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Alkaline steeping of dissolving pulp. Part II: Soluble compounds in the press lye

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Abstract

This work describes the comprehensive characterization of the degradation products obtained after the alkaline steeping of dissolving pulp. Total chlorine free bleached beech sulfite pulp was treated with 18 % sodium hydroxide at different temperatures (40, 50 and 60 °C) for time periods of up to 80 h. After the removal of the insoluble cellulose, the remaining alkali solution was treated with sulfuric acid to precipitate the β-fraction. With extended treatment times and temperatures, the proportion of xylan in the β-fraction is increased. However, the molar mass distribution and the amount of 4-O-methylglucuronic acid in the β-fraction revealed no clear trend as a function of the treatment conditions. In total 13 hydroxy acids were identified in the acid soluble γ-fraction, of which glucoisosaccharinic, glycolic, lactic and xyloisosaccharininc acids were among the most abundant hydroxy acids representing the degradation products from C6- and C5-sugars.

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Abbreviations

AEC:

Anion exchange chromatogrphy

Ara:

Arabinose

BAR:

Benzilic acid rearrangement

COD:

Chemical oxygen demand

DOC:

Dissolved organic carbon

DP:

Degree of polymerization

FID:

Flame ionization detector

Gal:

Galactose

GC–MS:

Gas chromatography with mass spectroscopy detector

GISA:

Glucoisosaccharinic acid

Glc:

Glucose

GlcA:

Glucuronic acid

HPLC:

High performance liquid chromatography

Man:

Mannose

Me:

Methyl

MMD:

Molar mass distribution

Mn:

Number-average molar mass

Mw:

Weight-average molar mass

Mz:

Z-average molar mass

odp:

Oven dried pulp

PAD:

Pulse amperometric detection

Rha:

Rhamnose

SEC:

Size exclusion chromatography

TCF:

Total chlorine free

TOC:

Total organic carbon

Xyl:

Xylose

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Acknowledgments

Financial support was provided by the Austrian government, the provinces of lower Austria, upper Austria, and Carinthia as well as by Lenzing AG. We also express our gratitude to the Johannes Kepler University, Linz, the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna, and Lenzing AG for their in-kind contributions. The authors gratefully thank Dr. Hannu Pakkanen and Mrs. Marja Salo from Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, at the University of Jyväskylä for their analyses of the hydroxy acids.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Kompetenzzentrum Holz GmbH, Altenberger Strasse 69, 4040, Linz, Austria

    Danuta Joanna Mozdyniewicz

  2. Lenzing AG, Werkstrasse 1, 4860, Lenzing, Austria

    Gabriele Schild

  3. Department of Forest Products Technology, Aalto University School of Science and Technology, Vuorimiehentie 1, P.O. Box 16300, Espoo, Finland

    Herbert Sixta

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  1. Danuta Joanna Mozdyniewicz
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  2. Gabriele Schild
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  3. Herbert Sixta
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Correspondence to Herbert Sixta.

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Mozdyniewicz, D.J., Schild, G. & Sixta, H. Alkaline steeping of dissolving pulp. Part II: Soluble compounds in the press lye. Cellulose 21, 2889–2900 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-014-0291-6

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