wheat Straw

Short

Span

Comp

ressio

n (KN

/m)

Quest for Brightness

Major Hurdle73 brightness TCF wheat straw is currently achievable 80 brightness is a minimum for commercial copy paper80+ brightness achieved with seed alfalfa strawResearch is ongoing

Bleaching Research

Ferrulic Acid DeterminationDevelopment of Procedure

Wheat straw vs. Seed Alfalfa Straw DifferencesWheat Straw 2.6% vs. Alfalfa 0.38%

Kappa Reduction with peracetic acidDetermining optimum conditions to bleach with peracetic acid

UW pulping and bleaching vs. a new technologyUW 90.2 vs. 88.2 under same the same bleaching conditions

Conclusions

Agfibers and new industrial fibers can be utilized in the biorefinery and papermillsArundo donax can be used in existing kraftpulp millsWheat straw can be used effectively as a replacement for OCC.Wheat straw can be bleached using ECF bleaching processes. TCF bleaching to high brightness is an issue.