Pulping of <i>Casuarina glauca </i>with ASAM - An Environmental Friendly Process

Abstract

ASAM pulping process has been experimented on <i>Casuarina glauca. </i>The pulping parameters such as methanol concentration, cooking time, chemical charge, and alkali ratio, affecting the chemical and physical properties of the pulp are determined .. For ASAM I cooks, NaOH is the supporting alkali, while in ASAM II pulping, Na₂CO₃ is the supporting alkali. The best ASAM I pulping is achieved at 22.5 and 25 per cent chemical charge with 0.7 and 0.8 alkali ratio while the best ASAM II pulping is achieved at 27.5 per cent chemical charge and 0.6 alkali ratio. When both the pure alkalies were used, some changes in the pulp properties were observed by varying the ratio of NaOH: Na₂CO₃. Pulp- and papermaking properties of <i>Casuarina </i>cooked by the ASAM process are observed to be superior to <i>Casuarina </i>pulp obtained by the kraft process.