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In this research, the effect of bentonite micro-particles on the performance of chitosan as a new additive system for improving the dry strengths of acidic papermaking was studied. Chitosan, an abundant carbohydrate biopolymer, in 4 dosages (0, 0.75, 1.25 and 2% based on dry weight of pulp) was applied with bentonite in 4 dosages (0, 0.3, 0.6 and 0.9% based on oven-dry weight of pulp). Although the addition of chitosan up to 0.75% (without bentonite) improved tensile index and burst index, but the addition of more chitosan decreased all mechanical properties in comparison with the control sample. The application of bentonite in combination with chitosan had a significant impact on chitosan performance in mechanical properties. The best results were obtained with 0.3% bentonite consumption. Visual formation ranking had a proper correlation with this obtained results. The micro-kjeldahl indirectly confirmed chitosan retention in the treated paper with chitosan/bentonite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lactic acid bacteria occupy an important position in silage microorganisms, and the effects of exogenous lactic acid bacteria on silage quality have been widely studied. Microbial metabolism has been proved as an indicator of substrate utilization by microorganisms. Paper mulberry is rich in free carbohydrate, amino acids, and other components, with the potential to be decomposed and utilized. In this study, changes in the microbial metabolism characteristics of paper mulberry silage with Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (LP) and Lentilactobacillus buchneri (LB) were studied along with a control (CK) using BIOLOG ECO microplates. The results showed that average well-color development (AWCD), Shannon diversity, Shannon evenness, and Simpson diversity exhibited significant temporal trends. LB and LP responded differently in the early ensiling phase, and the AWCD of LB was higher than LP at 7 days. Principal component analysis revealed that CK, LB, and LP samples initially clustered at 3 days and then moved into another similar cluster after 15 days. Overall, the microplates methodology applied in this study offers important advantages, not least in terms of accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since paper recycling operates with market‐collected paper scrap, this may lead to undesirable chemicals migrating from the wastepaper into the recycled material. Therefore, this study is based on the assessment of several additives inadvertently included in cellulose packaging that may migrate to foodstuff, considering that toxicological effects of some of these additives may persist in recycled cellulose fibers used to produce new food packaging. The purpose of this study is to determine migration of dibutyl phthalate (DBP), diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP), bis(2‐ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and 2,6‐diisopropylnaphthalene (DIPN) into fatty food simulant (n‐heptane) by means of gas chromatography with flame ionization detector (GC‐FID). For this purpose, commercial samples of cellulose food packages are contaminated with different concentrations of these additives, and migration into the food simulant is evaluated after the samples remain in contact with the food simulant for a prolonged time at maximum temperatures of 40 °C. The results of the assessment show that an amount ranging from 0.1–0.3% of phthalates and DIPN migrate from the fortified package into the fatty food simulant. The maximum levels of migration of these additives into the recycled cellulose packaging in order to comply with the specific migration limits for contact with foodstuff have been estimated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Different types of microfibrillated cellulose (MFC) and fines suspensions were produced, characterized, and then added to a papermaking pulp suspension. High and medium molar mass cationic polyelectrolytes were used as fixatives. The drainage behavior of the pulp suspensions with additives were evaluated against the strength properties of hand sheets made thereof. The effects of salt concentration, pH, fixative type, dosage and type of fibrillar material on drainage were examined. All the MFC and fines samples produced had clearly different properties due to their dissimilar production methods, and they also introduced specific responses on the measured drainage and paper strength. Generally, the addition of MFC decreased the drainage rate of pulp suspension and increased the strength of paper. However, it was shown that by optimum selection of materials and process conditions an enhancement of the strength properties could be achieved without simultaneously deteriorating the drainage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper studies the chemical and phase composition of the product from heat-resistant nickel-based superalloy formed by wire-feed electron beam additive manufacturing (EBAM). Microsegregation on macro-(dendrites/interdendritic space) and microscale (γ/γˈ) was evaluated. It is shown that in additively formed material, there is a significant (by an order of magnitude) refinement of structural and phase elements. The degree of microsegregation remains unchanged after the additive process, despite the increase in the volume fraction of dendrites, and the complex thermal history does not lead to the formation of undesirable phases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A carbon nanotube paper without any binders and additives was directly used as the catalyst for Na–O2 batteries. Corresponding electrochemical performances were investigated. A large discharge capacity can be high up to 7530 mAh g−1, which, to the best of our knowledge, is the highest value obtained at the similar current density. The cycling performance of the Na–O2 battery can be improved with a capacity limit of 1000 mAh g−1. Moreover, the overpotential gap was as small as 200 mV. Na2O2·2H2O is identified by X-ray diffraction (XRD) as the main crystalline discharge product and can be decomposed in the following charging process as revealed by scanning electron microscope (SEM). These results indicate that the CNT paper is a promising cathode for Na–O2 battery. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

As the important part of liquid packaging board, the middle layer is generally produced from a mixed pulp furnish by unbleached softwood kraft pulp and high-yield pulp (HYP). However, the addition of HYP would bring unsatisfactory properties (e.g. hydrophilicity) to liquid packaging board. Herein, in this study, the sizing performance of middle layer of liquid packaging board was evaluated by varying the kraft pulp to HYP ratios of middle layer, the dosage of sizing agent and cationic additives etc. It showed that the edge penetration value and Cobb value of middle layer illustrated a better liquid repellence with the addition of sizing agent. The improved sizing performance of the middle layer of liquid packaging board can be ascribed to the excellent performance of the added cationic additive (polyethyleneimine (PEI), alums) for trapping anionic trash via neutralization/flocculation effects. In addition, a binary cationic additive system (Al2(SO4)3-PEI) was proposed to study the improvement on the sizing performance. It was found that a desirable liquid repellence ability can be successfully achieved at a binary additive system containing 1.5% of Al2(SO4)3 and 0.2% of PEI, even when dosage of rosin sizing agent was reduced to 0.5%. The study put forwards a practical approach to improve the sizing performance, especially the liquid repellence ability of liquid packaging board when containing HYP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), the effects of different additives (MgO, Al 2 O 3 and ZnO) on the pyrolysis characteristics and activation energy of municipal solid waste (MSW), paper sludge (PS) and their blends in N 2 atmosphere had been investigated in this study. The experiments resulted that these additives were effective in reducing the initial temperature and activation energy. However, not all the additives were beneficial to reduce the residue mass and enhance the index D . For the different ratios of MSW and PS, the same additive even had the different influences. The catalytic effects of additives were not obvious and the pyrolysis became difficult with the increase of the proportion of PS. Based on all the contrast of the pyrolysis characteristics, MgO was the best additive and 70M30P was the best ratio, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemicals are used in materials as additives in order to improve the performance of the material or the production process itself. The presence of these chemicals in recyclable waste materials may potentially affect the recyclability of the materials. The addition of chemicals may vary depending on the production technology or the potential end-use of the material. Paper has been previously shown to potentially contain a large variety of chemicals. Quantitative data on the presence of chemicals in paper are necessary for appropriate waste paper management, including the recycling and re-processing of paper. However, a lack of quantitative data on the presence of chemicals in paper is evident in the literature. The aim of the present work is to quantify the presence of selected chemicals in waste paper derived from households. Samples of paper and board were collected from Danish households, including both residual and source-segregated materials, which were disposed of (e.g., through incineration) and recycled, respectively. The concentration of selected chemicals was quantified for all of the samples. The quantified chemicals included mineral oil hydrocarbons, phthalates, phenols, polychlorinated biphenyls, and selected toxic metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb). The results suggest large variations in the concentration of chemicals depending on the waste paper fraction analysed. Research on the fate of chemicals in waste recycling and potential problem mitigation measures should be focused on in further studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study, 11 4,4′-diaminostilbene-2,2′-disulfonic acid based fluorescent whitening agents with different numbers of sulfonic acid groups were separated by using an ionic liquid as a mobile phase additive in high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. The effects of ionic liquid concentration, pH of mobile phase B, and composition of mobile phase A on the separation of fluorescent whitening agents were systematically investigated. The ionic liquid tetrabutylammonium tetrafluoroborate is superior to tetrabutylammomnium bromide for the separation of the fluorescent whitening agents. The optimal separation conditions were an ionic liquid concentration at 8 mM and the pH of mobile phase B at 8.5 with methanol as mobile phase A. The established method exhibited low limits of detection (0.04-0.07 ng/mL) and wide linearity ranges (0.30-20 ng/mL) with high linear correlation coefficients from 0.9994 to 0.9998. The optimized procedure was applied to analyze target analytes in paper samples with satisfactory results. Eleven target analytes were quantified, and the recoveries of spiked paper samples were in the range of 85-105% with the relative standard deviations from 2.1 to 5.1%. The obtained results indicated that the method was efficient for detection of 11 fluorescent whitening agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present paper, aspects concerning the obtained and characterization of additive systems used for maximizing filler retention, and the effects on paper properties, were investigated. The effects of retention additives over properties of paper, containing fibers from in-situ loading (IS-CCP), were analyzed against the effects of additives over properties of paper containing fibers from conventional loading, obtained by the addition of calcium carbonate in precipitated form (CCP). The physico-mechanical properties were analyzed by various analyses and investigations: calcium carbonate content, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images, optical and mechanical properties, in order to develop the best systems of retention additives for obtaining higher retention loads for making paper with high content of nano-filler material. The obtained results reveal that at the same level of calcium carbonate content, all paper samples with in-situ loading had higher the optical and mechanical properties than the paper obtained by conventional loading in all cases the additives studied. For all studied properties, nanoparticles had a positively influence over paper properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Xylan, galactoglucomannan, arabinogalactan and hemicelluloses with different molecular weights were prepared from wood and then used as wet-end additives and surface sizing agents in papermaking. The results showed that xylan, galactoglucomannan and arabinogalactan all had obvious paper-strengthening effect. As wet-end additives, galactoglucomannan had the best effects, followed by xylan and then arabinogalactan. As surface sizing agents coordinating with starch, xylan showed the best sizing effect (paper-strengthening effect and water resistance), followed by galactoglucomannan. The effects were both greater than that of starch alone. Furthermore, hemicelluloses with higher molecular weights had more significant effects. The results could provide some reference for the use of hemicelluloses in nature and papermaking waste liquor to improve paper physical strength. Although hemicelluloses in APMP (alkaline peroxide mechanical pulp) waste liquor was degraded to a certain degree, it also showed good paper-strengthening effects. Starch as an important papermaking additives comes mainly from food. The hemicelluloses, especially in the high-yield-pulp waste-liquor, can replace starch in papermaking to some extent, which might be beneficial from economic, energy and food standpoints. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Additive manufacturing has captured the imagination of the research community and industries across various engineering disciplines because of the unprecedented design flexibility. Overall, these six papers represent the advancement of science and technology of friction stir based additive manufacturing. The paper by Rezaeinejad et al. on friction screw extrusion additive manufacturing uses a very different feeding mechanism as compared to AFSD. [Extracted from the article]

Tissue paper production frequently combines two main types of raw materials: cellulose fibers from renewable sources and polymer-based additives. The development of premium products with improved properties and functionalities depends on the optimization of both. This work focused on the combination of innovative experimental and computational strategies to optimize furnish. The main goal was to improve the functional properties of the most suitable raw materials for tissue materials and develop new differentiating products with innovative features. The experimental plan included as inputs different fiber mixtures, micro/nano fibrillated cellulose, and biopolymer additives, and enzymatic and mechanical process operations. We present an innovative tissue paper simulator, the SimTissue, that we have developed, to establish the correlations between the tissue paper process inputs and the end-use paper properties. Case studies with industrial interest are presented in which the tissue simulator was used to design tissue paper materials with different fiber mixtures, fiber modification treatments, micro/nano fibrillated cellulose, and biopolymer formulations, and to estimate tissue softness, strength, and absorption properties. The SimTissue was able to predict and optimize a broader range of formulations containing micro/nanocellulose fibers, biopolymer additives, and treated-fiber mixtures, saving laboratory and industrial resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Our objective was to characterize physical properties and semivolatile harmful and potentially harmful constituent yields in the mainstream smoke (MSS) of 4 popular little cigars compared to the 3R4F reference cigarette. Methods: We used the ISO and Canadian Intense Regimen protocols to generate MSS for Cheyenne (Full Flavor and Menthol) and Swisher Sweets (Original and Sweet Cherry) little cigars; and the 3R4F. We examined physical properties such as length, tobacco filler mass, pressure drop, and ventilation for each product. Nicotine, benzo[a]pyrene, and tobacco-specific nitrosamine (TSNA) yields were determined in the MSS. Results: Little cigars were longer (~15mm), contained more tobacco filler (100-200 mg), and had a higher pressure drop (~1.3X) compared to the 3R4F. Ventilation holes were found only on the filter paper of the 3R4F. Nicotine transmitted to the MSS was similar for all products under the intense smoking protocol. The highest yields of TSNAs and benzo(a)pyrene were measured for the little cigars. Conclusions: Little cigars may deliver similar levels of nicotine but higher levels of carcinogens to the MSS compared to cigarettes. Thus, previous reports on the toxicity of tobacco smoke based on cigarettes might not apply to little cigar products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently used methods for estimation of moisture content in paper pulp are restricted to levels of moisture concentration below 90%. Some of the existing methods require less practical double-sided contact measurements. A few other methods make restrictive assumptions, such as the constituents of the pulp that determine its conductance. This paper presents a technique that uses fringing field interdigital sensors to measure moisture concentration in paper pulp at levels as high as 96%. The method proposed in this paper uses single-sided measurements, offers high sensitivity, and does not require special operating conditions. The accuracy of the proposed method is also demonstrated. The repeatability and reproducibility of the sensor measurements are also shown. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Partial discharge (PD) characteristics of hexadecane were studied in a needle-plane electrode geometry under AC field with a tungsten needle of 20 μm tip radius. PD experiments were conducted on samples containing known concentrations of oil/paper degradation compounds. Partial discharge inception voltage (PDIV), streamer repetition rates, and phase resolved PD (PRPD) patterns were acquired. Ionization potentials (IP) and electron affinities (EA) of hexadecane and a selection of additives were calculated with density functional theory (DFT) and correlated to PD characteristics. IP did not have a significant effect on the number of streamers initiated as most additives had higher IP relative to hexadecane. The presence of electronegative oxygen changes substantially the PD characteristics and, for most additives, increases the number of positive and negative streamers initiated. The greatest changes in PD characteristics, a reduced number of negative streamers, was observed for compounds with large electron capture cross section, even those with negative EA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Broussonetia papyrifera L. (paper mulberry) is an alternative woody plant, which can used to replace part of the protein feed for ruminants. Ensiling is an effective way to preserve fresh pasture and to solve the problem of stable storage and feed conversion of paper mulberry in the rapid growth period. However, low dry matter (DM), water-soluble carbohydrate, and lactic acid bacteria (LAB) reduce the quality of paper mulberry silage. This study assesses the influence of wilting time (0 h and 3.5 h; lighting: 3.43 × 104 Lux) and three additives (Enterococcus durans, CL; cellulase, CE; and formic acid, FA) on the fermentation quality, aerobic stability, and bacterial community of whole plant B. papyrifera silage. The whole plant B. papyrifera sample was mowed and wilted for 0 h and 3.5 h, and then had CL, CE, or FA added, followed by 60 days of ensiling. The results show all silage samples had high fermentation quality with pH below 4.2, ammonia-nitrogen below 100 g/kg DM, and no detectable butyric acid. The additives protected the DM and the crude protein from protease activity (p < 0.05), and CL was the most effective among them. Furthermore, wilting time influenced the silage’s bacterial communities, but overall, CL treatment had the greatest impact on bacterial communities. Wilting time and formic acid treatment significantly improved aerobic stability (p < 0.05). Enterococcus was positively correlated with lactic acid (LA), while negatively correlated with LA and Weissella (p < 0.001). Enterococcus was identified as the main driver of the whole plant paper mulberry ensiling process in the present study. In conclusion, compared to other additives, LAB is the most effective and economical to improve the fermentation quality and reduce the protein degradation of whole plant paper mulberry silage. Our findings provide a theoretical basis to improve the quality and production of paper mulberry silage.

Colour and additive masterbatch producer Ampacet Corp of Tarrytown, NY, USA, has extended its Paper 2.0 additive technology range with the introduction of SynTear™. The new masterbatch enables the production of synthetic tissue that looks, feels and tears like paper, with the additional advantages of moisture resistance, and ease of processing, the company reports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fibers and fillers are important raw materials for the preparation of paper products. Similar to fiber engineering, filler engineering for papermaking has become an active research area. There are similarities as well as differences between engineering involving each of these classes of materials. There are differences in such aspects as the nature of materials to be engineered, applicable engineering methods, and engineerablity of the material surfaces. The co-development of fiber engineering and filler engineering can potentially provide many benefits to the papermaking industry. For filler engineering, the relevant research topics broadly can include fibrous filler engineering, hollow/porous filler engineering, acid-stabilization of calcium carbonate fillers, surface encapsulation of naturally occurring polymers or their derivatives, preflocculation, precoagulation, cationic modification, filler/size hybrid formation, organic filler engineering, using combinations of different types of available fillers, multilayer deposition modification, modification with polymer latexes or dispersants, physical modification, mechanical modification, surface functionalization, fines-filler composite/hybrids or fiber-filler composite/ hybrid formation, in-situ polymerization modification, surface grafting, physical treatment in the presence of polymeric additives, filler precipitation, and core-shell composite filler engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the pulp and paper industry, several studies have been done to improve and enhance the properties of the mechanical, optical, and antimicrobial activities of pulp produced with different additives. In the present study, pulp of wood branches (WBs) from Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh. and Meryta sinclairii (Hook.f.) Seem. was treated with n-hexane oily extracts (HeOE) from Melia azedarach L. fruits, Magnolia grandiflora L. leaves, and Sinapis alba L. seeds as additives at concentrations of 1%, 3%, and 5% based on oven-dry pulp weight. Measured mechanical properties were higher in paper sheets made from E. camaldulensis than M. sinclairii WB pulp. The highest tensile index values were observed with E. camaldulensis WB pulp treated with 5% HeOEs of S. alba (33.90 N·m/g) and M. grandiflora (33.76 N·m/g) compared to control (32.10 N·m/g); the highest tear index with 5% HeOE of S. alba (4.11 mN·m2/g) compared to control (3.32 mN·m2/g); and the highest burst index with 5% HeOE of S. alba (4.11 kPa·m2/g) compared to control (3.08 kPa·m2/g). The highest double-fold number value (9) was observed with E. camaldulensis WB pulp treated with 5% HeOEs of S. alba, M. azedarach, and M. grandiflora but with no significant difference compared to control treatment (8.33) or other HeOE treatments with E. camaldulensis WB pulp. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) examination showed clear inhibition of the growth of Aspergillus terreus with WB pulp paper discs of E. camaldulensis and M. sinclairii treated with HeOEs of M. azedarach, S. alba, and M. grandiflora at 3% and 5% compared to control treatment, while HeOEs at 5% concentration showed no growth of A. niger and A. terreus. The present findings establish that the HeOEs from M. azedarach, S. alba, and M. grandiflora at 3% and 5% are novel natural products that can be used as alternatives to improve the properties and antifungal activity of WB pulp produced from E. camaldulensis and M. sinclairii. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]