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The use of polymeric amines to enhance the mechanical properties of lignocellulosic fibrous networks

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Abstract

Cationic polyelectrolytes (polyallylamine and polyvinylamine with different molecular masses) were adsorbed onto lignocellulosic fibres from unbleached and unbeaten spruce chemical fibres with different kappa numbers to investigate the effects on the mechanical properties of the final paper materials. Adsorption isotherms were first established to determine the maximum quantity of polymer that could be adsorbed onto each type of fibre. Paper sheets were then made with different amounts of added polyelectrolyte, and the structural and mechanical properties of the sheets were investigated, as well as the effect of an extra heating. The use of fibres with different kappa numbers led to different responses in terms of adsorption, and thus to differences in the mechanical properties of the resulting sheets. The tensile strength index was significantly increased (almost 50 % improvement in the best case) as a consequence of this polyelectrolyte adsorption onto the fibres, even at as low an adsorption level as 2 mg/g. The heating of paper sheets for 10 min at 160 °C was also shown to improve the tensile strength index by about 10 % for pulps with high kappa number.

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Acknowledgments

Philip Lindh is acknowledged for providing the NFC sheets. This work was funded by the Biofibre Materials Centre (BiMaC Innovation, http://www.bimacinnovation.kth.se).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Fibre Technology, School of Chemical Science and Engineering, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, 100 44, Stockholm, Sweden

    Andrew Marais & Lars Wågberg

  2. The Wallenberg Wood Science Centre, School of Chemical Science and Engineering, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, 100 44, Stockholm, Sweden

    Lars Wågberg

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  1. Andrew Marais
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  2. Lars Wågberg
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Correspondence to Andrew Marais.

Appendix

Appendix

See Fig. 8.

Fig. 8
figure 8

Nitrogen analysis calibration curves for PAH (a) and PVAm (b)

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Marais, A., Wågberg, L. The use of polymeric amines to enhance the mechanical properties of lignocellulosic fibrous networks. Cellulose 19, 1437–1447 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-012-9712-6

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