Alkyl Ketene Dimer (AKD) Paper Sizing Efficiency in Term of Fiber Surface Charge.

The charge density of cellulose fibers is a key parameter in the papermaking systems, and this is particularly true for the Alkyl Ketene Dimer (AKD) paper sizing. Zeta potential and cationic demand are often used to characterize these charges. Generally, a similar sizing performance would be obtained when the fibers with similar morphology and charge characteristics are used. However, in a mill trial, it was shown that three bleached birch pulp samples, with similar fiber morphology, and zeta potential, had different Alkyl Ketence Dimer (AKD) sizing behaviors. In this study, the surface charges of these pulp samples, measured using the poly electrolyte titration methods, were investigated. The results showed that lower sizing efficiency of fibers were due to their lower surface charges. It was concluded that the direct measurement of surface charge of cellulose fibers can be more appropriate to evaluate the AKD paper sizing efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]