° ae

i. me

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 aper
Ree ing
Strategies, Economics, and Technology

EDITED BY KEN LPATRICK

A Pulp & Paper Focus Book

EMBER OF THE UNITED NEWSPAPERS GROUP

San Francisco, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cupertino, New York, Brussels

Other Pulp & Paper Focus Books:

Modern Mechanical Pulping Maintenance Practices in Today’s Paper Industry

in the Pulp and Paper Industry edited by Ken L. Patrick
edited by Ken L. Patrick
Modern Paper Finishing
Process Control for Pulp and Paper Mills edited by John C. W. Evans
edited by Kenneth E. Smith

Trends and Developments in Papermaking

edited by John C. W. Evans

Also published by Miller Freeman for the pulp and paper industry:

Paper and Paperboard Mastering Management

Manufacturing & Converting Fundamentals by Roberta Bhasin
by James E. Kline
Pulp and Paper North American Factbook
Pulp Technology and Treatment for Paper
by James d’A. Clark Lockwood-Post’s Directory

Pulp and Paper Dictionary Pulp and Paper Mill Map

by John R. Lavigne
International Pulp & Paper Directory
An Introduction to Paper Industry Instrumentation
by John R. Lavigne Pulp & Paper International Factbook

Instrumentation Applications PPI Map of the European Pulp and Paper Industry
for the Pulp and Paper Industry
by John R. Lavigne PPI Map of the Asian Pacific Rim’s Pulp & Paper Mills

International Glossary of Technical Terms

for the Pulp and Paper Industry
edited by Paul D. Van Derveer and Leonard E. Haas

Miller Freeman, Inc., 600 Harrison Street, San Francisco, CA 94107

Publishers of Pulp & Paper and Pulp & Paper International magazines

©1991 by Miller Freeman, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any
means without written permission from the publisher; except that brief quotations may be used, provided that full
and prominent credit is given listing title, author, and publisher.

ISBN: 0-87930-231-3
Printed in the United States of America
Cover photo by Herb Nott & Co. Ltd.
9192.93 9495 96> 54:32 1

Printed on recycled paper

 CONTENTS
Foreword

SECTION 1. Recycling Capacity and Outlook

1. Recycling Capacity to Increase at Record Rates as Laws Proliferate
2. Wastepaper Market on Rocky Road: Unusual Conditions Impede Recovery 19
3. New Deinking Projects Proliferate as Industry Meets Recycling Demand 21

SECTION 2. Wastepaper Supply and Demand

4, New Markets Open as Public Demand Grows for Recycled Paper Products al
5. Demand Increases for Recycled Printing and Writing Paper 31
6. U.S. Leads the World in Production and Consumption of Wastepaper 34
7. Municipal Solid Waste and the Paper Industry: The Next Five Years ST.
8. States, Municipalities Change Course in Dealing with Wastepaper Handling 4]
9. Legislation Pushing Paper Industry Despite Limited Recycling Know How a
10. Trash Crunch Drives Demand for Recycled Printing/Writing Papers 47

SECTION 3. Economics of Recycling

11. Economics Favor Increased Use of Recycled Fiber in Most Furnishes 53
12. The Economics Are Right for U.S. Mills to Recycle Old Newspapers 60
13. Environmental Concerns, Economics Drive Paper Recycling Technology 63
14. New Technology, Economic Benefits Give Boost to Secondary Fiber Use 65
15. OCC Consumption Expected to Grow as Cost of Virgin Fiber Increases 71

SECTION 4. Wastepaper Collection Practices

16. Wastepaper Dealer Sees Boom Ahead as Industry Ups Recycling Effort 19
17. More Recycled Capacity Will Affect Wastepaper Supply Quality, Quantity 81
18. Southeast Recycling Corp. Expands to Ensure Ample ONP Supply at Mill 84
19. Contaminant Removal, Timely Use Vital to Quality ONP Fiber Yield 87
20. Noranda Meets New Fine Paper Postconsumer Waste Standards 89
SECTION 5. Pulping, Screening, and Cleaning
21. Increased Use of Wastepaper Spurs Improvements in Pulper Efficiency 95
22. Alkali Soaking Ups Quality, Yield of Occ Used in Boxboard Furnishes 98
23. Separate Pulping of Magazines, ONP Yields Cost, Consistency Benefits 100
24. Cleaning of Secondary Fiber Stickies May Necessitate Monitoring for VOCs 105
25. Continuous Drum Repulping System Features High-Consistency Stock 107
26. Contour Surface Cylinders Boost Wastepaper Screening Efficiency 109
27. Screening and Cleaning Systems Challenged by New Contaminants 113
28. Chemically Induced Drainage Boosts Recycled Board Mill Output by 50% 116

SECTION 6. Deinking Technology

29. Mills Considering New Deinking Line Must Answer Environmental Questions 121
30. Deinking of Secondary Fiber Gains Acceptance as Technology Evolves 126
31. Mill Chemistry Must Be Considered Before Making Deink Line Decision 131
32. Deinking Equipment Demand Increases as More Mills Study Wastepaper Use 135
33. Chemical Application Expands in Washing/Flotation Deinking Systems 139
34. Fiber Substitution with Pulper Deinking Reduces Furnish Costs 142
35. Flotation Deinking Is Critical in Unit Process Method of Deinking 144
36. Proper Deinking Chemistry, Bleaching Technique Crucial to Pulp Brightness 150
37. Appropriate Chemical Additives Are Key to Improved Deinking Operations 154
38. Cold Dispersion Unit Boosts Deinking Efficiency at Japanese Tissue Mills 159

SECTION 7. Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations

39. Augusta Newsprint Brings Recycled ONP/OMG Retrofit System Online 165.
40. Recycled Paperboard Inc. Restarts Idled Mill with $14-Million Overhaul 167
41. Wisconsin Tissue Expands Recycled Capacity with $160-Million Upgrade 170
42, MacMillan Bloedel Pine Hill Expansion is Quality Driven 174
43. Mobile Paperboard’s Recycled Board Cylinder Machine First in 15 Years 177
44. Cascades’ Deinking Plant Producing High-Grade Market Pulp from Waste 181
45. Seminole Kraft Advances Recycling of Newspaper with “Good News” Bag 184
46. Miami Paper Uses Washing, Floatation at Recycled Fine Paper Mill in Ohio 187
47. Atlas Starts Second Tissue Machine That Runs on’Recycled Wastepaper 193
48. Ponderosa Fibres Expands to Meet Demands for Recycled Market Pulp 195
49. Stone-Snowflake Boosts Newsprint Quality with Deink System Upgrade

Index 201
 FOREWORD
The recycling of paper and paperboard is not new to the Northeast, Midwest, and West Coast, while virgin
the pulp and paper industry. In 1969, for example, the newsprint production remains best concentrated in
wastepaper utilization rate at U.S. mills was about Canada and perhaps the southeastern U.S., where fi-
23.5%, compared with only 27% in 1989. This approxi- ber, water, labor, etc., are more conducive to its
mate 3.5% increase is relatively modest for a 20-year manufacture.
period, particularly considering that public interest in Such views, debated in several articles in this book,
recycling intensified dramatically in the mid-1980s. are at least partially supported by the fact that a high
Recycling, in fact, is about as old as the papermaking percentage of recent recycled newsprint capacity has
process itself. Paper and paperboard, along with used been installed at virgin newsprint mills, including both
cloth fibers and other woven goods as well as almost chemical- and mechanical-pulp mills. This recycled
anything that could be shredded into suitable fiber capacity has been added primarily to meet recycled
lengths, have been dumped into “pulping vats” since newsprint requirements in the 25 or more states with
the dawn of modern papermaking technology. recently passed recycling legislation. Since, in most
Recycling prior to the 1980s was more or less a mat- cases, the extra pulp capacity is not needed or cannot
ter of economics, and the fact that the U.S. paper indus- be fully utilized, it is seen by some as an unnecessary
try has been utilizing about a quarter of the available capital burden.
wastepaper for the past quarter century or so means OCC recovery rates in 1990 went above 50%, and
that recycling is basically an economical process. This should continue rising through 1995. This grade will
is especially true in Japan and Europe, where waste- soon be at or near the ceiling of practical recovery
paper recovery rates have traditionally been much (65%-70%), and some temporary spot shortages could
higher than in the U.S., although the U.S. does produce begin occurring in the near future. The reason for such
and consume more wastepaper overall than any other extensive recovery and reuse of OCC is that it is easily
country. collected and sorted.
Denmark and The Netherlands, for instance, are re- Most corrugated container use is in the business/in-
cycling nearly 70% wastepaper into the total fiber fur- dustrial sector, which for many years has been segre-
nishes of their paper and paperboard production. gating, bundling, and otherwise preparing Occ for col-
These countries are followed closely by Spain at about lection by independent haulers and dealers. OCC is
62%, the United Kingdom at 58%, and Switzerland at quickly and easily recognized for what it is, and even
around 50%. A key factor in the lower U.S. rates, some in the residential/public sector it can and is being ef-
experts claim, has been the overuse of ‘“‘throwaway” fectively sorted at the source.
and “disposable” marketing adjectives in this country Another factor in the increased use of OCC as well as
for at least the past half century. These factors are ana- other wastepaper grades is the basic change in Rule 41
lyzed by several industry experts in articles through- (railroad transportation) and Item 222 (truck cargo)
out this book, especially in Section 3. away from bursting strength to compressive strength in
In 1990, wastepaper utilization in the U.S. increased corrugated shipping containers. This rule change gen-
significantly, vaulting 6% to a 33.4% recovery rate (or erally eliminates mandatory basis weight requirements
some 29 million tons). Most of this increase occurred in and permits the use of lighter weight boards containing
two grade sectors—old newspapers (ONP) and old cor- higher percentages of recycled fiber, particularly OCC.
rugated containers (OCC). The ONP growth has been Currently, the recycled fiber content for all U.S. con-
spurred by recent and pending legislation in some 25 tainerboard is near 25%, which is expected to increase
states mandating that newspaper publishers use news- to at least 35% by 1995. The implications of these
print containing various levels (up to 90%) of recycled changes are detailed in several feature reports in this
fiber. Additionally, several new federal laws now pro- book.
vide incentives for the manufacture of recycled Wastepaper utilization in tissue increased from 26%
newsprint. in 1970 to about 54% in 1990, a considerable increase
The 1990 recovery rate for ONP in the U.S. was 45%, over the past two decades. Likewise, utilization of re-
or 13.3 million tons. This easily collected and deinked covered paper bags, old magazines (OMG), and several
fiber source is used not only for making recycled news- other paper and board grades have begun increasing in
print, but also in boxboards, tissue, and other paper recent years as technical roadblocks have been slowly
and board grades, as well as in molded pulp products overcome. Some of the roadblocks for OMG, for ex-
(paper plates, egg cartons), cellulostic insulation, pack- ample, have included various ‘‘stickies” (nonsoluble,
aging materials, etc. difficult-to-disperse binders), ultraviolet cured inks on
Recovery rates for ONP are expected to exceed 50% covers, metal ions in some inks, and an assortment of
by 1995. As rates increase beyond 50%, fiber supply paper grades (including groundwood) often used to-
tightens and eventually reaches a plateau. Some indus- gether in a single publication.
try consultants believe that “recycling hysteria,” in The development and application of technology that
particular that brought on by new newsprint legislation has allowed increased utilization of these grades is ex-
of the late 1980s and early 1990s, is premature and may amined in Sections 5 and 6, which cover pulping (in-
not result in the best use of ONP. For example, some ob- cluding screening and cleaning) and deinking technol-
servers feel that recycled newsprint could be more eco- ogy, respectively. The 10-article section on deinking
nomically produced in certain metropolitan areas of includes reports on the very latest applied and devel-

Paper Recycling
 oping technologies, including washing systems, flota- magazines, mixed office waste cannot be recognized
tion cells, and the cold dispersion techniques in use at specifically for what it is—photocopies, laser printed
some Japanese tissue mills. papers, offset printing, free sheets, groundwood-con-
But the greatest challenge, as far as collection, sort- taining papers, coated papers, etc. Computer printout is
ing, pulping, and deinking are concerned, is currently perhaps the only easily recognized and sorted office
the mixed office waste area. Utilization of mixed pa- wastepaper.
pers actually declined significantly during the 20-year Unfortunately, most mixed office wastepapers, once
period (1969-89), from a utilization rate of about 22% to in a wastebasket and particularly in large waste recep-
near 11%. This decline is due primarily to sorting and tacles, all seem the same. Sorting is virtually impossi-
deinking difficulties. ble once they are mixed together. Some U.S. corpora-
Mixed office wastepapers represent a major poten- tions have launched programs to sort office papers at
tial fiber source for recycled fine papers, once signifi- the source—just ahead of each worker’s wastebasket as
cant processing hurdles are overcome. Currently, mil- well as wastebaskets at photocopiers, laser printers,
lions of tons of mixed papers generated monthly in printing shops, etc.
large metropolitan business centers such as New York, Some progress is being made in the mixed office
Chicago, and Los Angeles, are being sent primarily to wastepaper area as a result of such programs, and
landfill or incineration. Relatively small amounts are deinking technology is being slowly implemented that
being recycled into center plies of certain paperboard can efficiently remove toner inks along with other
grades, and even smaller amounts go into cellulostic types of printing inks. The ultimate solution, however,
insulation and other non-paper and board applications. may be the development and widespread utilization of
Generally, mixed paper collecting and sorting prob- inks that are more easily removed than any of those in
lems begin in the workplace. First, most offices current use.
throughout North America generate and/or receive Section 7 of this book contains 11 feature articles on
through the mail a wide variety of printing and writing recent recycling expansion/modernizations in North
grades containing a mixture of inks. Difficult-to-re- America. The recycled grades involved include news-
move inks such as xerographic and laser-print inks print, paperboard, tissue, linerboard, market pulp, and
represent perhaps the greatest deinking hurdle. As dis- fine papers. The recycled fine paper mill is one of only
cussed in Section 6, these inks are thermally fused to a very few currently using some mixed office waste-
electrically static-charged paper and cannot be effec- papers in their furnishes. As more of the advanced
tively removed with the same deinking technology technology and collection and sorting practices de-
used with various offset printing inks, for example. tailed in this book are implemented, this list will grow
When a multitude of office wastepapers containing a rapidly.
wide variety of printing inks are collected together at
the end of each workday in office buildings, the result Kenneth L. Patrick
is an instant sorting nightmare. Unlike with newspa- Editor in Chief, PULP & PAPER
pers, corrugated containers, paper bags, or even old May 1991

vi
Paper Recycling
 Recycling Capacity
and Outlook
The U.S. pulp and paper industry has targeted a 40% wastepaper recovery rate by 1995. This
amounts to some 40 million tons, or 50% more paper and paperboard than was collected in
1988. The industry seems to be on track to accomplish this goal, but with capital costs of new
capacity continuing to increase rapidly, the 40% rate could become elusive.
This section examines recycling capacity plans on a grade-by-grade basis for the next several
years. Deinking projects currently underway and on the drawing board are listed, along with
data on specific capital spending and capacity additions by each company and mill. The prolif-
eration of new federal and state laws has played and will continue to play a major role in the
paper recycling race. Articles in this section explore developments and pending activities in this
legislative arena.
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 Recycling Capacity to Increase at
Record Rates as Laws Proliferate

The paper industry will By DEBRA A. GARCIA, Senior News Editor WASTEPAPER GROWTH. In a spe-
cial wastepaper survey conducted in
have to adjust over the November 1988 by the American Pa-
A: recently as five years ago, per Institute (API), U.S. papermakers
next several years to wastepaper was considered to told the U.S. trade association that
be primarily a lower-cost alternative their future plans would account for
major changes in markets to woodpulp. While it still retains a consumption level by 1995 of 31.4
and technology as public this distinction, some other benefits
have been added in recent years. Es-
million short tons of wastepaper—
mostly old corrugated containers
opinion shifts to a pecially in the U.S., laws are being
adopted to encourage consumers to
(Occ) and old newspapers (ONP).
This means a 50% increase in usage
preference for recycled buy more recycled paper and paper- over the 20 million short tons
board products. The paper industry reached in 1988.
products has been responding to these market API reported in its 1989 Capacity
pressures with planned expansions Survey that recycled fiber capacity
in recycled fiber. In the 1990s, re- would grow at twice the rate of
cycling is likely to be one of the woodpulp capacity over the next
most predominant concerns for this three years. Consumption of waste-
industry. paper in the manufacture of paper
The North American paper in- and paperboard will rise from an es-
dustry is planning more than 60 timated 20.9 million short tons in
projects involving secondary fiber 1989 to nearly 25 million short tons
processing plants, 50% more than a in 1992 (Tables 2 and 3). This rate of
year earlier, according to an October growth will average 6.2% annually
1989 Project Report (Table 1). Proj- through 1992, raising the percentage
ects at paperboard mills remain the of wastepaper used by the industry
most common, but expansions in re- to 27.2% by 1992 from 25.4% in
cycled tissue and newsprint have 1989. Woodpulp consumption will
grown the fastest. Eighteen secon- drop to 72.8% of fiber supply from
dary fiber projects were listed in 74.6%.
1989 for newsprint mills, up from During the first eight vears of the
just six a year earlier; 15 projects 1980s, the paper and board indus-
were planned at tissue mills in 1989 try’s use of wastepaper worldwide
compared with six in 1988. grew by 50%, while its dependence
on this recycled material source in-
creased steadily, according to Jaakko
This report was prepared with the Péyry Oy. In its recently released
assistance of Jaakko Péyry Oy, which study, “Recycled Fibre, An Under-
has recently completed a major multi-
utilized Opportunity.” the firm pro-
client study, “Recycled Fiber, An
jects that worldwide use of recycled
Underutilized Opportunity.”
fiber will continue to grow. It ex-
pects global consumption of waste-
paper to have passed the 100-mil-

Recycling Capacity to Increase

Wastepaper processing projects at U.S. and Canadian mills.

Start Cost ($
date million) Company, mill site Additional Information (capacity figures in metric tons)

U.S.
1989 3.8 Atlas Tissue, Hialeah, Fla. Tissue expansion with new deinking line sized to accommodate a future third paper
machine
1990 Augusta Newsprint, Augusta, Ga. Install new 90,000-tpy deinking plant
none Bear Island, Ashland, Va. Install deinking facilities once a pattern of recycling laws and market needs is
established
1991 Bowater, Calhoun, Tenn. Build new deinking facility at Bowater Southern newsprint mill
1991 Champion, Roanoke Rapids, N.C. Install processing plant for old corrugated containers
1990 Chesapeake, Menasha, Wis. New deinking line; part of 80,000-tpy tissue expansion which includes new paper
machine
1990 Chesapeake, West Point, Va. Replace high-density dispersion and screening equipment in secondary fiber plant to
reduce contaminants and improve quality; adds 125,000 tpy to capacity
1989 Converters, Rockford, Mich. Install Black Clawson Lo-density pulping system to upgrade wastepaper cleaning
system
1989 Corrugated Services, Forney, Texas Expand recycled medium capacity 50%; includes two 34-in. refiners, cleaning
equipment
1992 Daishowa, Stockton, Calif. Build new 350,000-tpy recycled containerboard mill with state-of-the-art secondary
fiber technology; joint venture partner is Trans-Rim Ltd.
none Daishowa, Port Angeles, Wash. Considering production of directory paper as light as 20 Ib with 30% recycled fiber
1988-90 Federal Paper Bd., Sprague, Conn. Stock cleaning upgrade with seven Black Clawson Ultra screens to process ONP,
OCC
1991 Fort Howard, Rincon, Ga. Fourth recycled tissue machine installation includes fiber processing expansion
1989 FSC, Alsip, Ill. New 80,000-tpy recycled tissue mill, with stock preparation system from Bird Escher
Wyss
none FSC, Alsip, Ill. Supplement washing system at recycled newsprint mill with flotation to handle new
wastepaper grades to be collected for adjacent new tissue mill
1989 Garden State, Garfield, N.J. Replace washed news chest agitator; add pulper scavenger system
none Garden State, Northeast U.S. Studying construction of a greenfield recycled newsprint mill for U.S. northeast
1989 Gaylord Container, Antioch, Calif. Black Clawson stock cleaning and screening system for mill upgrade
1989-91 Golden State, Pomona, Calif. Two-year mill upgrade includes washing and screening improvements in deinking
plant
none Golden State, Pomona, Calif. Studying addition of a new recycled newsprint machine, which would require
additional deinking capacity; expanded mill would use up to 400,000 tpy of ONP
none Great Northern, East Millinocket, Add 250,000-tpy deinking plant for recycled newsprint production
Maine
1989 Great Southern, Cedar Springs, Ga. Modifications to boost recycled fiber usage in linerboard by 15,000 tpy
1989 Green Bay Pack., Green Bay, Wis. Expand, modernize secondary fiber system for 350-tpd semichemical medium
expansion
1990 Green Bay Pack., Morrilton, Ark. Upgrade secondary fiber system for 350-tpd kraft linerboard expansion program
1989 Hyde Park Paper, Hyde Park, Mass. Restarted idle mill to produce recycled fine papers on one machine
1990 Inland Container, Newport, Ind. Recycled medium expansion; includes new pulper, refiners and cleaners for
wastepaper
none Intl. Paper ,Riegelville, Pa. Restart 375-tpd recycled containerboard mill; includes modernization of fiber system
1989 James River, Green Bay, Wis. Build a secondary fiber plant to replace some sulfite capacity, adhere to discharge
limits
none James River, Halsey, Ore. Studying a secondary fiber plant to supply tissue and communication paper mills in
Halsey, Clatskanie, Ore., and Camas, Wash.
19out Kenaf North Am., Muskogee, Okla. Build new 750-tpd recycled linerboard mill
1989 Kimberly-Clark, Jenks, Okla. Construct 68,000-tpy tissue mill; furnish will be combination of pulp and recycled
fiber
1990 Kimberly-Clark, Loudon, Tenn. Construct new tissue mill, about half the size of Jenks mill; furnish is pulp, recycled
fiber
1989 Longview Fibre, Longview, Wash. Construct new 300-tpd secondary fiber plant with pulping, screening and cleaning
system for OCC from Black Clawson
1991 MacMillan Bloedel, Pine Hill, Ala. Containerboard mill modernization includes changes to increase use of recycled
fiber
1989 Macon Kraft, Macon, Ga. Expand and modernize wastepaper pulping; part of quality program and liner
expansion

Recycling Capacity and Outlook

 Start Cost ($
date million) Company, mill site Additional Information (capacity figures in metric tons)
U.S.
1991 35.0 Menasha, Otsego, Mich. Corrugating medium expansion; includes new wastepaper processing system to
expand secondary fiber usage form 40% of total furnish to 50%
1990 66.0 Mi Ho Paper, St. Joseph, Mo. Construct new fine paper mill furnish will be market pulp and recycled fiber
none — Mosinee, Cheboygan, Mich. Install deinking facility at newly purchased mill for tissue expansion
none 480.0 Northampton Pbd, Northampton, Pa. Proposed 300,000-tpy recycled linerboard mill
1991 300.0 North Pacific, Longview, Wash. Newsprint expansion; new 180,000-tpy deinking plant will allow production of
recycled news, supply 80% of additional fiber for new machine, and 25%
of overall mill needs
1989 — Putney Paper, Putney, Vt. Install two new Voith Morden pulpers and Sulzer Escher Wyss deinking cells and
screening equipment for tissue expansion
1990 14.0 Recycled Paper Board, Clifton, N.J. Reopen mill to produce 200 to 300 tod recycled board from up to 400 tpd of
wastepaper
none — Smurfit, Fernandina Beach, Fla. Expand secondary fiber facilities for 600-tpd recycled containerboard machine
restart
1990 — Smurfit Newsprint, Newberg, Ore. Install flotation deinking system to enable use of magazine stock in recycled news
furnish
none — Smurfit Newsprint, Northeast U.S. Studying feasibility of building a new 255,000-metric-tpy recycled newsprint mill, to
consume 300,000 tpy of wastepaper
1989 — Smurfit Newsprint, Oregon City, Ore. Flotation deinking system to enable mill to use magazine stock in recycled new
furnish
1989 300.0 Southeast Paper, Dublin, Ga. Newsprint expansion; includes Black Clawson 1,500-tpd Hydrapulper deinking
system with 900 tod cleaning and screening
1989 18 Stone Container, Uncasville, Conn. _ Paper machine rebuild and recycled fiber system upgrade; adds 60,000 tpy medium
none 100 Trans Rim, Dunkirk, N.Y. Proposed 200,000-tpy recycled containerboard mill, to process 220,000 tpy OCC
1989+ — Virginia Fibre, Riverville, Va. Install new 500-tpd Beloit Jones recycled fiber system at medium mill
1989 — Visy Recycle, Hartford City, Id. Restart shutdown 3M mill to produce 150 tod of recycled medium
1991 30.0 Weston, Terre Haute, Ind. Corrugating medium expansion; includes OCC recycling expansion with new refiners
and repulper to improve stock cleaning and processing

Canada (C$ million)

1989 — Atlantic Packaging, Whitby, Ont. New 185,000-tpy recycled newsprint and tissue mill; furnish will be 65,000 tpy of
computer printout and ledger for tissue and 165,000 tpy of
old newspapers for newsprint
1991 80.0 Balaclava Enterprises, Vancouver, New 122,500-tpy market deinked pulp mill
B.C.
1991 75.0 Canadian Pacific, Thunder Bay, Ont. Install deinking plant to supply 237,500-tpy recycled newsprint output
1990 20.0 Cascades, East Angus, Que. Install new 60-tpd deinking plant at boxboard mill to allow use of higher wastepaper
grades
1989 30.0 Cascades, Kingsey Falls, Que. Tissue expansion; includes new deinking line
none 100.0 Cascades/Steinbeis, East Angus, Joint venture to produce 100,000 tpy of recycled computer printout paper from
Que, or Niagara Falls, N.Y. 120,000 tpy of ONP; either location would require a new deinking plant
none — Daishowa, Quebec City, Que. Considering use of recycled fiber in newsprint furnish
none 65.0 Donohue, unspecified location Build 80,000-tpy deinking plant at Clermont, Que., or Montreal, Que.
none 75.0 Fletcher, undecided location, B.C. Considering secondary fiber plant for Elk Falls or Crofton; both washing and flotation
systems are under study
none 100.0 Fraser, Thorold, Ont. Studying new 272-tpd deinking plant to boost secondary fiber use from current
23,000 tpy
none 53.0 Kruger, Bromptonville, Que. Add deinking plant for recycled newsprint production
none 75.0 Mac. BI., undecided location, B.C. Build new 200- to 300-tpd deinking plant at Port Alberni or Powell River for recycled
news
1991 45.0 Perkins Papers, Candiac, Que. Tissue expansion with new paper machine, new deinking line
1991+ 24.0 Quebec & Ontario, Thorold, Ont. Convert washing deink plant to flotation and install post refining in flotation
1990 Sila) Scott, Crabtree, Que. Build new 65-tpd secondary fiber line; boosts recycled fiber capacity to 165 tpd
none — Soucy, Riviere-du-Loup, Que. Install deinking facilities once a pattern of recycling laws and market needs are
established
1991 — Stone-Consolidated, unspecified Add deinking at one of its Canadian mills
location

Recycling Capacity to Increase

 TABLE 2: U.S. eocc: includes used corrugated
:
wastepaper 1988 1995 containers as well as container plant
be bs 1988 Actual Recovery Projected Recovery cuttings.
(million ee Wastepaper grade demand rate(%) demand _ rate (%) e Pulp substitutes: includes un-

tons). Old newspapers 4.8 34.8% 8.0 51.6% printed grades of brown and colored
Corrugated 12.4 51.6 18.8 66.0 kraft, tabulating cards, white and
he a sa He rane semibleached sheets and cuttings,
ulp substitutes ; ; ? ! : ; 5
High-grade deinking 2.5 37.0 4.4 50.0 pee ui or trim of unprinted
grades.
Fetal 282 sad Fe aoe 2s% e Deinking: includes the deinking
Source: Franklin Associates Ltd. grades of white and colored ledger,
computer printout (CPO) paper, coat-
ed book and groundwood paper, and
lion-metric-ton mark by 1996 and to pulp substitutes, and deinking are bleached sulfate sheets and cuttings.
reach 130 million metric tons by the the five official wastepaper grade The demand for recycled fiber
end of 2001. the period its forecast categories used by the Dept. of Com- worldwide has grown fast—twice as
covers. merce and are generally accepted by fast as the demand for virgin fi-
Worldwide, close to 75 million the industry as the key benchmarks ber pulp (5.0% annually vs 2.5% an-
metric tons of recycled fiber were for numerous other grades. The Pa- nually during 1970-88), according to
used in paper and paperboard man- per Stock Institute of America sub- Jaakko Poyry. In the U.S., results of
ufacture in 1988, accounting for al- divides these five groups into more API’s 1989 Capacity Survey indicate
most one-third of the total paper- than 80 definitive grades with pre- that the U.S. industry’s use of waste-
making fiber needs of the industry cise specifications that are periodi- paper will grow twice as fast as its
(Figure 1). In 1989, 27.6 million short cally reviewed and updated. consumption of woodpulp over the
tons of wastepaper were collected The grade characteristics are as next three years, according to Rich-
for recycling in the U.S. Of this, 21.3 follows: ard E. Storat, API’s vice president-
million short tons were used by the e Mixed paper: includes paper of economic and financial services.
U.S. paper industry and 6.3 million varied quality, often office waste, as Projected 1991 U.S. paper indus-
short tons were exported. well as boxboard cuttings and mill try consumption of wastepaper will
wrappers. reach 23.7 million short tons, ac-
GRADES VARIED AND COMPLEX. ®ONP: includes old newspapers, cording to the latest API survey. Just
Wastepaper is also referred to as pa- either collected from households or a year earlier, the same survey re-
perstock, secondary fiber, and recy- overissues at newsstands or inplant; sults had reflected that consumption
clable paper. Mixed paper, ONP, OCC, also groundwood paper trim. . would be 23.0 million short tons—a

As more municipalities adopt waste-reduction laws, more households will be separating their recyclables betore disposal.
(Photo
courtesy of Browning-Ferris Industries.)

Recycling Capacity and Outlook

 FIGURE 1: World usage of deinked
pulp, 1988 and 2001.

Newsprint

Printing and writing

Tissue

Cartonboard

Other paper and board

Market pulp

8
Million tons

1988 as 2001

boost of 714,000 short tons in pro- legislators have come back to the ta- and recycled content in newsprint.
jected expansions in surveys just ble with bills to enhance markets These laws include the following: 1)
one year apart. During the same pe- that could consume the increasing laws requiring consumers of news-
riod, planned 1991 woodpulp con- generation of wastepaper. Legisla- print to use recycled-fiber newsprint
sumption is expected to drop by tion on waste reduction has been for a certain portion of their total
2.3% to 65.1 million short tons. enacted in about 20 U.S. states, in requirements (Table 4), 2) federal,
many municipalities, and is in the state, and municipal procurement
LAWS SPUR DEMAND. Improve- pipeline in many more. policies favoring recycled materials,
ments in technology, scarcity of vir- Typically, the laws cover source and 3) mandated source-separation
gin fiber, and the incentive of a low- separation, procurement preference, of newspapers by households. This
er-cost fiber alternative have contri-
buted to the growth in secondary
TABLE 3: Total U.S. wastepaper consumption, 1988-92 (000 short tons).
fiber consumption. In recent years,
however, environmental issues have
1988 1989" 1990? 1991?
been a significant catalyst. In the
U.S., the landfill problem has caused Total all grades 19,886 20,878 22,570 23,740
lawmakers to look for alternatives, Total paper 5,650 5,960 6,596 7,087
and recycling has proven to be the Newsprint 1,431 1,498 1,754 1,831
Printing, writing, and related 1,416 1,447 15917 1,608
safest choice politically. The pub-
Packaging and industrial converting 265 253 253 255
lic is generally opposed to alterna- Tissue 2,036 12,62 = 73,072" 63,393
tives such as siting new landfills and
Total paperboard 13,371 14,034 15,021 15,671
incineration. Kraft, bleached, and unbleached 2,042 2,311 2,694 2,830
Laws preceding these, in the ear- Semichemical 1,845 1,935 2,063 2,093
ly 1980s, began to attack the solid Recycled corrugating 2,081 2,165 2,343 2,436
waste problem by mandating muni- Other recycled T,403)59) 7,023). 7,921] 87312
cipal source-separation of recycled Construction paper and board 885 884 953 982
materials. A few years later, some 1. Estimated actual consumption.
of these public programs began to 2. Estimated consumption of full capacity operations.
Source: API Capacity Survey, 1989.
fail when more paper was generated
than the market would accept. Now,

Recycling Capacity to Increase

follows a goal set by the Environ- age would still exist. Canadian mills
mental Protection Agency (EPA) for At the Candian Pulp & would be forced to import the rest—
undoubtedly from the U.S. CPPA
a 25% reduction in solid waste by
has moved recycling from its envi-
1992. Paper Assn.’s (CPPA) ronmental agenda to its economic
On June 22. 1988. EPA issued the
“Guideline for Federal Procurement
of Paper and Paper Products Con-
annual meeting in agenda, noted John Houghton, presi-
dent of Quebec & Ontario Paper Co.
Ltd., which is the only current pro-
taining Recovered Materials,” as re-
quired under section 6002 of the Re-
January, Howard Hart, ducer of recycled-content newsprint
source Conservation and Recovery in Canada.
Act (RCRA) in an effort to stimulate
CPPA president, Reportedly, the Ontario Forest In-
demand for products made from ma- dustries Assn. said the amount of
terials recovered from solid waste. projected a shortage of newspapers collected for recycling
One vear later, all of the federal in Ontario reached 234,000 metric
government agencies responsible for ONP in Canada by the tons in 1988, when Toronto began to
procuring paper were required to recycle. About 190,000 metric tons
give preference to recycled prod- end of this year. of ONP are used by Q&O.
ucts, and state and local govern- Companies in Canada are also
ments that purchase $10,000 worth more skeptical than those in the U.S.
or more using appropriated feder- about the long-term benefits of in-
al funds must also follow the EPA recycling rate of about 24%. vesting in recycled fiber equipment.
guidelines (Table 5). At the Canadian Pulp & Paper Besides concerns about possible sec-
Assn.’s (CPPA) annual meeting in ondary fiber shortages, they are also
CANADIAN INVESTMENT RISKY. January, Howard Hart, CPPA presi- uncertain about whether it would
In Canada, though, there is growing dent, projected a shortage of ONP in be feasible for many Canadian mills
concern that recycled projects may Canada by the end of this year. Hart to use wastepaper, as these mills
be built more quickly than the sup- noted that even if six out of ten tend to be remote from metropoli-
ply of wastepaper can be generated. old newspapers in Ontario—an esti- tan areas. Canadian producers have
Canada recycles only about 10% of mated 340,000 metric tons—were to begun asking local and federal agen-
its wastepaper, compared with a U.S. be collected for recycling, a short- cies for assurances of their commit-

The 1990s will see a trend toward harvesting

the urban forests of wastepaper, which are
most productive in large metropolitan
regions. (Photo courtesy of Jefferson Smurfit
Corp.)

Recycling Capacity and Outlook

ment to recycling and for financial ber projects. Canadian Pacific Forest Using the Fed. Rep. Germany com-
assistance. Products Ltd. plans to add deink- pany’s technology, a 100,000-metric-
Cascades Inc. and Kruger Inc. ear- ing at its mills in Gatineau, Que., tpy recycled CPO and copier paper
lier this year separately postponed and Thunder Bay., Ont., and Abitibi- mill would use 100% ONP. Depend-
plans involving recycling projects, Price Inc. has publicly stated it will ing on where the mill is constructed,
pressuring the government to pro- build deinking facilities in Canada it could cost from C$40 to C$150
vide some support. In the meantime, but has not selected any sites yet. million.
across the border in New York, state Kruger wants to build a C$53- Quebec reportedly is looking at a
officials are offering economic in- million deinking plant adjacent to new program to encourage mills to
centives if Cascades decides to go its newsprint mill in Bromptonville, use ONP and old magazines. This
ahead with its plans at Niagara Falls, Que., while Cascades has been look- could include financial aid for new
N.Y. ing at several locations for a joint deinking plants. To qualify, deinking
Still, other Canadian companies venture with Steinbeis & Consor- plants would have to draw at least
are forging ahead with recycled-fi- tium GmbH (P&P, Nov. 1989, p. 39). 50% of their raw materials from

U.S. recycled newsprint legislation.

Consumption?
State laws Fees or credits? Timetable Status

California Penalties not to exceed 1/1/91 Passed

$1,000/violation 1/1/2000
Connecticut 12,31,93 Passed
12/31/98
Florida 10¢/ton tax until 10/92; 1992 Passed
50¢/ton if goal not reached
Illinois
H.B. 2912: 10¢/ton disposal fee 1991-93 Pending
H.B. 2458: not to exceed $5,000 1/1/91 Pending
Kentucky 7/16/91 Pending
THA S/O2
Louisiana 10¢/ton tax Failed
Maine Up to $1,000/violation 12/31/93 Pending
12/31/97
Maryland $15/ton for every short of goal 1992° Pending
1998
Massachusetts 12/31/93 Pending
12/31/97
Missouri
H.B. 949: 10% of the cost/ton on virgin newsprint 1992 Pending
consumed 1996
SHB MOUSE 1993* Pending
1997
Nebraska $1/ton tax Failed
New Jersey
A. 627 1990* Pending
A.B. 4703 12/31/89 Pending
1991
New York
S.B. 4504: Paper not meeting requirement not to be sold in state 1991* Pending
S. 6779: $500 to $1,000/violation 1/1/92 Pending
1/1/2000
10¢/ton tax Failed
N. Carolina
$1/ton tax Failed
Oregon
2% reduction in state income tax if goal is reached Pending*
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
Restraining order issued Pending
H.B. 7923:

S.B. 2053: $20,000/day Pending

H.B. 8411:

Recycling Capacity to Increase

 Quebec. The province’s Forestry Act promising as it is in the U.S. (Recov- tons from 226 million metric tons in
may also be amended to require ery rate is the ratio of recovered fi- 1988). The U.S. utilization rate will
greater use of not only wastepaper ber collected to paper and board grow to 31.3% from 22.8% currently
but also woodchips in order to con- consumed.) Much of what will be during this period (Table 6). (Utiliza-
serve forests. needed to meet future growth in tion rate is the ratio of recycled
In Alberta, the provincial Liberal world demand for secondary fiber fiber consumed to paper and board
environmental critic Grant Mitchell will come from the U.S. produced.)
criticized the provincial government Jaakko Péyry projects the world-
for attracting kraft pulp mills to the wide recycled fiber utilization rate WORLD GROWTH TIED TO U.S.
province while the North American will increase to 41.0% in 2001 from While both Western Europe and Ja-
trend is toward recycling. 32.8% in 1988, assuming global con- pan will be self-sufficient to a high
In Canada, as in other areas of the sumption and production of paper degree (importing some better quali-
world, future growth in recovery and paperboard will grow an aver- ties mainly to reinforce the strength
rates for wastepaper may not be as age of 2.6% (to 317 million metric of the secondary fiber stream), the

Consumption?
State laws Fees or credits’ Goal Timetable Status

S. Dakota 10% /ton cost of virgin newsprint used short 10% 1992 Pending
of goal 50% 1996
Vermont
S:Bacco: 25% TA On Pending
90% 7/1/95
H. 766: 10% of annual newsprint cost or formula based on 25% 7/1/93 Pending
“consumers recycling index”’ 10% 1/1/98 Pending
Virginia 10¢/ton tax Failed
Washington
S.B. 6338: Up to $1,000/violation 25% 1/1/92 Pending
50% 1/1/2000
H. 2562 10% 1/1/92 Pending
30% 1/1/2000
Wisconsin
S.B. 300: 10% of total annual newsprint cost multiplied by 10% 1991 Pending
recycling status 50% 1995
Amendments: Voluntary compliance 5% USI Pending
20% 2001
W. Virginia 25% 1/1/93 Pending
80% 1/1/96
Federal laws:
S:Baili/63; Credits for excess recycled newsprint made 10% 1990 Pending
are transferable 30% 2000
S.B. 1764: Credits for excess recycled newsprint made 10% 1990 Pending
are transferable 40% 2000
BE 2? 22: (Esteban Torres, D-Calif.) 2% increase each year

Note: Does not include preference purchasing provisions for government agencies. Includes states where legislation
is most advanced.

. Fees are generally taxes or penalties on virgin-fiber newsprint consumed. Credits generally apply to
recycled-fiber newsprint used, and are usually used to
offset taxes/penalties.
, nae to amount of total consumption that must be recycled-fiber based, unless otherwise
noted. Ranges imply goals to be phased-in between these
ates.
. Goals are aggregate of recycled fiber consumed in proportion to total newsprint consumed by individual
publisher.
. State task force has proposed voluntary guidelines. (New York's proposal is to increase recycled
fiber consumption gradually from 7% in 1990 to 40% by
2000. Pennsylvania publishers have agreed to use at least 50% recycled newsprint by 1995.
. Goals are an aggregate of statewide recycled fiber consumed in proportion to total newsprint
consumed. Compromise reached late in 1989 proposes to
make all consumption goals voluntary and only applicable when recycled-fiber newsprint
is available in the quantity, at the quality, and of competitive price
to virgin-fiber newsprint.

Sources: American Newspaper Publishers Assn., American Paper Institute.

10
Recycling Capacity and Outlook
 Far East, Canada, and Mexico will TABLE 5: EPA minimum-content standards on major grades.
be major importers of wastepaper—
and only the U.S. will have the po- Postconsumer
tential to meet their needs as well as Recovered recovered
its own growing requirements. Grade materials (%) materials (%) | Wastepaper (%)
The U.S. is by far the largest Newsprint
exporter of wastepaper, with ship- Printing/writing
ments reaching a record 6.3 million Offset printing 50
Mimeo and duplicator 50
short tons in 1989. Canada, mean- Stationery 50
while, gets most of its paperstock Office paper 50
from the U.S., importing approxi- Copier paper 1

mately 257,000 short tons last year. Envelopes 50

Form bond 1

API is projecting continued ro- Book paper 50

bust growth in U.S. exports of waste- Bond paper 50
paper for three main reasons. First, Ledger 50
the recovery rates in many prime Cover stock
overseas markets are already reach- Cotton-fiber paper
Tissue
ing their limits, such as in Japan, Toilet tissue 20
where the collection rate has actual- Toweling 40
ly slipped; second, recycled fiber ca- Napkin 30
pacity is expanding worldwide; and, Facial tissue 5
Doilies 40
finally, U.S. long-fiber wastepaper is Industrial wipes 0
actively sought. Unbleached packaging
Demand for U.S. wastepaper ex- Corrugated boxes 35
ports could reach 11.0 to 14.2 mil- Fiber boxes 35
lion short tons by 1995, according Kraft bags 5
Recycled paperboard
to API estimates. This is based on Folding cartons and other 80
moderate growth in paper and pa- Pad backing 90
perboard consumption outside the 1. EPA found insufficient production of these papers with recycled content to assure adequate com-
U.S. through the mid-1990s and the petition.
Source: E.H. Pechan & Associates Inc.
expectation that the weighted aver-
age wastepaper recovery rate for all
countries except the U.S. edges up
only slightly (Table 7). cific trade from the U.S., 2) export of Postconsumer grades will consti-
Jaakko Péyry expects that activ- ONP (and also, possibly, magazines) tute nearly 90% of the incremental
ity in U.S. wastepaper exports will from the U.S. to Canada, 3) export tonnage required between 1988 and
include the following: 1) cross-Pa- of high-quality occ and deinking 1995, according to Franklin Associ-
grades from the U.S. to Western Eu- ates Ltd. In a study done for API, the
rope, and 4) trade within Western firm estimated that by 1995, the col-
EPA has established a Europe and, later, from Western Eu- lection limits for ONP and OCC will
procurement guidelines rope to Eastern Europe. be close to their maximum limits.
hotline to answer questions “To meet total demand, both do-
mestic and export new collection U.S. RECYCLING GOAL: 40%. API
from government agencies,
records will be set and the collec- announced earlier this year that the
paper mills, merchants, and tion system will continue to ex- U.S. paper industry had set a goal to
the public. Copies of the pand,” noted J. Rodney Edwards, collect and reuse 40% of total do-
guidelines as well as lists of vice president of API’s paperboard mestic production of paper and pa-
manufacturers and vendors group. API estimates world demand perboard by 1995. Currently, the col-
of recycled paper products for U.S. wastepaper alone will reach lection rate is 30%. API projects that
that meet EPA recom- about 40 million short tons by 1995, the U.S. recovery rate in 1995 will
mended standards can be including the estimated 31.4 million be between 38.5% and 41.7% of new
obtained. The number is short tons of U.S. consumption and supply, which will generate material
11 million short tons or more that approximately in balance with pro-
703-94 1-4452.
will be exported from the U.S. jected demand.

Recycling Capacity to Increase 11

 A report recently released by the TABLE 6:
Wastepaper
New York State Newspaper Recy- Paper Recycled Meme utilization in
cling Task Force found that a 65% and board fiber Utilization North America,
newspaper recycling rate is possible production consumption rate (%) 1988-2001.
Grade 1988 2001 1988 2001 1988 2001
in the U.S. by the year 2000. By that
(million metric tons)
time, New York State publishers say Newsprint 15.4 19.2 Vere) 7.3 9.5 38.0 %
that they will voluntarily use recy- Printing and
cled fiber for at least 40% of their writing paper 22.7 35.8 1.3 3.4 5.8 9:5
total newsprint requirements. This Tissue bys 7.0 2.3 3.8 41.6 55.0
Liner and fluting PES) 33.9 6.2 WEIL 24.5 37.5
would have a significant effect on Cartonboards 7.8 9.3 3.0 3.3 38.4 35.0
Canadian producers, who now sup- Other paper and
ply much of that consumption. board 10.0 10.1 5.5 5.5 55.0 55.0
The report, which resulted from Total 86.7 115.2 19.8 36.0 22.8 31.3
several months of study by the state
Note: A further 16 million tons of wastepaper will be used in North America
government, newsprint industry re-
by 2001. Liners and fluting medium will use an additional 6.5 million tons and
presentatives, the New York News- the utilization rate in the corrugating material industry will rise significantly,
paper Publishers Assn., and Ando- from 24.5% at present to 37.5%. The use of wastepaper and board will
increase in the production of testliner, kraft linerboard and fluting medium.
ver International Associates (AIA), Source: Jaakko Péyry Oy.
was done to find “realistically at-
tainable” levels of recycled news-
print manufacturing capacity and to
investigate steps to encourage in- study was released, including those U.S. newsprint consumption figure
vestment in new or expanded recy- mentioned earlier (Table 8). of 15.8 million short tons.
cled newsprint facilities. The growth in deinking capacity No growth is expected to occur
By 1992, under expansion plans in the coming decade is expected to in newsprint consumption between
announced through late 1989, North increaseto 40% by 2000 from rough- 1988 and 1990. This, combined with
American recycled newsprint ca- ly 7% in 1988 (Table 9). According to the expansion of primarily virgin-
pacity will increase by approxi- figures from New, York State’s Dept. fiber newsprint manufacturing ca-
mately 375,000 short tons, which is of Economic Development and AIA, pacity through 1992, could have a
just 18% of the total newsprint ca- a 65% ONP recycling rate in 2000 dampening effect on recycled news-
pacity expansions planned at that would mean that 10.2 million short print expansions through 1995. De-
time. However, several more proj- tons of ONP will be diverted from the pending on the extent to which cur-
ects have been announced since the solid waste stream. This assumes a rently weak newsprint market con-

TABLE 7: U.S. wastepaper exports

(million short tons).
World
World World World wastepaper
paper/board recovery wastepaper utilization Potential
consumption rate (%) recovery rate (%) U.S.
(except U.S.) (except U.S.) (except U.S.) (except U.S.) exports

Actual
1986 145.1 33.7% 48.9 53.0 4.1
1988 162.8 35.3 97.5 63.5 6.0
Projected
1995
(low)
(high)
Average growth
1986-88 8.4
1988-95
(low) 2.8
(high) 3.8

Source: Pulp & Paper International, with projections from American Paper Institute.

12
Recycling Capacity and Outlook
 TABLE 8: North American recycled newsprint projects, 1989-91. ditions will affect growth in ONP use,
demand could rise by 39% to 66%
Announced
Capacity’ Recycled
during 1988-95 and by 71% to 116%
Company Mill/location (metric tons) Startup content (%) during 1988-2000, according to New
Southeast Paper Mfg. Co.
York State’s report.
Dublin, Ga. 215,000? 1989 95 to 100
Atlantic Packaging Corp. Whitby, Ont. 136, 100? 1990 100
Augusta Newsprint Co. Augusta, Ga. 90,000° 1990 25 to 40+ PRICE INSTABILITY. Wastepaper
North Pacific Paper Corp. Longview, Wash. 230,000? 1991 25 to 40+ prices are determined by a combina-
Canadian Pacific Thunder Bay, Ont. 100,000 1991 40+ tion of demand and the ease with
Forest Products Ltd. Gatineau, Que. 182,500° 1991 40+
Bowater Inc. which supplies can be obtained. The
Calhoun, Tenn. 109,500° 1991 40
Stone-Consolidated Inc. n.a. n.a.? 1991 n.a. actual relationship is hard to quanti-
fy, and it varies with the grade of
Proposed wastepaper. There are also some im-
MacMillan Bloedel Inc. Port Alberni, B.C. nas n.a. portant differences between coun-
Powell River, B.C. n.a.s n.a. tries. But in principal, the buyers,
Fletcher Challenge Ltd. Crofton, B.C. n.a.$ n.a. through their actions, set the price
Elk Falls, B.C. n.a.$ n.a.
Kruger Inc. Bromptonville, Que. n.a.$ n.a.
level. Mills are prepared to pay more
Garden State Paper Co. Northeast U.S. n.a.? n.a. to generate additional supplies but
Smurfit Newsprint Corp. Northeast U.S. 255,000? n.a. expect to pay less as their require-
Newberg, Ore. 275,000? n.a. ments are slowing down.
Balaclava Enterprises Vancouver, B.C. 122,500° 1991 The main characteristic of waste-
Great Northern Paper Co. East Millinocket, Maine 250,000° n.a.
Donahue Inc. Clermont, Que. n.a.? n.a. paper prices in all countries is their
Bear Island Paper Co. Ashland, Va. n.a.? n.a. instability. Prices are highly cyclical,
Atlantic Packaging Corp. Whitby, Ont. na? n.a. and their cycles follow the general
paper and board industry; but the
1. Adding deinking capacity does not necessarily mean an increase in papermaking capacity. important divergence is in terms of
2. New paper machines.
3. Deinking to be added to existi ng mills. price peaks and valleys, with waste-
paper prices moving up and down
Source: Pulp & Paper Week. long before paper and board produc-

TABLE 9: North American newsprint and deinking capacity 1988-2000 (000 short tons).

1988 1992 1995 1997 2000

Newsprint Deinking Newsprint Deinking Newsprint Deinking Deinking Deinking
U.S. (23 mills— 1992)
Northeast 546 220 600 350 828 630
North Central 180 180 350 250 425 340
South Atlantic 1,057 220 1,310 450 1,562 785
Sout Central 2,439 0 3,040 200 3,012 640
Mountain/ Pacific 1,881 592 2,500 750 2,568 820
Total 6,102 1,212 7,800 2,000 8,395 3,215
Deinked as % of total 19.9% 26% 38 %
Canada (40 mills— 1992)
Maritimes 0 2,100 2,100 295
Quebec 0 5,860 400 5,900 970
Ontario 210 2,480 400 2,405 600
Western 0 3,360 200 3,200 420
Total 210 13,800 1,000 13,605 2,285
Deinked as % of total 1.9% 2% 17%
Total North America 17,196 1,422 21,600 3,000 22,000 5,500 6,800
Deinked as % of total 8.3% 16%' 25% 31%

1. Assumes that those mills with deinking facilities are operating at 100% capacity, while the overall industry operating rate will be 87%.
Source: New York State Newspaper Recycling Task Force, Projections from Andover International Associates.

Recycling Capacity to Increase 13

tion takes the same turns. Thus, TABLE 10: Wastepaper prices—major grades ($/short ton, f.o.b. seller’s dock, New York).
maintaining supplies of wastepaper
is a matter of making prices an in- Old Corrugated Hard white Colored
newspapers (6) containers (11) shavings (30) ledger (39)
centive to spur collections.
Long term, though, wastepaper
$— 16.00 $17.50 $355.00 $112.50
prices have been downward in real
—5.00 20.83 358.33 115.66
terms, as has also been the case 29.16 358.33 125.00
9.16
with market pulp. The highest-qual- 17.50 35.00 327.50 127.50
ity grades, though, are the exception
to this rule in the U.S. Jaakko Poyry 35.00 43.33 335.00 119.16
45.83 55.83 343.33 125.00
expects that prices for grades such
50.00 51.66 323.33 125.00
as OCC and high-grade deinking will 52.50 320.00 122.50
58.30
strengthen relative to other grades
and will probably rise in real terms. 55.00 54.17 296.66 112.50
And prices of ONP and magazines— 44.16 70.00 276.66 90.83
47.50 42.50 276.66 85.83
which will be in abundant supply— 78.33
40.00 40.00 285.83
will remain depressed, leading more
mills to find ways to utilize these 25.00 22.50 180.00 79.16
grades to a greater degree than they 31.67 45.83 248.33 88.33
are now. 35.00 33.33 210.00 72.50
30.00 25.00 187.50 72.50
Overall, though, there is some
Year-end
evidence that prices will be more 1985 25.00 22.50 180.00 72.50
stable in the future, Jaakko Péyry 1984 42.50 37.50 245.00 115.00
notes in its study. Mills will become 1983 42.50 47.50 212.50 112.50
more involved with the collectionof 1982 30.00 30.00 200.00 67.50
1981 27.50 27.50 252.50 110.00
wastepaper through their interests 1980 45.00 33.00 251.50 127.50
in wastepaper merchants, and new
Note: Prices reflect paper and board mill purchase prices, exclusive of delivery charges, and contract rather
storage systems may reduce price than premium spot sales. Numbers after each grade correspond to definitions in the current Paper Stock Insti-
fluctuations. tute of America Standards & Practices Circular.
Throughout the world, wastepa- Source: Pulp & Paper Week.
per has common sources and collec-
tion systems are largely similar. Ba-
sic sources of preconsumer waste-
paper are printers and converters. per—despite current progress with
And prime sources of postconsumer source-separation of ONP and maga- Overall, though, there
wastepaper are retailers, offices, in- zines in many countries.
dustry, and households. How will this growth affect the
Preconsumer waste is normally wastepaper business itself? Its struc-
is some evidence that
the most valuable, as it is of a largely
consistent and often clean quality
ture is certain to change,
Jaakko Poyry. The merchant/packer
projects
prices will be more |
and is available on a regular basis. sector will be rationalized. There
Virtually all preconsumer waste is will be further integration between stable in the future,
already collected and recycled in mills and merchants. In addition,
the industrialized countries. foreign importers will become more Jaakko Péyry notes in
Postconsumer waste accounts for involved in the U.S. market. “But
the great bulk of all wastepaper col- the business will be more attractive its study.
lected in every region. The recovery than in the past and, hopefully, more
of waste from retailers (principally stable,” its study indicates.
OCC) is normally quite high, as is the Throughout the world, the waste-
recovery of wastepaper from indus- paper merchants are at the center
try whenever it is suitable for recy- of the business—collecting, sorting,
cling. However, the recovery of of- packing, and marketing wastepaper.
fice waste is often still low, as is They are supported by many small
the recovery of household wastepa- collectors feeding wastepaper in-

14
Recycling Capacity and Outlook
to merchants’ yards and by brokers e A limited increase in direct mill usage as well. But present develop-
involved in trading wastepaper rath- ownership of big brokers or mer- ment work with fiber fractionation
er than collecting and packing. chants in the foreseeable future and separation handling of those fi-
eGreater mill involvement with ber fractions will, in the long term,
MILL INVOLVEMENT. Paper and packers—outright control in some bring about economically feasible
board mills, however, are becoming cases and special arrangements in solutions, according to Jaakko Péyry.
increasingly involved in the waste- other cases Up-cycling (use of lower-quality
paper business through the acquisi- e More foreign buyers will have wastepaper for production of high-
tion of merchants and specific sup- offices in the U.S., and some could value-added products) has been the
port of independent merchants. The acquire U.S. packers to safeguard major subject of numerous recent
mills are keen to ensure long-term their supplies. technological research efforts. How-
stability of their wastepaper sup- e Both municipalities and nontra- ever, to date it has not advanced far
plies due to increasing competition, ditional organizations will become enough to be considered economical
especially in better qualities—hence more involved with the handling of compared with uses in applications
their interest in acquiring merchant wastepaper from households. other than primarily industrial.
operations. At the same time, stron- e Generally, medium-size packers Hartwig Geginat, president of the
ger financial backing for merchants will find life hard and will disappear European Paper Institute (EPI) and
will improve their ability to invest or be absorbed into bigger groups. chairman of the executive board of
in new storage and sorting facilities Feldmiihle AG, points out, though,
in the future, and with greater con- TECHNOLOGY AIDS EXPANSION. that advances in deinking technol-
trol by mills, the demand/supply Improving technology in the fields ogy alone should enable wastepaper
and price aspects of the wastepaper of cleaning, deinking, and handling to be upgraded to qualities that were
business may stabilize. of wastepaper has played an impor- not available just a few years ago.
Jaakko Poéyry has forecast the fol- tant role in the continuing expan- “This should open up completely
lowing trends in the structure of sion of wastepaper processing plants new fields of application—in the
wastepaper merchanting in North and, conversely, can be seen as a area of superior hygienic paper, for
America: major bottleneck for recycled fiber example,” Dr. Geginat noted.

FIGURE 2: Production costs on a new newsprint mill.

Ger sw NE Swe Swe

Recy/TMP 60/40% TMP 100% 50/50% 60/40% 50/50% TMP 100% 50/50% 50/50% TMP 100%

BB Wood Recycled fiber ‘Chemicals @@Be Purchased energy

Personnel Other. MMB Capital charges

Recycling Capacity to Increase 15

 Some key developments in im- TABLE 12: U.S. recycled newsprint mills.
proved secondary fiber processing
technology, noted by Jaakko Péyry, Capacity Recycled _
include the following: (metric content
e Improvements in stock prepara- a Company — tpy) (%) —)
tion technology, including deinking, U.S. —
bleaching and fractionation. This is
yielding a more homogeneous raw - FS.C. Paper Co. Alsip, lll. 121,500. 100
‘Garden State Paper Co. Garfield,N.J. 199,500 100 Media General Inc. (100%)
material stock with less impurities Golden State Newsprint Co. Pornona, Calif. 122,500 100
and other detrimental particles. | Manistique Papers Inc. _ _Manistique, Mich. 56,000 100
e More technology-driven know North Pacific Paper Corp. Longview, Wash. 704,000" 257
how of paper and board mills, en- _ Jefferson Smurfit Corp. Newberg, Ore. 350,000 50 The Times Mirror Co. (20%) |
abling them to use specific recycled
Oregon City, Ore. 217,000 50 The Times Mirror Co. (20%)
Southeast Paper Dublin, Ga. 415,000" 95 Cox Enterprises Inc. (3343 %)
fiber grades for getting certain prop- Manufacturing Co. — Knight-Rider inc. (33%%)
erties in end products Media General inc. (33% %) :
e The development of multilayer- Stone Container Corp. : Snowflake, Ariz. 264,100 60
ing technology, leading to a more ef-
fective use of recycled fiber in dif- Canada
ferent layers of the product, particu-
Atlantic Packaging Corp. Whitby, Ont. 136, 100°
larly in the manufacture of board | Quebec & Ontario Paper Co. Thorold, Ont. 310,000 Tribune Co.(100%)
and tissue
eImproved runability of the pa-
per machine with a recycled fiber Soc Heweprat information Committee, Pulp & asses Week.
furnish due to modern paper ma-
chine technology with closed draws 1 Includes new 230,000-tpy machine starting up in late1991.
2. Estimated net recycled content among mill's three paper machines. —
and highly automated process con- 3. Includes new 215,000-tpy machine started September 1989. -
trol and measurement, as well as 4, New 136, 100-tpy machine starting up mid- 1990,

FIGURE 3: Production costs and delivery to U.K.

0 a
_ Recy/TMP 60/40% 60/40% TMP 100%
WB Wood
Personnel

16
Recycling Capacity and Outlook
cleaning equipment is using both washing and flotation cycled grades due to high mechani-
e Advances in coating technology in its deinking system. The two-pro- cal pulp content. This will cause
and use of pigments. These develop- cess system is rare in North America more problems in maintaining ar-
ments, together with the improved (although popular in Europe and Ja- chives for libraries, etc.
smoothness and surface properties pan) but is becoming the new trend e The higher prevalence of stick-
of a recycled-fiber basesheet, will in deinking, as it can process both ies, resulting in greater incidence of
contribute to the increased use of ONP and coated magazine paper and mechanical problems on the paper
coating, especially in the manufac- produce fiber with some beneficial machine. This will, potentially, low-
ture of cartonboard. characteristics. er operating efficiencies and raise
e Soft-calendering to improve sur- Flotation technology is being operating costs.
face properties, especially with a used at Smurfit Newsprint Co.’s Or- e Environmental concerns caused
deinked pulp furnish in newsprint egon City, Ore., mill, Atlantic Pack- by the effluents from deinking, in-
manufacture. aging’s Scarborough, Ont., tissue cluding heavy metals, etc. Costs as-
Present papermaking technology mill, and Stone Container Corp.’s sociated with pollution abatement at
allows increased use of recycled fi- Snowflake, Ariz., newsprint mill. these mills can be high.
ber in standard newsprint (up to Wastepaper use and _ processing
70% without problems in product HURDLES REMAIN. The primary has a sound environmental basis. It
quality), linerboard and fluting, tis- technical bottlenecks limiting the helps to minimize the amount of sol-
sue, and also some cartonboard and use of recycled fiber, as specified by id waste by recycling a portion of it.
packaging paper grades. To a limited Jaakko Péyry, include the following: Some of this can be sorted and han-
extent, the present technology also eThe high-brightness require- dled in such a way as to save forests,
allows for the use of secondary fi- ments in printing paper, which water, and energy. However, it also
ber in uncoated free-sheet grades, make bleaching costs for recycled generates environmental problems.
coated free-sheet, lightweight coated grades cost-prohibitive. Consumers The heavy metals in ink waste,
and supercalendered paper, liquid may have to accept a gray shade. one environmental problem. come
packaging board, and foodboards. eThe lower-strength properties from certain printing colors. One so-
At Atlantic Packaging Products found in recycled grades. As recy- lution is to substitute organic colors.
Ltd.’s Whitby, Ont., mill, a 134,500- cling grows, this will be a problem A second problem is disposing of
metric-tpy newsprint machine that as stronger fibers will be scarcer. deinking waste and other wastepa-
is scheduled to start up late in 1990 e The aging and yellowing of re- per processing rejects. A possible so-
lution is an incineration system that
would optimize the heat economy of
wood and waste firing at the same
mill. The third environmental con-
cern is landfill disposal of waste
from ash after incineration and pos-
sible ground-water contamination.
Some deinking waste currently is
being used for composting.

WOODPULP VS RECYCLED FIBER.

Cost-competitiveness has played a
major role in the increased use of re-
cycled fiber, especially in newsprint
and tissue manufacture in Western
Europe. In North America. though.
newsprint production based on re-
cycled fiber will be driven more by
environmental legislation than by
cost-competitiveness.
The low cost of old and overissue
newspapers and magazines. howev-
er, would give a U.S. Northeast pro-
Advances in technology will continue to sustain the strong growth in wastepaper
demand in paper and paperboard production. (Photo courtesy of Inland Container Corp.) ducer using 50% recycled fiber and

Recycling Capacity to Increase 17

 50% thermomechanical pulp (TMP) a per and board producers throughout that of oversupply of certain grades
production cost advantage of rough- the world are many and involve generated by mandatory separation
ly $40/metric ton compared with a both opportunities and threats. In and collection in North America and
100% TMP-based newsprint produc- general terms, the growing use and potentially in Western Europe. If the
er in the same region, according to acceptability of recycled fiber will market becomes oversupply driven,
Jaakko Péyry’s estimates (Figure 2). allow mills to reduce production there is a danger of price and struc-
A Canadian producer in Quebec costs but will involve significant in- tural breakdown.
with a very low energy price and vestment in wastepaper handling, Growth in wastepaper demand
reasonable wood costs would have cleaning, deinking, and bleaching will spur demand for wastepaper
approximately the same production equipment, which will often be an processing equipment and chemi-
costs with 100% TMP compared with additional cost. Jaakko Péyry ex- cals also. Demand for deinking lines
50% TMP and 50% recycled fiber pects that there will also be an im- will be particularly strong, noted
(imported from the U.S. Northeast) portant marketing opportunity in Jaakko Poyry. By 2001, 31 million
in the newsprint furnish. However, explaining and capitalizing on the metric tons of wastepaper will be
the Quebec producer would be cost- environmental benefits of using re- deinked globally, up from about
competitive both in the U.S. North- cycled-fiber-based grades. 11 million metric tons currently.
east markets (against U.S. producers) With strong growth in demand Improvements in cleaning and fi-
and in deliveries to the U.K. (against and a greater interest on the part of ber upgrading equipment will show
the Swedish producers) with current its customers in securing supplies of strong growth. Equipment manufac-
exchange rates (Figure 3). the correct grades, the wastepaper turers increasingly will be looking at
The implications of the increased business has a very bright future. the consequences of using recycled
utilization of recycled fiber for pa- The major threat to the business is fiber on paper machines. 5

18
Recycling Capacity and Outlook
 Wastepaper Market on Rocky Road:
Unusual Conditions Impede Recovery
U.S. wastepaper markets have never experienced the changes and challenges
they are presently, while long-term prospects are even more uncertain

according to the American Paper Institute (API). Figures

By DEBRA A. GARCIA, Senior News Editor released by API in early 1991 indicated that ONP col-
lections were up about 500,000 short tons in 1990 to a
pi almost any facet of the wastepaper market today, record level of 5.9 million tons. This represents a recov-
and it will have changed remarkably in the space of ery rate of 45% of the 13.3 million tons of newsprint
just a couple of years. Since the latter part of the 1980s, used in the U.S. in 1990. API expects the recovery rate
the business of collecting, sorting, baling, shipping, sell- of ONP to exceed 50% by 1995, when the industry plans
ing, and consuming wastepaper has undergone drastic to recover 40% of all paper and paperboard it produces.
adjustments. This has caused an upheaval the industry This will mean that total collections will have to in-
has never before experienced—and the transition has crease from the 28.9 million tons reported for 1990 to ap-
just begun. In the next decade, the industry will face proximately 40 million tons in 1995.
even more challenges. How it will fare is anyone’s
guess. IS 40% RECOVERY ATTAINABLE BY 1995? Achieving
Since 1987, when public recycling programs began to this goal will take not only a 5% annual growth in do-
grow in leaps and bounds, the wastepaper business has mestic consumption but also a 10% annual growth in
gone downhill. It was most noticeable in old newspapers exports, according to Bradley N. Currey, president of
(ONP), the grade that municipal curbside recycling pro- Rock-Tenn Corp. “Whether this happens is not all under
grams have been most successful at generating. The our control, especially exports,” he said.
price mills pay for No. 6 newsprint, the lowest ONP grade There’s no doubt that domestic consumption is on
and the one identified with curbside collections, peaked the rise, particularly for such grades as ONP and old cor-
at $60.00/short ton, f.o.b. seller’s dock, in New York, rugated containers (OCC), but export growth will likely
N.Y., in late 1987. Since then prices have fallen steadily hinge on a number of factors that are not entirely pre-
to their current level of $0. dictable. Presently, for instance, the Persian Gulf war
Recovery of ONP shot up 86% between 1983 and 1990, has caused a shortage of steamship containers that has
put a significant dent in wastepaper exports this year.
FIGURE 1: U.S. wastepaper recovery, consumption, and exports, Rebuilding Kuwait will continue to put a strain on con-
1970-90 (000 short tons). tainer availability in the foreseeable future. A drop in
exports in 1991, after more than a decade of growth (Fig-
ure 1), would not be inconceivable given the container
Recovery situation, and this could cause a glut of paperstock on
the domestic market. Given this scenario, prices would
continue to fall, and a number of smaller operators in
the wastepaper collection business would fail—possibly
122) ~ Consumption!
£S
(=
impeding progress in raising recovery rates.
ar For mills gearing up to use increasing quantities of
fe)
—

os
n
wastepaper, future success depends on securing ade-
e)
‘e) quate and reliable sources of good-quality wastepaper.
= In the past two years, many mills have either acquired
firms in the wastepaper collection business; signed
agreements with recyclers, such as Laidlaw Inc., to han-
dle paperstock procurement; entered into joint ventures
with collection companies; or created their own internal
procurement divisions.
1975 1980 1985
1. Consumption by U.S. paper and paperboard mills
Source: American Paper Institute
19
 OCC SHORTAGES ARE BIG CONCERN. One sector of will remain a problem until better programs can be im-
the paper industry that is most worried about future pa- plemented in offices and other collection centers. This
perstock shortages appears to be containerboard produc- would boost demand for these grades from such users as
ers. Shortages of OCC, which is used in producing box- tissue and printing/writing paper producers. API ex-
board, corrugating medium, and linerboard, are likely pects mixed paper use in the paper industry to rise from
by the mid-1990s. OCC supplies are tight already even at 2.356 million tons in 1989 to 3.007 million tons in 1993.
the current 50%-plus recovery rate, and more capacity Growth trends in the remaining two major categories
to consumer OCC is coming onstream. This situation of wastepaper, high-grade deinking and pulp substitutes,
could change, however, if exports of occ drop. However, will depend largely on how the issue of postconsumer
both domestic consumption and exports of OCC are ex- waste is settled.
pected to grow in 1991. Future growth in OCC collection, Consumer groups are advocating that only paper con-
though, could be impeded by contaminants such as hot- sumed by the end user and tossed out for disposal
melt glues, tar tape, and coated, wax, and film lami- should be considered as recycled fiber in recycled-con-
nates, according to Currey. tent standards being drafted by local, state, and federal
The tightness in OCC markets has kept prices relative- legislators. The paper industry, however, argues that
ly firm during the current down cycle for wastepaper. preconsumer waste, which includes discards from in-
Prices in the New York City region, for instance, have dustry prior to use by the end user, will end up in the
declined only about 50% since they peaked in late 1987 solid waste stream if not reused, making the issue of
at $70 to $80/ton. This compares with a 100% drop in preconsumer vs postconsumer moot.
No. 6 newsprint prices during the same period (Table 1). API projects that mill use of pulp substitutes will
The amount of OCC consumed by domestic paper and grow from 2.889 million tons in 1989 to 3.318 million
paperboard mills in 1990 reached 10.447 million tons, tons by 1992, while consumption of high-grade deinking
46.7% of the total wastepaper consumed. Consumption will rise from 1.691 million tons to 2.307 million tons
of other grades within the industry was considerably during the same three-year period.
lower, with ONP being the highest at 4.679 million tons, The future of the wastepaper business will depend
or 20.9% of the total. on the regulations being adopted to govern recycled-
During the period 1990-93, total wastepaper con- content standards and other requirements, technology
sumption is expected to increase at a pace averaging improvements that will have an impact on the amount
7.2% /year, more than twice the growth rate of any other and types of wastepaper grades that can be used to pro-
fiber source, according to API. By 1993, wastepaper will duce various grades of paper and paperboard, custom-
comprise 29.3% of all fiber consumed by U.S. mills. Ac- ers’ buying habits dealing with their preference for
cording to API’s 1990 ‘‘Paper, Paperboard, Woodpulp Ca- either recycled or nonrecycled grades of paper and pa-
pacity Survey,” wastepaper use by the U.S. paper indus- perboard, the results of the restructuring currently un-
try will rise from 20.442 million tons in 1989 to 27.148 der way as producers and related industries establish
million tons in 1993. their positions in the marketplace, and uncertain factors
Consumption growth will be greatest among the low- such as steamship container availability. &
est grades of wastepaper. OCC consumption is expected
to increase at the rate of 6.3% /year for the period 1989- TABLE 1: U.S. wastepaper prices for selected grades ($/short
92, reaching 13.298 million tons in 1993. According to ton, f.o.b. seller’s dock, New York, N.Y.).
API, capacity for recycled linerboard made exclusively
from wastepaper or with a high wastepaper content is Old Computer
expected to increase at a high annual rate of just over No. 6 old corrugated Hard white printout
39% to reach 1.453 million tons in 1993. Capacity to pro- newspapers’ containers shavings (with laser)
duce recycled newsprint, meanwhile, will boost ONP 1991
consumption almost 50% between 1990 and 1993. Dur- 1Q $0 $35.00 $248.33 $172.50
ing this period, ONP use will rise 9.4% /year to 5.353 mil- 1990
4Q HSE 23.33 266.67 175.83
lion tons.
3Q —4.67 20.00 270.00 185.83
2Q = 166 16.66 273.33 211.66
MIXED PAPER PROVIDES GREATEST CHALLENGE. Per- 1Q = 15018, 12.50 308.75 235.00
haps the grade with the greatest potential but the biggest 1989
challenge is mixed paper. This category has always con- 4Q — 16.00 17.50 327.50 255.00
3Q = 0.00 20.83 358.33 260.83
tained grades that were too costly to presort and were 2Q 9.16 29.16 358.00 230.83
therefore sold to mills where bulk rather than appear- 1Q ie SO 35.00 355.00 210.00
ance was a priority, such as in construction grades, setup 1988
boxboard, and the underside of clay-coated folding car- 4Q 35.00 43.33 335.00 213.33
3Q 45.83 55.83 343.33 236.66
ton. The growth in office presort programs is helping to
2Q 50.00 51.66 323.33 230.00
unmix mixed papers and allow them to be reclassified 1Q 58.30 52.50 320.00 221.66
as higher grades (ledgers, hard whites, etc.). But quality Prices are quarterly averages of paper and board mill purchase prices, f.0.b.
seller's dock, exclusive of delivery charges, and they represent contract rather
than spot or premium sales.

Source: Pulp & Paper Week, Paper Recycler.

20
 New Deinking Projects Proliferate
as Industry Meets Recycling Demand
Despite industry downturn and capital spending cuts, North American
pulp and paper companies continue to invest in deinking plants

clear for printing and writing paper, although environ-

By MARY CORBETT, News Editor mental motivations may create markets for these grades.
To secure a source for what may become a required raw
Ts North American paper industry continues to material in the future, mills must establish a good work-
demonstrate its commitment to using increased ing relationship with local collection services or offices.
amounts of recycled fiber by the abundance of deinking Projects listed in Table 1 are definite or very likely to
projects planned or proposed to start up in the next cou- move ahead, pending approval. Many more companies
ple of years. At least 45 deinking projects will start up in have indefinite plans to install deinking facilities, or
1991 at new or existing mills, adding 2,879,825 mtpy re- they have put projects on hold because of capital limita-
cycled fiber capacity. tions at this time. Addition or expansion of deinking ca-
Although many paper companies have cut back on pability is often tied to papermaking capacity expansion.
capital spending plans for 1991, they are continuing Thus, a few companies have postponed deinking facili-
to invest in secondary fiber projects. This is largely due ties along with new paper machines.
to legislation requiring increased recycled fiber content Jefferson Smurfit Corp. has put on hold a second re-
in newsprint but also because using secondary fiber is cycled newsprint machine along with deinking equip-
becoming more economically viable and more custom- ment and a new cogeneration facility at its Pomona, Ca-
ers are demanding it in tissue and fine paper as well as lif., mill, acquired from Golden State Newsprint in 1990.
newsprint and packaging grades. The mill is currently in the middle of a two-year,
Commenting on the American Paper Institute’s (API) $35-million capital spending program aimed at improv-
recent capacity survey, president Red Cavaney said, ing newsprint quality and raising output 10% to 15% but
“The steeper rise in paper and paperboard capacity rela- has put any further expansion on indefinite hold.
tive to that of total woodpulp reflects the industry’s Smurfit is also in the final round of site selection for
commitment to the increased use of recovered waste- a New York State recycled newsprint mill with a deink-
paper as a papermaking fiber.” ing plant to start up in 1994. Canadian companies that
have postponed projects or kept them on hold include
DEINKING WASTEPAPER SUPPLY. Demand for old Boise Cascade Canada Ltd., Stone-Consolidated Inc., F.F.
magazines (OMG) for use in deinking is increasing, as im- Soucy Inc., and Stora Forest Industries Ltd.
proved technology removes processing obstacles, such Most of the deinking projects to come online in 1991
as dealing with difficult-to-disperse stickies and inks continue to be in newsprint or market deinked pulp
that adhere to paper coating. OMG does have benefits in mills that sell to newsprint manufacturers, but projects
the deinking process for some grades. Clay in OMG stabi- for other grades, particularly tissue, are increasing.
lizes the bubbles in the flotation process, long fibers in
OMG add strength to the next generation of paper, and NEWSPRINT. Recycled newsprint capacity is pro-
brightness is generally higher. jected to increase by 150% by the end of 1991; 30% of
OMG is most commonly used in containerboard, com- that capacity will contain at least 40% recycled fiber by
bination folding boxboard, and industrial packaging but the end of 1992, and 85% will be at existing mills that
is finding increased use in newsprint, tissue, and some have added deinking capacity to replace virgin-fiber
fine writing paper. ONP will show the greatest percent- pulping capacity. The remaining 15% will come from
age gain in consumption of all the grades through 1992 greenfield newsprint mills now under construction.
due to the rapid growth in recycled newsprint produc- Ten new deinking facilities will start up in 1991,
tion slated to come onstream through 1992. adding 1,009,825 tpy of recycled fiber capacity. Eight
The strong economic advantages in using recycled fi- will start up in 1992, adding another 784,350 tpy. Four of
ber for tissue, containerboard, and newsprint are not yet these are market deinked pulp mills that would sell

Wastepaper Market on Rocky Road 21

TABLE 1: U.S. and Canadian deinking projects.

Recycled Recycled
Deinking fiber furnish
capacity content requirements
Company/mill/site Startup (mtpy) (%) (mtpy) Grades

Newsprint
Abitibi-Price, Thunder Bay, Ont. May '92 55,000 40 76,550 70% ONP, 30% OMG
Alabama River Newsprint,
Claiborne, Ala. spring ’92 100,000 45 140,000 70% ONP, 30% OMG
Atlantic Newsprint, Whitby, Ont. Jan. ’91' 146,000 100 73,000 70% ONP, 30% OMG
Augusta Newsprint, Augusta, Ga. Mar. '91? 86,750 variable 115,000 70% ONP, 30% OMG
Bear Island, Ashland, Va. late '92° 43,500 20 60,000 ONP, OMG
Boise Cascade, W. Tacoma, Wash. 1992 70,000 40 109,500 ONP, OMG
Bowater, Calhoun, Tenn. Sept. ’91 109,500 variable 138,700 70% ONP, 30% OMG
Canadian Pacific Forest Products,
Gatineau, Que. late 91 182,500 variable 182,500 70% ONP, 30% OMG
Canadian Pacific Forest Products,
Thunder Bay, Ont. late ’91 100,375 variable 100,375 70% ONP, 30% OMG
Cascades/Donohue/ Maclaren,
Cap de la Madeleine, Que. early ’92 90,000 20 112,900 70% ONP, 30% OMG
Champion International,
Sheldon, Texas 1992 138,800 na. 208,200 ONP, OMG
Daishowa Forest, Quebec City, Que.* Repmoz 110,000 variable 120,000 80% ONP, 20% OMG
Daishowa Forest, Port Angeles, Wash.‘ spring ’92 65,000 variable 75,000 50% ONP, 10% OMG, 40% old
directories
Inland Empire, Millwood, Wash. late ’91 37,000 40 42,000 ONP
Kruger, Bromptonville, Que. 1992 41,640° variable 52,050 ONP, OMG
Newstech Recycling, Vancouver, B.C. Nov. ’91 122,300 variable 140,000 70% ONP, 30% OMG
North Pacific Paper, Longview, Wash. Apr. ’91 156,000 variable 225,550 ONP
Smurfit Newsprint,
N.Y. State (site not chosen) 1994 n.a. na. n.a. n.a.

Stone-Consolidated, Shawinigan, Que.

(under study) na. 70,000 variable 70% ONP, 30% OMG
(Indefinite)
Alberta Newsprint, Whitecourt, Alta. na. n.a. na. n.a. na.
Fletcher Challenge,
Elk Falls and Crofton, B.C. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Georgia-Pacific, E. Millinocket, Maine n.a. 86,750 variable 120,000 ONP,OMG
Manistique (Kruger) ’, Manistique, Mich. proposed 34,700 100 n.a. OMG, books, inserts, catalogues
Kenaf Paper, Raymondville, Texas n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Tissue
Scott, Owensboro, Ky.° proposed na. n.a. n.a.
Perkins Papers, Candiac, Que. Aug. '91 48,500 100,000 ledger (woodfree)
Atlas Paper, Hialeah, Fla. June ’91 21,000 29,200 white leger coated book
Putney Paper, Putney, Vt. Feb. ’91 15,000 9,100 white ledger coated book
Marcal Paper, Elmwood, N.J. n.a. na. n.a. n.a.
Bay West (Mosinee) ,Middletown, Ohio 1991 79,810 120,000 postconsumer
Fort Howard, Rincon, Ga. 1991 na. n.a. n.a.
American Power, Bala Cynwyd, Pa. 1993 138,800 173,500 postconsumer
Orford Recycling, Drummondville, Que. n.a. 120,000 n.a. na.
Fox River Fiber, De Pere, Wis. July ’91 69,400 109,500 ledger grades
Mississippi River Corp., Natchez, Miss. Jan. '91 na. n.a. n.a.
Caithness King, Pejepscot, Maine 1993 190,850 273,750 50% ONP, 50% OMG
Caithness King, Midland, Mich. 1992 190,850 273,750 50% ONP, 50% OMG
Ponderosa, New York, N.Y. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Ponderosa, Augusta, Ga. 1992 34,700 n.a. n.a.
Ponderosa, Oshkosh, Wis. 1992 34,700 n.a. n.a.
Ponderosa, Memphis, Tenn. 1992 34,700 n.a. n.a.
Printing/Writing
Noranda Inc., Thorold, Ont. proposed 120,000 50 to 100 144,000 ledger, office waste
Noranda Forest
Recycled Papers, Thorold, Ont. 1991 32,965 variable 36,500 postconsumer
Patriot Paper, Boston, Mass.® Aug. '91 34,700 100 40, 150 white office waste
Riverside Paper, De Pere, Wis. na. n.a. n.a. na. n.a.
. Will reach full capacity by September ’91.
. Date it will reach full capacity.
. An additional 410,000 tpy capacity using 200,000 tpy of wastepaper (40%) will come online by 1995 or 96.
. Produces newsprint and directory paper.
. An additional 100,000 tpy will come online by 1995.
. Expansion of existing facilities.
. Also produces groundwood specialty grades.
 their output to existing newsprint mills. rectory mill. Daishowa has developed its own top secret
In the U.S. Southeast, Augusta Newsprint Co.’s de- deinking technology, which will enable it to use old di-
inking line at its Augusta, Ga., mill is nearly up to its full rectory paper. A spokesperson for the company did say it
capacity of 250 tpd (see article, p. 76). The deinked pulp is a combination flotation and washing system. Dai-
will enable either of the mill’s two paper machines to showa is also building a deinking facility at its Quebec
make up to 40% recycled-content newsprint and can be City, Que., newsprint/directory paper mill. This facility
varied according to a customer’s specifications. The $27- will use 120,000 tpy of wastepaper from Canada and the
million deinking line was purchased from Black Claw- U.S. (80% ONP and 20% OMG) to produce 110,000 tpy of
son and uses a flotation system with some washing. It deinked pulp. The recycled fiber content can be varied
will use a mix of 70% ONP and 30% OMG, totaling about according to a customer’s needs.
115,000 tpy of wastepaper, which will be obtained from Atlantic Packaging Products Ltd. in Whitby, Ont., is
both municipal and private sources. starting up its 146,000-tpy deinked pulp line. It uses
Alabama River Newsprint Co. in Claiborne, Ala., 73,000 tpy of ONP and OMG sourced from community re-
plans a second-quarter 1992 startup for its $56-million cycling programs. Voith provided the engineering and
deinking facility. The plant will produce 100,000 tpy of supplied the combination flotation and washing system.
deinked pulp to supply its 220,000 tpy of newsprint with The company is not yet up to full capacity on its 400-tpd
a 45% recycled fiber furnish. paper machine, which produces
The combination flotation and 100% recycled newsprint.
washing system will make use
of about 140,000 tpy of ONP and
“These companies [that
DEINKED PULP. Legislation
OMG sourced partly from waste-
paper brokers and partly from
include a percentage of is driving newsprint makers to
include high recycled-fiber con-
municipal reclamation systems.
Parsons & Whittemore and H.A. recycled fiber] will be in tent, but those who cannot af-
ford to build their own deinking
Simons are currently doing the facilities may come to depend
engineering, and suppliers are a much better position than on market deinked pulp manu-
being chosen. facturers. Paul Stern, Caithness
Bowater Southern’s Calhoun, if they sit and wait until King Co.’s environmental scien-
Tenn., deinking plant is under tist, said, “A lot of publishers
construction and will start up in the legislation comes along are under pressure from their
September 1991. The plant will readers to come up with recy-
make 109,500 tpy of deinked and says include 60% cled-fiber content paper. We be-
pulp, using 138,700 tpy of ONP lieve companies will be to an
and OMG that is sourced from recycled fiber.” advantage to begin now proacti-
wastepaper brokers. The $74.5- vely including a percentage of
million facility includes a dual recycled fiber. These companies
flotation and washing system on alkaline, then on acid, will be in a much better position than if they sit and
_ by Black Clawson and a pulping drum by Ahlstrom. The wait until the legislation comes along and says include
engineering was done by CRS Sirrine. The sludge and 60% recycled fiber.”
ash generated by the facility will be landfilled, although Market deinked pulp manufacturers are confident
boiler capacity may be increased in the future so the there will be a continued demand for recycled content
waste can be burned. and that the most efficient and economical way to pro-
In the Northwest, Inland Empire Paper Co. is install- vide it, for mills that don’t have a tremendous need, is
ing a new deinking plant at its 66,000-tpy newsprint mill with deinked market pulp. Stern said, “It’s either a
in Millwood, Wash. It will use 42,000 tpy of ONP to pro- make or buy decision. At our economy of scale we can
duce 37,000 tpy of deinked pulp. The company may sell them the pulp for a lot cheaper than if they had to
have to go a considerable distance to find sources of ONP make it themselves.”
because North Pacific Paper Co. planned to start up a Caithness King is building two nearly identical mar-
156,000-tpy deinked pulp facility in Longview, Wash., in ket deinked pulp facilities—one in Midland, Mich., and
April. North Pacific, a joint venture of Weyerhaeuser Co. the other in Pejepscot, Maine. Both projects will produce
and Jujo Paper Co. Ltd., will source its 225,550 tpy of 550 tpd of deinked pulp, using 750 tpd of wastepaper—
ONP through Weyerhaeuser. The deinking line is tied to 50% ONP and 50% OMG. Construction will begin in
a third paper machine, which will bring total capacity to Michigan in July, and the plant will start up 1992. The
2,000 tpd of variable recycled-fiber content newsprint. Maine mill will start up in 1993. Bechtel is doing the en-
Daishowa America Co. Ltd. is starting up a $40-mil- gineering and suppliers are currently being chosen. Cus-
lion, 65,000-tpy deinked pulp facility at Port Angeles, tomers are being sought in production of value-added
Wash., in spring 1992. The facility will use 50% ONP, grades, such as directory, SCA, SCD, and coated Nos. 4
40% old directories, and 10% OMG for its newsprint/di- and 5, but no contracts are finalized. The process is a

Deinking Projects Proliferate 23

multi-stage washing and flotation system using hydro- new products through the integrated facility first. The
gen peroxide and sodium hydrosulfite for brightness. proposed new facility would consume approximately
Ponderosa Fibres of America Inc., North America’s 144,000 tpy of ledger and sorted office waste to produce
largest market deinked pulp producer, is planning 100- a sheet with 50% to 100% recycled fiber content and
tpd expansions at three mills (Augusta, Ga., Oshkosh, would also sell market pulp. Duncan said since the
Wis., and Memphis, Tenn.) and has proposed a new mill product produced by the new greenfield facility will
for the New York City area. The company is experienc- compete on the pulp market, that investment will in-
ing increasing demand for its product from printing/ volve a long-term look.
writing, tissue, and other specialty grade manufacturers.
It considers itself at an advantage since anticipated legis- TISSUE. More than half of the tissue supply com-
lation is prompting papermakers to use more recycled ing onstream from 1990 to 1993 will make use of
fiber, but many cannot afford to build deinking facili- deinked wastepaper, as more tissue makers turn to
ties. The company currently makes 700 tpd of deinked 100% recycled in response to environmental pressures,
market pulp at four mills using primarily colored ledger, procurement guidelines, and customer demand. Accord-
white ledger, and poly-coated board. ing to API’s 1990 capacity survey, eight new tissue ma-
chines will come onstream between 1990 and 1993, rais-
PRINTING/WRITING. A lack of federal guidelines ing capacity from 5.976 million short tons to 6.349
and the problems with a clean source of secondary fiber million short tons. Four of these machines will use
in printing/writing paper have caused these grades to deinked wastepaper to make tissue.
lag behind tissue and newsprint in secondary fiber us- Three-quarters of the recycled fiber furnish used in
age. Before these manufacturers make the investment in tissue production is supplied from pulp substitutes and
deinking facilities they must be assured that a depend- high-grade deinking grades; mixed paper, ONP, and OCC
able source of quality wastepaper, such as office waste, provide the rest. Fort Howard Corp., Chesapeake Corp.,
is available. Pope & Talbot Inc., and FSC Paper Co. make only 100%
Recyclable paper products account for approximately recycled tissue, while Scott Paper Co., James River
two-thirds of all office waste, yet improper sorting may Corp., Procter & Gamble Paper Products Co., and Geor-
cause contaminants (glues, tape) or paper of unaccepta- gia-Pacific Corp. include an average of 20% wastepaper
ble quality to enter the deinking process. The situation in their tissue.
is improving as offices and commercial buildings are Construction began in spring 1990 on a 48,500-tpy
jumping on the recycling bandwagon. Source separation deinking facility at Perkins Paper Ltd.’s Candiac, Que.,
is the key factor in the effective utilization of office tissue mill. The facility starts up August 1991 in conjunc-
waste. Pickup is often supplied free by waste collection tion with a new Valmet twin-wire, 6,500-fpm tissue ma-
groups, and companies may save on waste disposal chine. The combination flotation and washing system
costs. Also, office workers are demanding that recycling includes equipment from Hymac, Black Clawson, Fiber-
bins be made available. prep, and Escher Wyss and was engineered by Joseph
Noranda Forest Inc. has created a new division called Miller Consultants of Montreal. The facility will make
Noranda Forest Recycled Papers to handle its recycling use of 100,000 tpy of woodfree wastepaper sourced from
efforts at its integrated Thorold, Ont., mill, which in- Montreal and Toronto as well as the northeastern U.S.
cludes three paper machines and a deinking facility. The Perkins has been making 100% recycled tissue since
company is currently implementing process changes to 197Ae
bring the capacity up to about 95 tpd from 25 tpd last Mosinee Paper Corp. is expanding its Bay West sub-
year and will use about 150 tpd of wastepaper by the sidiary in Middletown, Ohio, including a $17-million
end of 1991. deinking plant, due to be completed in third-quarter
Don Duncan, vice president-operations at the mill, 1991. When added to the existing 100-tpd plant, the
said that until last year the company had not been sell- combined operation will produce 330 tpd of recycled
ing the paper as recycled. “By making the move to be- pulp for the mill’s towel and tissue machines. The mill
come an Eco-Logo qualified producer with 50% deinked will use 450 tpd of varying grades of postconsumer
fiber, it has allowed us to put far more through that waste.
deinked plant and maintain quality. It’s interesting that A couple of small tissue manufacturers are expand-
the dirt specks that used to be a problem in the past are ing deinking capability. Putney Paper Co. in Putney, Vt.,
no longer a problem now that we’re selling it as recycled raised its capacity 40% in 1990 to about 50 tpd with a
paper.” machine rebuild. The expanded deinking system will
The company had announced plans more than a year produce about 44 tpd of deinked pulp for its 100% recy-
ago to construct a 120,000-tpy greenfield wet-lap deink- cled tissue. Escher Wyss supplied the flotation system.
ing facility in Thorold, but that project will now be con- Atlas Tissue Mills in Hialeah, Fla., is in the startup
sidered separately, falling under Noranda Inc. Duncan phase of a new flotation deinking line from Black Claw-
said the company is not prepared to make such a large son. It will use 80 tpd of ledger and coated book waste-
investment at this time, and it wants to try introducing paper to produce 100% recycled tissue. si

24 Recycling Capacity and Outlook

 — Section 2 bsp ean, re

. Lo

Wastepaper
Supply and Demand
New markets for recycled paper and paperboard products have sprung up almost overnight
in recent years. Popular recycled commodities have included newsprint, paperboard, liner-
board, paper bags, and most recently fine papers. These increased markets are already taxing
wastepaper supplies in some sectors, notably old newspapers (ONP) and old corrugated contain-
ers (OCC).
In the mid to late 1990s, tightening supplies of onp and occ could drive prices for these
grades considerably higher in the world marketplace, detrimentally affecting their competitive-
ness with virgin fibers. This section analyzes developing wastepaper supply, demand, and pric-
ing trends into the foreseeable future for several grades, including printing and writing papers.
Also included in this section are several articles on the paper industry’s role in helping re-
duce municipal solid waste loads. Existing and potential wastepaper supplies from various state
and municipal programs and drives are assessed for five years into the future.
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 New Markets Open as Public Demand
Grows for Recycled Paper Products
Legislators and major corporations drive paper industry to develop new grades
containing more postconsumer wastepaper

By SUSAN KINSELLA side [Paper Co.] and other mills with the proposal that I
could gain them customers they had never had simply
because their paper contained recycled fiber,” said Alan
L the 1990s, Americans are facing a solid waste dis- Davis, founder and president of Conservatree. Since its
posal crisis, hazardous waste and toxic industrial pro- founding in 1976, Conservatree has played a unique role
cesses, water and energy shortages, pollution, and de- in the paper industry. For most of its history, the com-
pletion of natural resources. Industries that conformed pany has been the only one in the country dedicated to
well to the turn-of-the-century goals of development the wholesale distribution of recycled paper. In fact, the
and expansion are now being pressured to reform their company has always pursued two goals simultaneously.
products and processes to meet these new national “We knew that the production of recycled paper of-
needs. With paper as one of the most pervasive products fered many environmental advantages that would be-
in American society, the paper industry finds itself come increasingly important,” Davis explained. “We fo-
squarely in the environmental spotlight. cused on high-grade papers because that is where the
Recycling is hardly new. The first paper mill in the least recycling was going on, even though it is the fas-
U.S. was a recycled mill that manufactured from rags. test-growing segment of the industry. Since the paper in-
Recycling rates have long been high among the board, dustry would need to know there was a vital market for
tissue, and domestic newsprint industries. Even in high- the paper before investing in deinking, we set out to
grade printing and writing paper, several mills discov- show that a market was there and to enlarge it to the
ered long ago that deinking can be very economical. Mi- point that the switch to recycled paper would become
ami Paper Corp., now owned by Cross Pointe Paper the obvious thing to do.”
(Pentair), installed deinking equipment as early as 1915. Now recycled means high-quality paper in whites,
More than 20 years ago, Simpson Paper Co. located a colors, and designer styles, and it includes almost every
mill at San Gabriel, Calif., near the Los Angeles asphalt grade. The market extends to federal, state, and local
jungle instead of in cool green forests, and turned to governments; major corporations, and the printers that
deinking. supply them; as well as publishers, organizations, and
the public at large. Most significantly, these customers
A MARKET OF ITS OWN. It wasn’t until the first indicate that this is only the beginning.
Earth Day in 1970 that recycled paper began to take on a
life and a market of its own. At the time, recycled meant GOVERNMENT MARKETS AND DEFINITIONS. Confi-
brown paper full of specks and blotches, and its market dence in the market was supported by passage in 1976
was small and unstable. In the mid-1970s, mills were and 1977 of laws in California, Oregon, and Maryland
leery of publicly acknowledging that they produced pa- giving procurement price preferences to recycled paper.
per from deinked wastepaper because the product had For many years it was state governments that provided
an image of inferiority. They were afraid they would the major markets for recycled paper.
lose their markets. Conservatree’s argument, in fact, was In 1983, Conservatree brought California’s 5% recy-
just the opposite. cled procurement preference together with Simpson Pa-
“I went to Bergstrom [now P.H. Glatfelter] and River- per’s expertise in xerographic papermaking to produce
the first high-speed copier paper with 50% recycled con-
Ms. Kinsella is director of communications and research, tent, including 10% postconsumer fiber. Currently, state
Conservatree Inc., San Francisco, Calif. and local governments across the country are clamoring

New Markets for Recycled Paper Products 27

for recycled copier paper, and more mills, including ply rewarding what already has sufficient free-market
Great Northern Nekoosa Corp. and Hammermill Papers, stimulus.
are now producing top-notch paper to meet the need. In Government and corporate policy-makers have been
fact, Noranda Forest Inc.’s Fraser mill in Thorold, Ont., disturbed to learn that much of the paper they have
has recently introduced the first copier paper to carry been buying does not achieve their solid waste manage-
the explicit blessings of Xerox (Canada), with 50% recy- ment goals. “Anyone who has had a landfill closed in
cled content and 5% postconsumer fiber to meet Can- their district would be disappointed to learn that the
ada’s national Ecologo program requirements. federal definition of recycled paper does not promote
While state preference laws kept recycled paper mar- the diversion of used paper from entering our landfills,”
kets afloat for many years, they also fractured the mar- said Congressman John Porter (R-Ill.). “We need to clari-
ket with widely differing definitions of what constitutes fy the necessity for postconsumer waste content.”
recycled paper. When the Environmental Protection Because of the confusion about fiber contents, Con-
Agency (EPA) was finally forced to produce govern- servatree has introduced a ranking system that labels
ment-wide recycled paper procurement guidelines in paper according to the source of its recycled content.
1988 to fulfill the requirements of the 1976 Resource This ranking system, which labels paper from C1 (the
Conservation & Recovery Act (RCRA), everyone hoped highest ranking, containing postconsumer waste) to C4
it would provide a national definition to settle the di- (the lowest ranking, reserved for paper which meets
lemma. Instead, it increased the volatility. only the minimum EPA guidelines), is based on Califor-
“We were simply trying to set minimum standards for nia, New York, and Oregon procurement definitions, all
federal agencies implementing recycled paper procure- of which have successfully stimulated the development
ment programs,” according to Richard Braddock, who of recycled paper for years.
manages EPA’s procurement-guideline-implementation “I think it helps immensely,” said Jim Seeberg, senior
program. “‘We never intended to provide leadership out- vice president of Chicago’s LaSalle Messinger Paper Co.,
side our own agencies.” a Paper Corp. of America company. “Many of our cus-
Nevertheless, the fact that the federal government tomers want to pin down whether the paper they are
has defined recycled paper differently from the states buying contains postconsumer waste.”
has clouded rather than clarified the requirements for Members of Congress are dismayed at the result of
recycled high-grade fiber content. By allowing some EPA guidelines for high-grade paper. Senator Al Gore
mill broke to be counted as recycled content, EPA guide- (D-Tenn.) concluded after a Congressional hearing on re-
lines have encouraged many mills to introduce new re- cycling, “I’m glad to see that paper mills already use vir-
cycled sheets, which has increased the success rate tually all the wastepaper produced in their manufactur-
for procurement officers buying recycled paper. How- ing processes. This shows what economic incentives can
ever, not rewarding the use of postconsumer waste has do to ensure demand for specific materials. Now I be-
decreased the incentive for mills to invest in deink- lieve that it is Congress’s tack to produce incentives for
ing. It is no longer possible to talk about recycled the wastepaper that is not being used, and that means
paper markets without talking about which definition to postconsumer waste.”
use. Some officials are concerned that mills will make pa-
People in the paper industry frequently ask, “What per to meet the looser federal guidelines at the expense
difference does it make if it’s pre- or postconsumer? It of stricter state and local procurement policies. John
all needs to be reused anyway.” It is to the industry’s Rarig, in Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Agency Recy-
credit that noninked, preconsumer wastepaper has al- cling Office, said, “The federal government is such a big
ways been reused, even in the production of virgin pa- consumer that their failure to set a substantial postcon-
per. But customers are buying recycled paper because sumer standard for high-grade paper means that the
they believe it alleviates the municipal solid waste states are left to try to move a national market on their
crisis. Postconsumer waste is ending up in landfills, own. We would like support and reinforcement from the
not mill broke, sawdust, or pulp substitutes. It also national guidelines. We want to empty the national
makes more taxpayer sense for government’s price pref- waste stream as much as possible. The federal guide-
erences to be used in stimulating the use of materials lines don’t do that. They are missing the point—to put it
that do not have alternative markets rather than sim- politely.”

TABLE 1: Conservatree recycled paper ranking.

Type of recycled content

Conservatree Postconsumer fiber Deinked fiber Secondary postmill EPA waste r
recycled rank % by % by % by % by % by % by sere
weight fiber weight fiber weight fiber weight
C+ 20 or 15 and/or 100 or 80
C1 (Calif.) 15 or 10 and 60 or 50
C2 (NY) 50 or 40
C3 60 or 50
C4 (EPA) * 50 or 40
Conservatree products are labeled with content by percent of fiber/recycled rank.
 MAJOR CORPORATIONS JOIN IN. It is on the local lev- added, “As far as I’m con-
el that government faces the starkest reality: What to do cerned, recycled paper with
with their residents’ trash? They are taking solutions to no postconsumer content is
the corporations. “I tell corporate offices that collecting not recycled paper.”
their paper is important, but it’s not enough,” said Amy Some in the paper indus-
Perimutter, recycling coordinator for San Francisco’s try argue that making high-
Recycling Program. “They have to buy recycled paper as grade sheets is not possible
well if they really want to make a difference.” from deinked and postcon- |
Governments are not alone in pressing for a corporate sumer content. But too many L fo.
switch to recycled. According to Susan Swanson, print high-quality sheets are al- Alan Davis, founder and
production manager for Tandem Computers, “Employ- ready on the market to sup- president of Conservatree.
ees notice if you don’t use recycled products. Everyone port that argument. A num-
is very happy that Tandem has gone recycled. We’re a ber of mills see the future of recycled paper and already
company interested in taking a leadership role, in terms - are perfecting sheets with postconsumer contents. Ne-
of the environment and responsibility to the communi- koosa’s xerographic sheet has 10% postconsumer fiber,
ty. Everyone recognizes what a problem the nation is in and Hammermill added postconsumer to its sheet re-
environmentally—it is a disaster ready to happen. With cently. Fox River Paper Corp. goes even further. Al-
corporations being part of ‘the evil empire,’ recycled pa- though EPA guidelines have required no wastepaper
per makes you look like a good guy and makes our em- content for rag bond paper, Fox River produces rag bond
ployees feel better. Our designers are learning to design with 100% deinked fiber, in addition to 25% rag, result-
for the paper instead of the other way around, and ing in a high-quality, 89 brightness sheet, with approxi-
they’re coming up with new choices,” she explained. mately 15% postconsumer content.
Paper merchants are seeing the same phenomenon. In text and cover, most of the new recycled sheets
“We supply some of the largest printers in the world, meet only minimum EPA guidelines. Some, however,
and they want recycled,” said LaSalle Messinger’s See- such as Conservatree’s new Four Seasons from its How-
berg. “The nuances of fiber content are sinking in. ard mill, contain 50% deinked fiber as well as 10% post-
They’re understanding that unless you’ve got postcon- consumer content.
sumer waste, you're not going to solve any problems.” Some mill managers argue that making recycled pa-
At Minneapolis Inter-City Paper Co., another PCA di- per means the industry has to develop whole new
vision, Bob Dowler makes a similar report. “‘We got in- grades of paper. But don’t tell that to book publishers,
terested in recycled paper first of all because we are who have been printing many of the nation’s bestsellers,
concerned about the environment and the effect that pa- including Roots and Iacocca, on recycled paper for years,
per disposal has on it. Initially, state agencies were ask- simply because some of the best archival-quality paper
ing about recycled paper, then it spread to smaller .in the country also happens to have recycled content.
governments and large environmentally concerned cor- And Simpson wasn’t making a new grade of paper
porations. Now it’s down to quick-print shops and indi- when it produced the first recycled xerographic paper. It
viduals who want it for their own use. It is virtually uni- was simply making xerographic with a different fiber
versal now. The education of the print purchasers in the source. Fox River wasn’t producing a new grade of paper
past 18 months surpasses all the education in the past 18 when it came out with the first deinked wastepaper con-
years. Currently, it is large printers and state agencies tent rag bond. It was simply producing the same high-
that are asking for postconsumer waste content. I think quality paper using a different source for fiber.
that sophistication will spread the same way.” Jobe Morrison, president of Cross Pointe’s Miami Pa-
Because selling recycled paper still frequently calls per mill, said the deinking mill was upgraded because
for selling the concept along with high-quality paper, “we believe our industry has to develop the ability to
it sometimes takes more time and effort. For this rea- use postconsumer waste in printing and writing paper to
son, Conservatree has recently introduced Conservatree have an impact on the solid waste crisis our nation is
Consultants to assist major corporate paper buyers in facing. The marketplace is going to demand that the
making the switch to recycled. “Even when a company printing and writing industry use postconsumer waste
decides to switch, implementation can be difficult be- as part of the recycled fiber content in high-grade pa-
cause there is still so much misinformation,” said Alan pers. What’s going to happen in the office collection pro-
Davis. “We can help them through the process because grams is the same thing that happened in newsprint. All
we have so much experience with it ourselves.” the collection programs are kicking in right now, but
there is no market currently for the waste being collect-
POSTCONSUMER PAPER. The customer has the last ed.”
word. Tandem’s Swanson said, ‘‘We try to go with papers A number of nonintegrated paper mills have been
that have more postconsumer waste in them. We’re even creatively testing the market for postconsumer content
willing to pay a little bit more to get them.” fibers by buying deinked fiber from Ponderosa Fibres’
David Assmann, publisher of Mother Jones magazine, pulp mills or from tissue mills. The strong demand for

New Markets for Recycled Paper Products 29

 these sheets has led at least two companies to plan their top paper distributors across the country that make its
own deinking pulp mills. Fox River Fiber is ready to brand-name paper available at the local level. But more
break ground on a new mill, and James River Corp. is has to be done to expand the market.
ordering equipment for a new deinking mill in Halsey, Conservatree has become a bridge between paper
Ore. mills and customers, providing cutting edge information
on markets and manufacturing capabilities to manufac-
NEW RECYCLED SHEETS NEEDED. However, while turers, customers, governments, and paper merchants.
manufacturers respond to customer demand, in some “We realize that it’s not simple for a mill to switch to
grades of recycled paper this response has been exceed- deinking,” Davis explained.
ingly slow. “Even though I’ve compiled a list of publica- “There are many pieces to the puzzle—adequate and
tions using more than 100,000 tons of coated Nos. 4 and uncontaminated wastepaper supply, support for recy-
5 papers per year, no mill has shown a serious interest in cling capital investments, clear messages about the
supplying this kind of recycled paper,” said Assmann of future solidity of the recycled paper market, further
Mother Jones. “‘Obviously a massive demand is not being deinking technology research, and a level playing field,
met.” Niagara Paper Co. Inc. has just introduced a small which all have to fall into place at the same time. We
quantity of high-end No. 4 but not enough even to dent work with legislatures and governments to put those
the market. Ironically, Watervliet Paper Co., the only pieces into place. We work with customers to increase
mill making a truly recycled No. 3 coated sheet, includ- the demand. And the more mills work with us on devel-
ing postconsumer content, just suspended its operations. oping new paper and increasing supply, the more accu-
However, major catalogs, such as Esprit and Patago- rately we can reflect true problems that need to be
nia, haven’t waited. Peggy Bernard, Patagonia’s catalog resolved.”
director, explained, “We've been looking for a recycled Clearly, the industry has been thrust, willing or not,
sheet for a long time. Finally we decided that even if the into leading the country into an environmentally sound
‘right’ paper wasn’t yet being made, we were willing to future. The question is no longer whether the paper in-
take the risk. And the quality of even the film-coated dustry will get into recycling. It is now more a question
that we used was a positive surprise.” of how gracefully and boldly the industry will lead. m
This article is given out as part of a Greenline Membership
WHAT’S AHEAD? Distributors across the nation are program by Conservatree Information Services. For complete
learning recycled paper and expanding their lines. Con- details on this educational program, write CIS, 10 Lombard
servatree has formed ‘“‘comerchant” agreements with Street, Suite 250, San Francisco, CA 94111.

30
Wastepaper Supply and Demand
 Demand Increases for Recycled
Printing and Writing Paper
Improved quality and the issue of solid waste disposal has
increased demand from both the public and private sectors

By ROBERT B. GALIN, News Editor Shelley Hamel, marketing coordinator at Earth Care
Paper Co., a mail order retailer of recycled paper prod-
ucts, thinks the public is indeed ready for such paper. In
| ills, merchants, and customers are beginning to re- fact, she says, the company’s most popular business pa-
alize that recycling is an issue that won’t go away. per is called Minimum Impact, an unbleached, 100% re-
As the paper industry fights tough mandatory recycling cycled paper from Glatfelter. Minimum Impact has
legislation, customers are increasing their requests for “kind of” a beige color.
access to quality recycled paper, particularly in the The biggest problem, Hamel says, is the price differ-
printing and writing grades. ential between recycled-fiber paper and virgin-fiber pa-
“Merchants know that there’s a demand out there on per. Currently, recycled grades cost about 10% more
the part of customers for more recycled products,” says than their virgin fiber counterparts. The price differen-
John J. Buckley Jr., president of the National Paper Trade tial has increased recently because of strong discounts
Assn. (NPTA). “This is no longer an issue of just the in virgin-fiber uncoated free-sheet paper while demand
maniacs and the radicals—it’s becoming more and more for recycled papers has increased.
of an issue for mainline customers [such as printers],” NPTA’s Buckley agrees but says there’s a gap be-
Buckley says. tween what customers say they want and what they’re
“Merchants are finding the biggest demand for re- actually willing to pay for. “There is a strong feeling out
cycled printing and writing paper right now is in big there that no one is willing to pay more to get a recycled
business [and] the government contract business,” he fiber [paper].”” They may say they’re willing to accept
adds. slightly lower quality and performance, but when it
What’s leading this realization is the very visible comes to spending more, they back off and choose the
problem of what to do with the accumulation of solid virgin fiber, Buckley says.
waste, about 41% of which is composed of paper and pa- Still, Hamel says her company is experiencing rapid
perboard, according to the National Solid Waste Man- growth. “Customers want to buy recycled paper,” she
agement Assn. That’s about 65 million tons of garbage in says. Earth Care sells copy and forms paper, stationery,
1986 alone. note cards, and other products directly to consumers, re-
“The issue of disposal of solid waste is at an absolute tail stores, and other customers.
critical point. The paper industry is going to have to ad- Litviak says some customers, particularly printers,
dress that,”’ says Jobe B. Morrison, president of Miami had bad experiences with 100% recycled paper in the
Paper Corp., a unit of Cross Pointe Paper Corp., a Pentair 1970s. That paper had problems with stability and runa-
Inc. company. Cross Pointe sells a variety of recycled pa- bility. Now, however, improved quality has pushed de-
per from its Miami mill in West Carrollton, Ohio, and mand for recycled printing and writing paper beyond
Flambeau Paper in Park Falls, Wis. the fad stage.
Morrison says there are correlative issues, such as Currently, about 34 mills in North America are pro-
dioxins resulting from the bleaching of recycled fiber. ducing at least a small amount of printing/writing paper
He wonders if the public is prepared to accept less bright they classify as recycled (Table 1). However, many of
or off-color paper. these mills use primarily preconsumer or precommer-
These recycled grades—as opposed to those using cial waste, which means they are often such “waste” as
clean, preconsumer or precommercial waste—are not envelope clippings and other high-grade, clean white
what many customers are used to seeing, explains Bill pulp substitutes.
Litviak, a sales representative for Wilcox-Walter-Fur- Mills such as Hammermill Papers and Westvaco
long Paper Co. WWF Paper represents Cross Pointe, P.H. Corp. have introduced recycled grades with at least
Glatfelter Co., and French Paper Co. 50% wastepaper, although it is preconsumer. Nekoosa

Recycled Printing and Writing Paper 31

 Papers Inc. has introduced a lower-brightness copy pa- NPTA. One is stemming the reduction of resources. The
per made with some deinked fiber. second is incineration/energy generation. The third is
recycling.
NPTA has formed a Solid Waste Action Network,
MERCHANTS GET INVOLVED. There are essentially which so far has about 100 volunteers from member lo-
three issues in the solid waste problem, says Buckley of cations. When the network becomes mobilized, these
TABLE 1: Recycled printing/writing paper mills.

Wastepaper
Company Mill Capacity* content (%) Grades
Appleton Papers Inc. West Carrollton, Ohio 122,000 tpy 50 Carbonless
C.P.M. Inc. Claremont, N.H. 11,440 tpy' 50 to 100 ~— Kraft /white envelope, school construction
East Ryegate, Vt. 17,160 tpy' 50 to 100 Envelope, other
Cross Pointe Paper Corp.?
Miami Paper West Carrollton, Ohio 110,000 tpy 50 Book, text and cover, 25% cotton, opaque
Flambeau Paper Park Falls, Wis. 133,500 toy 50 Cover and text
Domtar Inc. St. Catharines, Ont. 250 tod 100 Writing, envelope stock
Eastern Fine Paper Inc. Brewer, Maine 64,000 tpy 50 25% cotton, offset, mimeo, copy
Exton Paper Manufacturers Modena, Pa. 60 tod n.a. Kraft for envelope, wrapping, etc.
Fox River Paper Corp. Appleton, Wis. 35,570 tpy 100° Cotton, cover, opaque, typewriter
French Paper Co. Niles, Mich. 18,000 tpy 50+ Cover and text
Georgia-Pacific Corp. Gilman, Vt. 71,000 tpy 50 Copy
Kalamazoo, Mich. 140,000 tpy 50 Copy
P.H. Glatfelter Co. Neenah, Wis. 135,000 tpy 50 Book, writing, envelope, film-coated offset
IP/Hammermill Papers Oswego, N.Y. 74,760 toy 50 Copy
Hopper Paper* Taylorville, Ill. 37,000 tpy 50 Cover and text, writing
Reading, Pa. 20,000 tpy 50 Cover and text, writing
James River Corp. Ypsilanti, Mich. 17,800 tpy 50+ Text and cover
JR-Fitchburg Fitchburg, Mass. 52 tod 50a: Cover
Kerwin/ Riverside Appleton, Wis. 42,600 tpy 50/92 Writing band, school construction
Lyons Falls Pulo & Paper Inc. Lyons Falls, N.Y. 76,000 tpy 50 Book, reply card, tablet, forms, specialties
Manistique Papers Inc. Manistique, Mich. 35,500 tpy 100 Groundwood specialties
Nekoosa Papers Inc. Nekoosa/Port Edwards, Wis. 160,200 tpy* SOc Copy
Noranda Forest Inc. Thorold, Ont. 102,000 mtpy 50° Book, forms, copy, envelope, tablet
Potsdam Paper Mills Potsdam, N.Y. 65,000 tpy 40+ Opaque offset, writing, book
Putney Paper Co. Putney, Vt. 25,000 tpy up to 100 MG/MF printing, coated book, ledger, thin
Simpson Paper Co. Pomona, Calif. 120,000 tpy 25 to 60’ Copy
Ripon, Calif. 39,000 tpy 25 to 60’ Copy
Vicksburg, Mich. 35,000 toy 25 to 60’ Copy
Sorg Paper Co. Middletown, Ohio 74,750 tpy 50 to 100° Bond, offset, book
Valentine Paper Co. Lockport, La. 49,840 tpy 50 Offset, tablet, reply card
Ward Paper Co. Merrill, Wis. 35,000 tpy 100 Watermarked bond, mimeo, duplicator
Watervliet Paper Co. Watervliet, Mich. 40,000 tpy 50 to 85 Coated and uncoated book offset
Westvaco Corp. Tyrone, Pa. 87,220 tpy 50 Envelope paper
Geo. A. Whiting Paper Co. Menasha, Wis. 9,000 toy 80 average Cover and text
Cascades/Steinbeis East Angus, Que. Under study
Niagara Falls, N.Y.
Champion International Corp. Hamilton, Ohio Under study
Daishowa Forest Products Port Angeles, Wash., Under study
Quebec City, Que.
Hyde Park Paper Inc.” Boston, Mass. 55,000 tpy Closed Copy, book, offset, cover
Mi Ho Paper St. Joseph, Mo. Under study
Performance Papers Inc. Kalamazoo, Mich. 250 to 300 tod Closed Book, other
*Tonnage is total mill capacity, except as noted.
**Postcommercial and/or postconsumer wastepa per.
Estimated average: Claremont produces 4'0 tpd and East Ryegate 60 tpd operating five to six days/week.
. Subsidiary of Pentair Inc.
100% recycled 10 to 15% postconsumer waste.
Separate operating company of Georgia-Pacific Corp. Will be using 50% postconsumer
in 1990.
Less than 50,000 tpy recycled.
5% postconsumer, 45% postcommercial.
- 25%, 50% and 50% plus 10% postconsumer.
. Subsidiary of Mosinee Paper Corp.
OHNBDARONA
. 50 to 100% with 10% postconsumer.
10, Leased from James River; new buyer possible.
Sources: E.H. Pechan & Associates Inc., Pulp & Paper Week, Pulp & Paper
Forecaster,

32
Wastepaper Supply and Demand
and other volunteers will be- TABLE 2: North American recycled newsprint producers.
come educated on resource
issues and will take an act- Capacity Recycled
ive interest in local issues re- (metric content Publisher
lated to recycling and waste Company tpy) (%) equity (%)
management. us
The purpose of the net- ae Se ae oe
‘ S.C. Paper Co. sip, Il. ‘ me
ae a0 ae Tee ee the Garden State Paper Co. Garfield,N.J. 199,500 Media General Inc. (100%)
industry while the in ustry Golden State Newsprint Co. Pomona, Calif. 122,500 —
helps educate the public. It Manistique Papers Inc. Manistique, Mich. 56,000 =
is an effort to influence leg- North Pacific Paper Corp. Longview, Wash. 704,000' _
islation on a local level. Al- Jefferson Smurfit Corp. Newberg, Ore. 350,000 The Times Mirror Co. (20%)
d tat a Oregon City, Ore. 217,000 The Times Mirror Co. (20%)
poy nony, States ana sms Southeast Paper Dublin, Ga. 415,000° Cox Enterprises Inc. (337%)
nicipalities have implement- Manufacturing Co. Knight-Rider Inc. (33%% )
ed or are considering strict Media General Inc. (33% %)
legislation on recycling and Stone Container Corp. Snowflake, Ariz. 264,100 =
the content of recycled paper,
Canada
NPTA’s effort is separate
Atlantic Packaging Corp. Whitby, Ont. 136, 100° 100 ae
from the approximately $4- Quebec & Ontario Paper Co. Thorold, Ont. 310,000 55 Tribune Co. (100%)
million program being imple-
mented by the American Pa- Sources: Newsprint Information Committee, Pulp & Paper Week.
I i; ih ry 1. Includes new 230,000-tpy machine starting up in late 1991.
per Institute this year, thoug 2. Estimated net recycled content among mill’s three paper machines.
the NPTA also works with 3. Includes new 215,000-tpy machine started September 1989.
API Buckley says w 4. New 136, 100-tpy machine starting up mid-1990.

33
Recycled Printing and Writing Paper
 U.S. Leads the World in Production
and Consumption of Wastepaper
Increasing recovery and reuse is expected to continue, but it will
depend on many factors in addition to environmental pressures

e Development trends in wastepaper collection, trade

By MATTI OLKINUORA
flows, and processing technologies and their impact
on the availability of suitable recycled fiber in var-
t probably does not surprise anyone that the U.S. is ious markets
the world’s largest source of wastepaper (recovery in e Cost of recycled fiber compared with competing vir-
1986 was 20 million tons), followed by Japan (10 million gin fiber raw materials
tons) and Fed. Rep. Germany (4 to 5 million tons). These eTo some extent, growing ecological and environ-
three countries are the leading consumers of paper, mental pressures.
paperboard, and wastepaper in the world. In terms of
recovery rate, included among the most efficient waste- CONSUMPTION AND UTILIZATION. Considerable re-
paper collectors are countries such as Hong Kong (54%), gional differences exist in recycled fiber usage. The
Kuwait (53%), Japan (50%), and Taiwan (48%). In Eu- three leading consumers are the U.S. (16 million tons),
rope, the Netherlands has a long tradition in waste- Japan (11 million tons), and Fed. Rep. Germany (4 mil-
paper collection, with a high recovery rate of 46% (Table lion tons), accounting for almost half of the world’s total
1). Recycled fiber usage is driven by the following consumption (Table 2).
forces: Recycled fiber’s relative importance as a raw materi-
e Technical status, market requirements, and scale of al of the paper industry is quite pronounced in the Asian
the regional or local paper industry and Latin American countries, which utilize an average
e Trends in the levels of consumption of paper and of 40% to 46% of waste-based materials in their fiber
paperboard furnish compared with, for example, North America’s
fairly modest 25%. In Western Europe, the average
Mr. Olkinuora is vice president-marketing research, Jaakko wastepaper proportions have traditionally been at an
Poyry Oy, Helsinki, Finland. This article originally appeared extremely low level (for example, Sweden at 11% and
in the company’s “Know-How Wire” publication. Finland at 4% [Figure 3}).

TABLE 1: Wastepaper consumption vs paper and paperboard TABLE 2: Wastepaper consumption vs paper and paperboard
consumption, 1986. production, 1986.

«10.5.
“Fed. Rep. Germany
inas: 10.9
People’s Rep. Ch
—
U.S.S.R.
UK.
France
Canada
Italy
Brazil
Others
World total

34
Wastepaper Supply and Demand
 Wastepaper suitable for recycling consist of various tainers. Paper should be free of extras (envelope win-
grades, excluding “disposable” grades, such as tissue pa- dows, samples attached, heavy gluing, etc.).
per, wallpaper, and cigarette paper. Books and docu- The most desirable raw materials are acquired from
ments tend to have a long life and rarely find their way printing waste. Almost 100% of these products are recy-
to recycling. The best grades for recycling are mainly
telephone directories, newspapers, magazines, printed FIGURE 2: Changes in world paper and paperboard furnish
advertising material, carton boards, and corrugated con- components, 1973-2000.

FIGURE 1: Total fiber consumption in paper and board

production, 1986 (total fiber = 210 million tons).

Paper and board Paper and board Recycled

consumption Recovery production usage
 clable, contrary to, for example, household waste, of ucts, sorted or deinked waste is currently used for many
which over 15% is normally unusable. Other important demanding end products, such as newsprint, printing
sources of wastepaper supply are department stores, su- and writing paper, tissue, packaging paper, various cor-
permarkets and other enterprises, industrial units, con- rugated board raw materials, and carton boards.
verting plants, and offices. Wastepaper is generally clas- The term ‘‘wastepaper” may give one the impression
sified and priced according to quality, starting with of something with inferior quality, but this is not the
higher quality (white clippings, newspapers, magazines) case with several recycled-fiber-based products meeting
and ending with brown paperboard grades and mixed high international quality standards. Some newsprint
unsorted waste. mills are reportedly producing 100%-wastepaper-based
newsprint. Printing and writing paper producers could
WASTEPAPER AS A COMMODITY. Wastepaper has also be using recycled fiber to a greater degree, but
gradually become a marked international trade com- quality requirements are still so high that it is un-
modity too. Overall tonnage of wastepaper crossing likely the share will increase notably. It is also doubtful
country borders today exceeds 8 million tons. Almost that recycled fiber will gain more ground in the produc-
half of this tonnage originates from the U.S. and is com- tion of specialty grades such as security and telefax
prised mostly of old corrugated containers (OCC), tele- paper.
phone directories, etc. The world’s main importing re-
gions are Asia (more than 3 million tons) and Western DEMAND FOR RECYCLED-FIBER-BASED PRODUCTS. It
Europe (3 million tons, mainly from regional sources). is safe to predict that the rapid average growth rate
for consumption of recycled fiber will continue in the
WIDE RANGE OF END-USE APPLICATIONS. Unpro- medium and long terms. This forecast is based on both
cessed wastepaper has traditionally found its main end past developments and increasing activity in product
uses in the manufacture of lower-grade paper and pa- and process R&D. Therefore, the term “wastepaper-
perboard products, mainly intended for various packag- based product” may become even more misleading in
ing or construction purposes. In addition to these prod- the future. a

36
Wastepaper Supply and Demand
 Municipal Solid Waste and the Paper
Industry: The Next Five Years
Municipal collection programs are depressing the cost of old newspapers
at the same time that consumers are clamoring for recycled fiber

By FRED D. IANNAZZI and RICHARD STRAUSS program for old newspapers (ONP) without finding a
market for the collected product, there is no doubt the
legislative activity has captured the attention of the pa-
he problems associated with disposal of municipal per industry and prompted some very useful and states-
solid waste (MSW)—diminishing landfill capacity, man-like actions on the part of the industry. This article
resistance to siting new incinerator capacity, skyrocket- reviews the current status of recycling of paper products
ing disposal costs—are well known to everyone in the and projects what is likely to happen to wastepaper re-
paper industry because the paper industry is always sin- covery and recycling in the next five years.
gled out whenever a governmental authority decides
that we should “do something” about MSw. The only po- HOW BIG IS THE WASTEPAPER PROBLEM? The logical
litically acceptable method of dealing with Msw is place to start an analysis of the present and future state
source reduction, to be achieved principally by in- of paper recycling, in the context of the Msw problem, is
creased recycling. As a result of these public percep- to present statistics on the magnitude of Msw and the
tions, a host of laws and directives intended to increase relative fraction that paper products contribute to it. Un-
recycling of paper products has been proposed or insti- fortunately, good statistics on MSW and its composition
tuted in the past year, and apparently the flood of legis- are remarkably hard to come by. For example, the report
lation is accelerating. ‘Facing America’s Trash: What Next for Municipal Solid
The legislative approaches to reducing MSW incorpo- Waste?” produced by the U.S. Office of Technology As-
rate a wide range of incentives and penalties, including sessment (October 1989), cites per capita generation of
targeted percent recycle fiber in specified paper prod- MSW in selected cities ranging from 1.9 lb/day (Yakima,
ucts, mandated reductions in solid waste load, mandat- Wash.) to 9.4 lb/day (Chattanooga, Tenn.), a five fold
ed source segregation and collection programs, tax variation. Similarly, in 49 studies of the composition of
penalty for use of nonrecyclable packaging materials, MSW, the estimated percentage of total paper in MSW
government-agency purchasing directives requiring a ranged from 29.9% to 54.7%.
minimum level of recycle fiber in certain paper prod- The figures most often quoted, apparently “consen-
ucts, and tax incentives for wastepaper processing facili- sus” figures, are 3.6 lb/day per capita for total MSW gen-
ties and equipment. While some of these initiatives eration, with a paper content of 40%. Using these fig-
have repeatedly proven to be ineffective or counterpro- ures, the annual U.S. totals are then about 160 million
ductive, for example, mandating a source segregation tons of MSW, containing about 63 million tons of paper.
To illustrate the uncertainty in these estimates—even if
Mr. Iannazzi is president, and Mr. Strauss is senior consultant, we hold the total Msw figure at 160 million tons—a dif-
Andover International Associates, Danvers, Mass. ference of 30% to 50% in the paper content would pro-

TABLE 1: Disposition of paper

products in U.S. (million tons).
Recovery
U.S. for reuse % Disposed
Potentially recyclable paper products consumption and export recovery in MSW
Newsprint (ONP) 13:7 4.5 33 9.2
Magazines and inserts/supplements (OMG) 6.4 Negative Negative 6.4
Printing and writing (P & W), less OMG Use 8.5 49 1640):
Old corrugated containers (OCC) 22.9 11.8 52 nite
Other packaging 7.4 Negative Negative 7.4
All other disposable paper and board? AS) Negative Negative 11.9

Totals 79.8 24.8 31.1 53.0

1. About 2.0 disappears in permanent records.
2. Not including tissue.
Source: A.1.A.

ps
duce a paper loading in MSW ranging from 48 million reason for producers to install new deinking capacity.
tons to 80 million tons. With much variability inherent Moreover, despite continuing research efforts, there is
in these numbers, it would be impractical to use them as no present or potential application for ONP other than
either a basis for setting target reductions or a means for newsprint that offers any significant opportunity for
monitoring achievements of targets. growth. The fallout from the MSw crisis, however, has
A better method of determining the paper contribu- completely changed the operating parameters of the
tion to the MSw load is to build up the figures from the newsprint industry. Now there is good evidence for the
statistics for the major grades of paper. Based on data view that the demand for ONP will rise dramatically
from the American Paper Institute (API) and the U.S. in the next few years so that by the end of the decade
Dept. of Commerce, Andover International Associates the demand will be challenging the limits of supply.
(AIA) has compiled the totals (Table 1). We can now ex- The newsprint industry has felt the impact of the
amine the major grades individually and project what is MSW problem in two areas of its business:
likely to happen in the next five years to the quantity of 1. New laws in Connecticut, California, and other
each of the grades in MSw. states have set progressively increasing targets for recy-
cle fiber in newsprint. Although the existing state laws
OLD CORRUGATED CONTAINERS (OCC). Occ, in com- are inconsistent and some are probably unworkable, it is
mon with some other wastepaper grades, is peculiar in clear to many newsprint producers that some set of
that its rate of demand (consumption in medium and minimum recycle fiber standards will be adopted and
liner) is dependent on its rate of supply (production of that it will be necessary in the future to have ONP deink-
corrugated containers). This cyclic situation is best illus- ing capacity in order to be able to sell newsprint.
trated by Figure 1, a format develped by AIA. Of the U.S. 2. The good news of the MSw crisis is that it has had,
consumption of 22.9 million tons, 11.8 million tons and will continue to have, a depressing effect on the cost
(51%) were recovered for recycling or export and 11.1 of ONP to the newsprint producers. The disappearance of
million tons ended up in the MSW stream. Because some
of the recovered OCC is used for products other than lin- FIGURE 1: U.S. supply and disposal of corrugated containers.
er and medium and because some OCC and linerboard
are exported, the recycle fiber content in U.S. corrugat-
ed containers was only about 25%, even though the re-
covery of OCC was 51%. Too often in discussions of pos- Kraft fiber SMS eS ©:
sible legislative action to alleviate Msw load, the percent 15.8
recycle fiber and percent recovery are considered to be
synonymous. : | Recycled
Linerboard | board and
What should be done to stimulate increased recovery _ | other domestic
production
of occ? The short answer: nothing. OCC is in rather short total 18.0
| uses 3.5
supply at present, and we project it will become even ieee Os)
tighter in the future. Even though the consumption of
corrugated containers is expected to increase by 4.3 mil-
lion tons (19%) from 1988 to 1995, the OCC load in Msw is U.S. corrugated container
projected to decrease by 2.3 million tons over that same consumption 22.9
period because of the forecast increase in OCC pulping
capacity (Table 2). At the projected 1995 recovery rate of
68%, OCC will be in short supply indeed. Although the
Recovered
recovery rate will not have reached the practical limit, 11.8 (52%)
which we estimate to be about 75% to 80%, it will be Not
close enough for the occ market to be a sellers’ market. recovered
There is no reason to impose incentives or penalties on 11.1 (49%)
OCC recovery or reuse to reduce its presence in the MSW
stream. Existing market forces will do the job nicely.

ONP AND OLD MAGAZINES. On the face of it, the pic-

ture for increased recycling of ONP looks rather bleak
(Figure 2). For more than ten years, the recovery rate has
Landfill or incineration [ ] indicates amount made from
held at 30% to 33%, ana since the newsprint industry is 100% recycled fiber.
currently overbuilt, there seems to be no compelling

TABLE 2: The OCC load in MSW is

occ YS. Recovery for expected to decrease by 2.3 million
(mm tons) consumption reuse and export % recater: Disposed
in Msw___| tons from 1988 to 1995,
1983 18.4 8.4 46 10.0
1988 22.9 11.8 52 114
1995 27.2 18.4 68 8.8
 landfill capacity has driven the price of Msw disposal to York standards for percent recycle fiber content in
an average of about $60/ton in the Northeast, and the newsprint and the corresponding recovery rates calcu-
prospect is for continued escalation of disposal costs in lated by AIA are shown in Table 3.
all areas of the country. Many municipalities have insti- The limit on the rate of increase in recycle fiber con-
tuted segregation and curbside collection of ONP sim- tent is the rate at which new deinking capacity can be
ply to avoid having to pay to dispose of it, and they are built. Our estimate is that the deinking capacity will, in
willing to pay anything less than the prevailing tipping fact, be in place slightly faster than the New York sched-
fee to have it removed. In effect, the tipping fee (avoided ule requires. Although at present the potential ONP sup-
cost) is subtracted from the collection/sorting/baling/ ply far exceeds demand, when 65% recovery is required
transport costs (incurred costs) to arrive at the price for the demand will press the limit of practical recovery. We
ONP delivered to the deinking facility. When priced on conclude that the mechanism is already in place to
this basis, ONP becomes an economically attractive alter- achieve the maximum possible reduction of the ONP
native to virgin pulp, in many cases even if a new deink- load in MSW. What is now required is to standardize re-
ing facility displaces an existing thermomechanical pulp cycle fiber targets in newsprint and to maintain consis-
facility. tent legislative policies for the next several years.
To determine quantitatively what effect the new It is interesting to note that the newer ONP deinking
market conditions will have on ONP recovery, we must processes not only permit but also benefit from an ad-
select for analysis one set of recycle fiber targets from mixture of about 1:2 old magazines (OMG) to ONP. By the
among the many that have been legislated or proposed. year 2000, if the 65% recovery of ONP is achieved, about
We will use the recently announced New York State 5.5 million tons of OMG will be required in ONP deinking,
standards because New York standards will necessarily over half the OMG potentially available at that time.
be influential in the industry. AIA worked with New Thus, the new conditions imposed on the ONP market
York to assist in developing these standards. The New will greatly reduce the OMG load in MsW.

PRINTING AND WRITING PAPER. Used printing and

FIGURE 2: North American supply and disposition of writing (P&W) paper, a major contributor to the MSw load,
newsprint—1988. if properly segregated, is a valuable product for which
Other domestic ample profitable markets exist. Paradoxically, this is the
papermaking uses 2.0 one major wastepaper stream for which no organized
program in hand will significantly reduce the load in
Virgin MSW. Problems inhibit recovery of this potentially valu-
able resource:
U.S.
OMGneg
from
Canada
0.2 1. In contrast with ONP, for example, the P&W paper
feedstock is extremely varied in composition. The major
Total waste-
paper 1.7
grade classifications that comprise P&W include uncoat-
(8% recycled ed free-sheet, coated free-sheet, bleached bristol, coated
fiber)
groundwood, and uncoated groundwood. Within these
North American newsprint major categories are many subcategories that must be
production: 17.1 monitored during storing and segregation to obtain the
highest-value recycle paper.
2. For maximum utilization, the wastepaper must be
U.S. newsprint collected and segregated into relatively uniform feed-
. consumption
oe 13.7 (100%) stocks. The paper is presently classified in three major
(8.1,59% from Canada) wastepaper grades: pulp substitutes, high-grade deink-
Canadian ing, and mixed. Within each of these major grades are
consumption: multiple subdivisions recognized by the wastepaper in-
1:3
dustry. For example, API has four grades within the pulp
Recovered
substitutes and high-grade deinking categories, and the
45 Paper Stock Institute of America further subdivides
(33%) these four grades into 23 codes.
(67%)
9.2 3. Compared with ONP and OCC, wastepaper originat-
recovered
Not
ing from P&W grades is generated in low concentrations

TABLE 3: New York State targets for recycle fiber content in

newsprint.

N.Y. target ONP recovery rate

recycle fiber content calculated by A.I.A.
11% 35%
23% 43%
Shi asroeee 54%
40% 65%

Municipal Solid Waste 39

 at scattered sites, many of which would be too small to 2. Implementation by municipalities and/or waste-
justify pickup by wastepaper processors. paper dealers of systems for collecting small quantities
As a result of these multiple difficulties, the waste- of segregated office waste from scattered sites and con-
paper industry has traditionally concentrated on recov- centrating them in central dropoff points.
ery and reuse of the most accessible of the waste P&W pa- 3. Implementation by municipalities and/or waste-
per: the preconsumer converter waste. This paper is paper dealers of systems for collecting small quantities
usually found in high concentrations from identifiable of segregated household fine paper waste, in conjunc-
sources and is clean and well segregated. Little postcon- tion with established programs for curbside collection.
sumer office waste is recovered at present, and postcon- 4. Improved programs by wastepaper dealers to col-
sumer P&W household waste is essentially unrecovered. lect segregated fine paper from dropoff points, leading to
There are now signs that the MSw crisis will begin to more efficient and economical collection and processing
affect the recovery of P.w paper just as it has affected re- of multiple grades.
covery of ONP. However, because of the fragmented na- 5. Improved sorting and contaminant-removal pro-
ture of the supply, generation, and utilization of P&w pa- cesses at wastepaper handling sites.
per, no single action could be taken by government or 6. Improved deinking/pulping processes that would
industry that would significantly increase utilization of be more tolerant of mixed feedstocks (like the newer
this wastepaper. Rather, a series of actions by both gov- ONP deinking process that permit high OMG content).
ernment and industry will be required to alleviate the 7. Increasing imposition of purchasing specifications
load of used P&wW paper in MSW, and we believe that we by government agencies and others requiring a mini-
will begin to see significant progress in the next few mum recycle fiber content in specified products.
years in achieving this objective. 8. Increasing attention by government authorities and
We see ahead developments that will lead to evolu- industry participants to reducing or eliminating fiber
tionary—not revolutionary—progress in reducing the mixtures or converting additives that inhibit fiber reuse.
P&W load in MSW: 9. Increasing recognition by the paper industry that
1. Much more prevalent office waste segregation pro- the market will actually favor a product with significant
grams, impelled both by the wish to avoid escalating dis- recycle content, even if qualities such as brightness or
posal fees and the genuine desire on the part of the envi- contaminant content are not equivalent to paper made
ronmentalists (that is to say, everyone) to conserve from virgin pulp. =
scarce landfill capacity.

40
Wastepaper Supply and Demand
 States, Municipalities Change Course
in Dealing with Wastepaper Handling
Development agencies help educate consumers, assist in setting up
recycling programs to reuse collected postconsumer wastepaper

By WILLIAM M. FERRETTI An executive of a well-known U.S. manufacturer of

recycled paper recently related that the company once
based its pricing strategy on the need to create supply
B= of solid waste pressures, recycling markets, for its mills (i.e., the higher the price offered, the more
particularly recycled fiber markets, are undergoing wastepaper delivered). Now, however, the company
important changes that will significantly alter their uses pricing to manage the supply of ONP available to it,
character. By now the litany of the U.S. solid waste man- rewarding quality and discouraging contaminated, unu-
agement crisis should be familiar to most paper mill sable material.
managers and their corporate executives. Landfills are
filling up faster than they are being replaced. Inciner- SHORT-TERM IMPLICATIONS. The 1989 OnpP ‘“‘crisis”’
ation, despite the fact that most state and federal offi- was the most obvious disruption that resulted from this
cials acknowledge it as an acceptable waste manage- unlinking. ONP supply grew faster than the pace of de-
ment option, will be limited by economic, environ- mand. In fact, demand growth, largely because of a drop
mental, and public-acceptance constraints. in exports, stagnated, while supply continued to surge.
As a consequence, recycling will continue to play a The bottom line was that mill prices fell. For municipal-
growing role in most state and local solid waste manage- ities that relied on intermediaries to process and move
ment efforts. And paper, given its sizable contribution to their ONP to market, the weak mill price translated into a
the waste stream and its inherent recyclability, will be charge, the so-called ‘‘negative” price that still prevails
targeted by government officials for diversion from the in many areas.
landfill and incinerator waste streams. In New York State, the crisis was handled by turning
to the biggest opportunity sector, newspaper publishers.
CHANGING MARKET. Along with markets for other In May 1989, Governor Mario Cuomo invited the state’s
materials, such as glass, plastics, and metals, supply and newspaper publishers to join with the state in crafting a
demand for recycled fiber is being redefined by a grow- voluntary action plan to bolster the ONP market. Around
ing shortfall in solid waste disposal capacity. Public poli- the same time, similar efforts were initiated in other
cy is now moving toward a goal of eliminating certain northeastern states, including Pennsylvania and Massa-
classes of products (including paper products) as waste, chusetts. Connecticut, in responding to the problem,
creating pressures for those products to be “source re- took a different course by mandating that publishers
duced” (i.e., to have lower material utilization and toxic make use of specified quantities of recycled newsprint.
content) and redesigned to be reusable or recyclable. The significant outcome of these initiatives has been
In the case of wastepaper—specifically postconsumer a commitment by newspaper publishers in the region to
grades of wastepaper (e.g., old newspaper [ONP], office adopt ‘buy recycled” purchasing goals. In New York,
paper), these pressures have caused an unlinking of tra- this commitment involves meeting an annual recycled-
ditional supply and demand. Supply once responded to fiber consumption level of 40% by the year 2000.
demand. Now, demand is responding to the promise and In turn, newsprint manufacturers have responded. In
inevitability of supply. eastern North America alone, nearly 1 million tons of
new deinking capacity have been announced (for start-
Mr. Ferretti is director, Office of Recycling Market up in 1992). In addition, Smurfit Newsprint Corp. an-
Development, New York State Dept. of Economic nounced its intention to build a recycled newsprint mill
Development. in the Northeast, a move that would more than double

States, Municipalities Deal With Wastepaper 41

 the region’s recycled newsprint production capacity and paper mill’s) requirements.
add considerably to its ONP consumption capacity. The second way to prevent another materials recy-
Municipal recycling officials are now beginning to re- cling crisis focuses on the consumers of a paper mill’s
alize the benefits of this increased capacity. Across the products. Any mill’s use of recycled fiber is largely driv-
Northeast, mills have offered to buy municipal ONP on en by the customer’s willingness (assuming no differ-
the table. Significantly, these offers include positive ence in price) to buy a product with recycled content or,
prices, a signal that the market turnaround for ONP has more importantly, the consumer’s indifference to a
begun. product’s content (virgin or recycled), where perfor-
mance is indistinguishable. As such, the demand for
ONP CRISIS REPEATED? Concerns have been raised municipal wastepaper is derived from the demand for
by both skeptics and optimists about the likelihood of the products that are or could be made from that paper.
the ONP crisis repeating for other materials or other Consumers have reached a point of indifference re-
wastepaper grades (e.g., printing and writing paper). garding the virgin or recycled content of many well-es-
Whether a crisis is repeated elsewhere will largely de- tablished paper and paperboard products. For other
pend on the actions taken by state and local govern- products, such as newsprint, however, consumers only
ments, businesses, and industry. recently had the option of purchasing a recycled product
At least two conditions should be fulfilled to prevent that delivers the same utility as its virgin counterpart.
future crises: Municipal suppliers of recyclables should Despite that availability, many newspaper publishers
exchange their “garbage-collector’s ethic” for a “market continued to assert that recycled newsprint was inferior
ethic,” and major consumer sectors must assert their to its virgin counterpart.
preference for recycled products and enforce that pref- Only by providing evidence that such an assertion
erence through purchase/contract practices. was based on past experience and is no longer relevant
Under the garbage-collector’s ethic, the approach to were more than 90% of New York’s daily newspaper
municipal recycling is simply to get rid of the waste in publishers persuaded to purchase recycled newsprint.
the most expedient fashion. This approach treats recy- Market developers for recycling, in order to make con-
cling just like garbage management. The garbage collec- sumers commit to buying recycled, must face the con-
tor/recycler collects the materials comingled (glass, pa- stant challenge of correcting consumers’ misperceptions
per, plastics, and metals mixed together) in a packer regarding recycled paper’s performance.
truck—the same truck used to haul garbage the other
four days of the week. This approach also assumes that LONG-TERM IMPLICATIONS. The market for recycled
homeowners cannot handle complexity and perform fiber is undergoing what economists call a fundamental
some sorting at the source. The result is a low-grade, structural change, implying that the factors guiding sup-
low-value, or worthless product that, just like garbage, ply, demand, and price have changed. For example, in
costs the municipality to eliminate. this market, which has traditionally been characterized
By contrast, the market-ethic recycler seeks to cap- by price volatility, there is an impetus toward stability
ture the intrinsic value of the materials collected. The and predictability. This is largely due to the new players
market recycler treats recycling as a business activity, that have entered the scene—municipalities on the sup-
recyclables as products, and recycling industries as cus- ply side and manufacturers that traditionally relied on
tomers. The market recycler collects and prepares the virgin resources for their raw materials on the demand
material in a way that enables the locality to meet (and side.
possibly exceed) the customers’ expectations. The result The virgin-based manufacturers that are now con-
under this approach is a quality product, an earned verting to recycling depended on forests that produced
reputation as a preferred supplier, long-term stability
and reliability of market outlets, and a lower cost than Recycling markets are
dumping the material or, possibly, a net revenue. evolving to a point that
To help municipal officials make the transition in | matches the long-term
New York State, the Office of Recycling Market Devel- objectives of both the
| new supply-side
opment (ORMD) has awarded grants to communities
| (municipalities) and
that organize into regional cooperatives for marketing | demand-side
recyclables. Such cooperatives can be a cost-effective | (manufacturers)
means for participating communities to focus on the | players.
market-driven aspects of recycling. In addition, ORMD
serves as a public service consultant to municipalities,
providing advice on collection and marketing strategies
and sponsoring market opportunities workshops. The
bottom-line message of these consulting efforts is that
recycling success is dependent on a community’s ability
to generate a product that will fulfill the end user’s (i.e.,

42
 Supply once responded to demand.
Today the company uses its pricing
to manage the supply of ONP
available to it, rewarding quality and
discouraging contaminated,
unusable material.

predictable quantities of fiber at predictable levels of understandably, pay to have the material processed and
quality. That predictability reduced those companies’ marketed and, as a result, capture none of the value-
exposure to risk. They still pursue risk minimization in added benefit from upgrading and marketing them-
the recycling market by demanding predictability of selves. Municipalities are expected to take a more active
supply as well as consistency of quality from new fiber role in the future. Specifically, direct contracts will be
sources, namely municipalities and/or brokers. Munici- made between mills and municipalities. In many cases,
palities have a similar desire to minimize risk by seek- these contracts will also include backhaul arrange-
ing predictability and reliability of demand for their re- ments, where manufacturers arrange to carry waste-
cyclables. By sharing the same objectives, these new paper back to the mill using the same vehicles that de-
(and major) players are having a leveling effect on the liver the finished product.
market. Another feature of the active role played by munici-
palities will be their pursuit of diversified supply strate-
DISTINGUISHING FEATURES. These changes coming gies. Specifically, local recycling officials will seek to
into view present a picture of the possible recycled fiber avoid the risk inherent in contracting with a single buy-
market of the 1990s. To begin, there will be expanded er. Rather, they will negotiate multiple supply con-
demand for postconsumer wastepaper grades—those tracts—some with mills directly, some through bro-
generated by households, offices, and commercial estab- kers—to prevent a halt in the flow of their wastepaper.
lishments. This demand will come as a result of the pa- Cooperative marketing by municipalities will be an-
per industry’s major customers (e.g., publishers, print- other feature of the 1990s’ fiber market. Localities will
ers, converters, institutions) asserting their intentions to join together to increase their attractiveness as supply
help close the recycling loop for their products by not sources and improve their bargaining leverage in negoti-
only buying recycled but working with paper companies ating deals. In New York State, three such cooperatives
to ensure that the finished products (e.g., newspapers, were recently formed with startup grants provided by
directories, boxes, office paper), once discarded, are the ORMD.
used in the manufacture of new paper and paperboard. While municipalities are expected to play a more ac-
As a result, the “urban forest” will be the next major fi- tive role in determining the fate of their fiber supplies,
ber resource for the paper industry to harvest. the role of the traditional packers and brokers—provid-
Secondly, the major players in the recycled fiber mar- ing support services to a more sophisticated municipal
ket will be risk managers seeking to maintain stability client—will remain. These services include contract
and predictability. Therefore, little price volatility can baling and/or marketing that portion of a municipality’s
be expected for the wastepaper grades traded by these (or co-op’s) wastepaper that has not been committed to
players. mill-direct contracts.
Until recently, municipal participation in the recy- Finally, manufacturers will be directly involved in
cling market was largely passive, conducted through developing the municipal supply of wastepaper to meet
third-party agents, such as brokers and wastepaper deal- the mill’s specifications. This will involve company out-
ers. Under these arrangements, localities were left free reach to municipal recycling officials, advising those of-
to continue the garbage-collector’s approach to recy- ficials not only of the mill specifications but also of al-
cling, leaving the brokers to figure out how to move the ternative means for setting up local collection programs
municipally collected wastepaper. Also, municipalities, to generate the required fiber quality. a

States, Municipalities Deal With Wastepaper 43

 Legislation Pushing Paper Industry
Despite Limited Recycling Know How
Industry may be developing ‘“‘recycling hysteria” because forced demand
for recycled products has occurred too quickly without proper planning

By KEN L. PATRICK, Editor in Chief P&P: Specifically, what problems, or realities, is the paper
industry facing as it begins to use more wastepaper for
furnish?
Revise along with many other environmental is- Fjallstrom: There are two areas—the characteristics of
sues, is receiving increased attention worldwide. secondary fiber as a fiber source and the effects of fiber
Paper recycling, already well established in Europe, is supply exceeding demand. Recycling in the U.S. is cur-
generally considered to be in its infancy in North Amer- rently a small but open market for both buyer and seller.
ica. However, U.S. mandatory recycling legislation goes Wastepaper recycling companies [can] pick and choose
into effect in the 1990s, requiring certain grades of paper their sources, plus they handle a small volume of waste-
to be made with as much as 25% recycled fiber. paper that is relatively easy to process. The U.S. has
Industry experts agree that recycling is one of the mostly recycled wastepaper that has been carefully pre-
pulp and paper industry’s toughest environmental chal- pared and segregated, such as newspapers, magazines,
lenges. Although companies have responded with a ledger grades, clippings (both brown and white), etc.
myriad of approaches, most have boiled down to defen- This secondary fiber is more similar to the virgin
sive measures designed to minimize vulnerability. The source it will be blended with. By recycling secondary
result is methods dictated by public policy. fiber produced from the same process for which it will
Unfortunately, this has created legislation prepared be reused—newsprint being recycled into newsprint, for
without constructive dialogue, and most industry lead- example—a significant process advantage is achieved.
ers agree that many of the realities of recycling have not At this time, pulp and paper mills using wastepaper can
been adequately addressed. One of these realities, ac- pick and choose from “quality” wastepaper and the sup-
cording to many paper companies, is the technology—or pliers that provide it.
lack of it—to process wastepaper and turn it into a qual- But the realities of collection under recycling legisla-
ity, marketable product. tion will be very different. The segregation of waste-
To discuss the aspects of recycling technology—spe- paper grades will be limited due to sheer volume. The
cifically, the problems involved in separation of waste- mixed wagte fiber source will increase dramatically and
paper and the continuous repulping of fibers—Pulp & will contain fibers that have been recycled more than
Paper interviewed Roland Fjallstrom, president of Cel- one time. Mixed waste of this type will have a dramatic
leco Hedemora Inc. Fjallstrom is a native of Sweden who difference in optimum fiber characteristics, resulting in
arrived in Canada in 1974 as a market and product re- operating as well as quality problems. At this time, the
search scientist. In 1979, he moved to Atlanta, Ga., U.S. paper industry is not prepared for the effect of a
to establish the North American headquarters for Cel- mandatory recycling program.
leco. Since 1985, Fjallstrom has been president of Cel- Currently, most wastepaper comes from small recy-
leco Hedemora, which in 1989 moved its new North cling programs that are essentially experimental, where
American headquarters to the Atlanta area. citizens voluntarily separate, for example, newspapers
from the rest of their trash. To expect widespread volun-
tary compliance from the public and expect them to sep-
arate all paper into different paper grades is not very
realistic, at least not before laws go into effect. In

44
Wastepaper Supply and Demand
other words, the supply of nicely segregated paper P&P: What happens to fiber as it is progressively recy-
will not increase automatically to meet new legislative cled? Is there a limit to the number of times it can be
requirements. recycled?
Fjallstrom: Any time a fiber is recycled or reprocessed,
P&P: Numerous wastepaper dealers are operating in a degradation of its original structure occurs, result-
North America and have been for some time. Why can’t ing in a loss of key characteristics (Figure 1). Meth-
these companies continue to do what they have been do- ods to restructure the fiber chemically or mechani-
ing and simply expand as needed? cally have shown relatively good results the first time
Fjallstrom: Some of those wastepaper dealers probably around. But eventually, depending on the number of
will stay in business, but their operations will not be as times the fiber is processed, it will lose its most impor-
profitable in the future. As pulp mills demand a larger tant characteristics.
volume of wastepaper, dealers will exceed their supply
of voluntarily segregated paper, and they will have to P&P: Why is mixed wastepaper more difficult to process?
separate it themselves straight from the “trash.” Is it important that mills know the origin and process used
There will definitely be a difference in the quality of with the original fibers?
wastepaper the industry is using now and what it will Fjalistrom: The retreatment or reprocessing necessary to
be able to get if current legislation is used to drive the enhance the remaining key fiber characteristics is easier
industry. For example, the board stock inside a cereal if the mill knows the type of fiber and the original pro-
box is a low-grade gray pulp similar to what the industry cess used to pulp it. Also, the differences between hard-
will eventually recycle into several paper grades. The wood and softwood fibers and which geographical re-
U.S. paper industry is simply not prepared for that. gion this hardwood/softwood comes from are important
Europe has developed a workable system during a factors. The difficulty comes in dealing with mixed
long period of time. In the U.S., there is only what I call waste having an unknown mixture of these variables.
“surface legislation” (and it is quite unacceptable) rather
than realistic and strategically implemented legislation. P&P: Recycling is being touted as a solution to North
With such mandatory recycling programs, the industry America’s growing landfill problem. But aren’t there some
will be forced to accept a lower-grade fiber source. environmental drawbacks to recycling?
Fjallstrom: Recycling is not “‘all good,” even though it is
P&P: How and why is the European situation functionally widely thought of as 100% environmentally friendly.
different from that in North America? Why can’t our mills The results of recycling and the attempt to establish
simply do what European mills do? good fiber characteristics will generate fiber material
Fjalistrom: The U.S. paper industry does not have the that cannot be used, such as undesirable fines, due to
proven technology and methods necessary to use vast poor characteristics.
amounts of wastepaper. The characteristics of fibers If various nonfiber material is considered—such as
used in Europe are very different, so simply copying inks, fillers, etc.—there is a discharge from the process
their systems isn’t possible. But more importantly, the that will increase in volume. To maintain the runability
North American industry is not organized to recycle on of paper made with recycled fibers, an increase in
a widespread basis, even to recycle fiber once. chemical use is also expected, which could have a nega-
In reviewing the progress of recycling programs in tive impact on the environment.
Europe, the same fiber is being recycled five to eight With current technology, the yield loss, or “yield
times. One reason they are able to do this is their recy- shrinkage,” is about 20% to 30%. That means only about
cling programs keep paper much more segregated, so 70 to 80 tons out of 100 tons of mixed wastepaper can be
they do not have as much mixed waste as we probably used for recycled paper, sending 20 to 30 tons of that to
will. Until the industry has experience in using recycled landfills, unless efficient incineration technology can be
fiber as a supplementary source, including recycling fi- developed. However, even incineration is not a complete
ber several times, there is actually very little data to use solution because some materials, such as filler, are not
as comparison. affected by incineration, which means that an increase
in solids going to the landfill is inevitable.

FIGURE 1: As fibers are continually recycled, they gradually lose P&P: You mentioned another aspect of recycling—fiber
strength and bonding capabilities. supply exceeding demand. In addition to reducing prices,

KARA [P| [EAA

what will be the effects of this?
Fjalistrom: The industry currently has a relatively good
balance between worldwide paper demand and commit-
ted pulp/fiber production. The addition of wastepaper
Virgin fiber Recycled once Recycled twice at current projected levels will exceed pulp/fiber de-
mand by 10% to 15%.
This is an effect of recycling that is crucial for the in-

Recycled Recycled
three times four times
45
dustry and lawmakers to understand, and it is a very
delicate balance. The paper industry’s growth is based
on meeting continuously increasing demands for qual-
ity. And growth is what enables the industry to invest in
research and development, not only to keep the cycle
going by meeting quality demands but to adjust to issues
like recycling—they go hand in hand. Meeting recycling
demands does not help the industry grow because it
does not help meet quality demands; in fact, it works
against it.
So when mills see an overabundance of fiber—fiber Roland Fiallstrom, president, Celleco Hedemora, Atlanta, Ga.
that actually works against quality increases—they do
not want to invest money now in technology that may P&P: In your opinion, what should the industry as a whole
be useless to them because it is probably not designed to be doing to respond to recycling? Should programs be
work with recycled fiber. This creates a vicious cy- modeled after those in Europe?
cle—the distance between demand for quality and abili- Fjallstrom: Through trade organizations, the industry
ty to meet that demand grows wider and wider. This is should establish communication with legislators, set re-
already happening. Everyone wants to play it safe and alistic targets for the future, and not dwell on existing
take a ‘‘wait and see” attitude. conditions, which are impossible to change instantly.
While that may be playing it safe for the individual Europe does not have the ultimate answer to recy-
mill or company, it is bad news for the pulp and paper cling either, but many European companies do have ex-
industry in general. The industry should be charging perience in dealing with secondary fiber use. The indus-
ahead to meet the future but instead is stalled, or if mea- try leaders in the U.S. certainly should listen to and use
sured by the quality demand/supply difference, may experiences of other countries to improve the speed at
actually be going backwards (Figure 2). which these programs can progress.

P&P: How can recycling laws be altered to prevent this P&P: How is Celleco Hedemora responding to U.S. recy-
cycle? cling issues?
Fjalistrom: Regrettably, industry’s attitude is no dif- Fjalistrom: First, we have taken a very careful look at
ferent than what has existed for years. The industry what has happened in Europe over the last 20 years and
lacks professional communication between producers what will be happening in this country in the future. We
and legislators. As a result, the industry is suffering have also studied the effects that recycling has had and
from “recycle hysteria.” The pulp and paper industry will have on the end users of paper products that have
is as interested in the environment as anyone, but to high recycled fiber content. Frankly, I think we have an
change this situation, a team approach must be taken obligation to the industry to be both realistic and thor-
by producers and legislators, not allowing lawmakers ough. We must continuously improve our view of how
to forget many of the other issues that affect the this changing market condition will affect the pulp and
public. paper industry and how we can best provide the techno-
There must be an organized legislative plan that sets logical advances and leadership in our area of exper-
a realistic proportion for secondary fiber—one that tise—separation technology. New methods will be nec-
meshes with future growth instead of today’s committed essary for the industry to successfully meet the recy-
and invested production. That will keep the “recycle cling challenge—and that is exactly what we are work-
hysteria” in check. ing on today. Pa
The industry must at least give this alternative a try.
As far as I know, it is one of the few practical ways, may-
be the only way, to maintain industry profitability and FIGURE 2: With an ever-increasing demand for a quality product,
and an outcry for more paper recycling, a gap may begin to form
make sure everyone understands and accepts waste-
in which the demand for quality cannot be met.
paper as a fiber source.

P&P: As recycling continues, fiber will be recycled over f Quality

and over again until it is useless to anyone. How can the _ demand Quality
Gap in increases
industry control the number of times fiber is reused? qualit
possible with
Fjalistrom: One possible solution might be to establish a sede aon recycling
proper proportion of recycled fiber for prime paper oe
grades. This would minimize the degradation of the
overall pulp furnish and still maximize utilization. Cur-
rently, this is far from reality, but in the future it needs
to be routine.

46
 Trash Crunch Drives Demand for
Recycled Printing/Writing Papers
Small market may get a boost from Los Angeles’s plan to send
city’s office wastepaper to People’s Rep. China for recycling

By ROB GALIN, News Editor The project ultimately will assess the feasibility of a
full-scale program to ship up to 1,000 tpd of wastepaper
to the PRC for sorting, cleaning, and processing. Howev-
Revs printing and writing papers are becoming er, the initial collections are more likely to be around 10
more readily accepted and may come way out from to 20 tpd. Los Angeles, like most cities, is running out of
under the tons of trash generated by Americans each landfill space; the city’s landfills are expected to reach
year. This trend is exemplified by a recent announce- capacity by 1993.
ment that the city of Los Angeles, Calif., People’s Rep. The PRC is experiencing a severe shortage of paper,
China (PRC), and Conservatree Paper Co. have begun a including printing papers, stationery, and computer
pilot project that could lead to shipping up to one-quar- stock. The country is feeling the effects of rapid mod-
ter of the city’s office wastepaper to the PRC. Once ernization combined with a lack of forest reserves, a
there, it will be recycled into printing and writing spokesperson said. As a result, several paper mills, in-
grades. Los Angeles produces about 4,000 tpd of office cluding some in Tianjin Province, have been shut down
wastepapers. due to a lack of pulp, says Davis.
China Paper Partners (CPP), which is an affiliate of Davis believes this project is the first of its kind in the
Conservatree, a San Francisco, Calif.-based distributor U.S. and says it is designed as a model for public-private
specializing in recycled printing/writing papers, is han- partnerships dealing with the mounting trash disposal
dling the project. CPP has already signed an agreement crisis faced by many municipalities. “There’s an enor-
to construct a wastepaper sorting facility that will pro- mous amount of pressure for cities to recycle, and
cess 400 tpd of trash, including a 200 tpd deinking pulp there’s an enormous amount of pressure for China to
mill in Tianjin Province, PRC. The mill was scheduled to find some pulp sources,” Davis says. “I think the two
come online in late 1990. Negotiations are under way for things come together for everyone’s benefit.”
additional mills at three other locations in the PRC, ac- A decision by the Chinese on whether to go forward
cording to a Conservatree official. “This is probably the with the deinking mill is expected after preliminary re-
biggest thing that’s been done in the wastepaper busi- sults from the pilot project become available, says Davis.
ness,” says Alan Davis, president of Conservatree and Once Conservatree’s mill is online, newsprint could be
chairman of CPP. pulped into the rest of the waste fiber, but most will be
Once the deinking mill is online, the pulp will be sorted out and sold.
sold to paper mills in the province and, possibly in the
future, to a paper mill where Conservatree will serve as BARRIERS TO RECYCLING STILL EXIST. Growth in re-
a principle, Davis said. Conservatree will also be looking cycled printing and writing papers is likely to remain
at prospects for similar programs in the U.S. The firm moderate because mills still face limits on removing
was one of the bidders for James River Corp.’s former contaminants and other factors that affect both produc-
Hyde Park, Mass. mill. James River eventually awarded tion and consumption. Demand could increase substan-
a five-year lease to Nolichucky Industries Corp., which tially if the federal and more state governments imple-
has yet to reopen the idled mill. ment recycling regulations. Still, moderate growth is
Under the Los Angeles pilot program, which began better than no growth, and many involved in the area
Feb. 1, all dry paper (including newsprint) is being col- believe the market for recycled printing and writing pa-
lected from desks at City Hall and three private office pers will prosper, even without additional government
buildings and then analyzed for its export value, though intervention.
none is actually being shipped to the PRC. Instead, the Demand for recycled printing/writing papers ‘‘defi-
current haulers will continue to sort and resell the pa- nitely seems to be increasing,” says Susan Kinsella, Da-
per on the open market. vis’s assistant at Conservatree. “It’s almost as though ev-

Trash Crunch Drives Demand 47

eryone put [buying recycled paper] on their fall cal- ture is a mill in St. Joseph, Mo., to be built by Korean
endars.” Most of the paper Conservatree sells is from businessman Hwa-Jin Yu under the name Mi Ho Paper
40% to 60% recycled, with no mill broke in the furnish. Co. Davis believes that, especially in the U.S. paper in-
Tad Kline, a customer service representative with dustry, “there’s a natural bias against recycling and,
French Paper Co., Niles, Mich., says demand for recy- secondly, the conglomeration and competition is... in-
cled grades from his mill has ‘really taken off,” al- tense and, therefore, doesn’t allow for the investment
though part of the recent growth may be due to the in the deinking technology and process for other mills
strong paper market in general. to compete.”
“T think there’s a kind of renaissance in recycling,”
agrees Ed Gillis, vice president-sales, P.H. Glatfelter Co. HIGH-GRADE WASTEPAPER USE UP. The U.S. govern-
“The potential for demand is much more real today than ment said that for printing and writing papers to be con-
it was five or ten years ago,” he adds. sidered recycled, they must have a minimum of 40% re-
Glatfelter makes, among others, a 50%-recycled text- cycled fiber, says James Hutchison, vice president-
book grade often used for encyclopedias, various blends, printing/writing papers division at the American Paper
and a 100%-recycled sheet that varies in shade within a Institute. Most states require 50%.
roll and from roll to roll. These grades are made in Statistics on the size of the U.S. recycled printing/
Neenah, Wis. French produces some stationery papers, writing paper market were not available. However, the
including a designer sheet, plus text and cover grades. last API capacity survey shows that in 1987, about
Still, Davis decries the slow expansion of recycled pa- 351,000 tons of high-grade deinking stock were used in
per capacity. The only project due online in the near fu- printing/writing and related grades, and this was ex-

Government procurement laws lift demand for recycled papers |

Conservatree Paper Co., San Francisco, Calif., was committee, held two hearings on the reauthorization of
founded in 1976 by attorney Alan Davis and now RCRA at which he submitted a mandatory recycling and
distributes over 280 grades of recycled printing and writing procurement bill. Debate on this bill will heat up now that
papers, most of which contain 50% recycled fiber. A few the transition to a new administration is over. Baucus’s bill
papers are 100% recycled fiber, and a couple are 30% to would require any federal agency to use recycled material
40% recycled fiber. Conservatree sells a small amount of in contracts worth $1 million or more, unless the contractor
100% virgin paper to fill in the line of paper that printers certifies that recycled material is not available or is not
want but for which there isn’t any recycled paper. available at a cost of 10% more than virgin materials. It
The company said it is the only distributor that stocks a would also impose a fee on virgin materials used for
complete line of recycled printing and fine papers in the packaging at a rate of $7/ton or 0.7¢/rigid container.
U.S. In 1987, Conservatree sold 3 million Ib of its Premium Packaging made from recycled materials would be made:
High Speed Xerographic paper, which has a 50% recycled exempt.
content. It calculates that this saved 12,750 trees, 3 million The bill sets a national goal of 25% municipal solid
kWh of energy, and 6.25 million gallons of water and re- waste recycling within four years and 50% in ten years,
duced air pollution by 22.5 tons and solid waste by 2,250 where recycling constitutes least-cost disposal. While
yd’. industry sources do not expect the bill to pass as is, the
RCRA may step up federal procurement. The pressure to keep paper out of landfills is mounting and
Resource Conservation & Recovery Act (RCRA) passed recycled paper and board mills stand to gain if the bill goes
in 1976 required the Environmental Protection Agency to into effect.
issue guidelines for government procurement of recycled —Regina McGrath, News Editor
paper. A lawsuit brought against EPA because of its failure
to meet deadlines for complying with the act ended in 1988
Conservatree’s price
when a federal judge signed a consent decree that book offers over 280
obligated EPA to issue guidelines for procurement. grades of recycled
In the absence of federal regulation, 23 states had printing and writing
enacted government procurement laws for recycled Papers to businesses,
products as of early 1988. The laws are not uniform, which nonprofit groups, and
means papermakers may have to fulfill different government agencies.
qualifications in different states. For example, for paper to
qualify as recycled for purposes of government
procurement in California, it must contain 50% recycled
fiber, 10% of which must be postconsumer waste. If
recycled paper meets these qualifications, then the state
will give a 5% purchasing preference to the supplier in
bidding for state contracts. (A bill pending in the Assembly
would lift the preference to 10%.) Most procurement bills
in the east consider a recycled sheet to be 50% recycled
fiber, with no specifications made for postconsumer waste.
In 1988, Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., chairman of the
Hazardous Waste & Toxic Substance Control Sub-
pected to climb by about 14% to 400,000 tons in 1990. In MEETING CUSTOMERS’ NEEDS. The recycled prin-
addition, about 1.014 million tons of pulp substitutes ting/writing paper market is still evolving, and mills
were used in printing/writing papers in 1988. and merchants will have to identify customers’ needs.
Major contaminants are ink, adhesives, fillers, and But suppliers will also have to educate buyers and the
plastics, such as those on window envelopes, according public at large about recycled papers “to make sure we
to Hutchison. Paper used with computer laser printers is all understand what recycling means and that we un-
not recyclable for printing and writing grades because derstand the value of recycling,” one source says.
the heat bonds the ink to the cellulose fibers, he says. For mills, recycling doesn’t necessarily mean large
However, used laser paper can be recovered for use in cost savings. In fact, Kline says, there is not much differ-
tissue. In fact, says Hutchison, 60% of the scheduled ence between the cost of materials for recycled or virgin
new tissue capacity is wastepaper-based. “Most of the fiber grades. And equivalent products sell for essentially
material suitable for printing/writing papers is now be- the same price in the market.
ing used,” he added. Strickman and others suggested that incentives for
Davis said the deinking pulp mill that the company customers, if not also for mills, should be implemented
may build in the PRC will take all papers, regardless of to increase demand for recycled printing/writing pa-
inks and coatings. pers. Rod Miller, legislative coordinator for Californians
But Al Strickman, who is in charge of government re- Against Waste, says possible incentives include tax
lations and resource recovery, western region, Garden credits for mills and procurement preferences instituted
State Paper Co. Inc., agreed that quality of wastepaper is by area governments.
an issue. Strickman, who is also chairman of the recent- API has opposed procurement preferences for 17
ly formed California Coalition of Recycled Paper Mills, years, although the group is reevaluating the paper in-
said it is not enough to simply pull fiber out of the solid- dustry’s positions on all questions relating to solid
waste stream. “If it’s mixed with a lot of contamin- waste, Hutchison says. Procurement programs will not
ants... we can’t use it.” result in significant reductions in solid waste, he says.
Strickman adds that he would like to see the private API does have in place various promotional programs to
collection industry that is now in place be supported encourage recycling. Hutchison notes that roughly 90%
rather than supplanted by government agencies. The ex- of all recycling is being done by the paper industry. &
isting paperstock industry works well, is capable of
change, and can deliver quality, he noted.

Trash Crunch Drives Demand 49

 » =

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 Economics of Recycling
Paper recycling has been practiced for centuries simply because it is economical. Depending
‘on the paper being recycled and the resulting grades being produced, very little capital equip-
ment—mainly just for defibering (pulper tubs), screening, and cleaning—is required, unless,
of course, extensive deinking is involved. But even in some deinking operations, such as for
newsprint or tissue, the economics still can favor recycling.
As discussed in several articles in this section, the per-ton production cost of virgin pulp for
newsprint will tend to exceed the cost for a 100% onP furnish by as much as $70, obviously
depending on the size and pulping process used at the virgin mill. Although raw material costs
are currently higher for onP, other process costs, and particularly costs for power, are signifi-
cantly lower.
For other grades, especially printing and writing papers, the picture is mixed, for both cap-
ital costs and production costs. This section makes a thorough comparative analysis of produc-
tion costs for most grades, considering expenditures for raw materials, chemicals, and person-
nel, as well as capital outlays.
 Wms << a

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 Chapter 11

Economics Favor Increased Use of

Recycled Fiber in Most Furnishes
Grade-by-grade cost analysis shows various advantages, but savings
depend on geographics, fiber availability, and desired product quality

By ARTHUR C. VEVERKA tinue to be the main user of recycled fiber. However, on

a percentage basis, the most remarkable increases are
expected in newsprint, printing and writing paper, and
WY orewice, nearly 75 million tons of recycled fiber tissue products.
were consumed by the paper industry in 1988, ac- Growth in the importance of deinking grades will be
counting for almost one-third of the total papermaking one of the key trends in the wastepaper business. Cur-
fiber needs of the industry. North America and Western rently, some 11 million tons, or approximately 14% of
Europe (as a whole) each consumed some 20 million the recycled fiber used, are deinking grades. Approxi-
tons of wastepaper in 1988, followed by Japan with a mately half of this is used for newsprint, with another
consumption of 12.5 million tons. These three regions quarter going to tissue products. Thus, the great bulk of
accounted for about 70% of the total worldwide use of wastepaper—64 million tons, or close to 85% of the
recycled fiber. total—is used without deinking, mainly in packaging
During the period 1970 to 1988, the demand for recy- grades. By 2001, the deinking grades are expected to
cled fiber grew twice as fast as the demand for virgin have increased to about 31 million tons, or 24% of the
pulp on a worldwide basis (Figure 1). This growth total consumption of recycled fiber. In a strengthening of
amounted to 5%/year for recycled fiber vs 2.5% /year the past usage pattern, more than half of the deinked
for virgin fiber. It appears the use of recycled fiber will pulp will be used for newsprint.
continue to grow even more rapidly in the future. A major improvement in the recovery rates of waste-
By 1996, consumption of wastepaper is expected to paper will be necessary to meet the forecast demands for
have passed the 100-million-ton mark and to reach 130 secondary fiber. An increase is expected in the recovery
million tons by 2001. With the assumption of an average rates in virtually every area of the world (Table 1). The
growth rate of 2.6%/year in global consumption and increases in Western and Eastern Europe will be par-
production of paper and board products, the worldwide ticularly noteworthy. However, it is in North America,
recycled fiber utilization rate is expected to increase and particularly in the U.S., where the most dramatic
from 32.8% in 1988 to 41% in 2001.
Current demand, however, has not been even across
all countries. In Western Europe, the use of recycled fi- FIGURE 1: Recycled fiber demand worldwide grew almost twice
as fast as virgin fiber demand from 1971 to 1988, and that margin
ber has grown nearly four times as fast as the demand is expected to widen even more, doubling again by 2001.
for virgin fiber. By contrast, North American recycled fi-
ber use has grown at only 3.4%/year, or slightly more
than the increase in virgin fiber use for the same period.
Clearly this would seem to indicate a significant poten-
tial to use more recycled fiber in North America.
By grade, the packaging board industry, particularly
iS} pe)oOoO
linerboard and fluting producers, has been and will con- &
£Oo
<
2
Mr. Veverka is president and CEO of Jaakko Péyry Consulting
=
Inc., Briarcliff Manor, N.Y. All figures, data, and results cited
in this article are based on the multi-client study recently
completed by Jaakko Péyry Oy.
0
1971 1976 1981 1986 1991 1996 2001
ear
0 Virgin fiber consumption Hi Recycled fiber consumption

Economics Favor Increased Use 53

 increases in wastepaper recovery will take place. In the dary fiber. The U.S. sends 3.18 million tons of waste-
case of the U.S., the recovery rate is forecast to go from paper to Pacific Rim countries and 1.12 million tons to
30.2% in 1988 to more than 44% just after 2000. Central America. The recovery of wastepaper and board
Recovery rates, however, are only part of the equa- in North America is forecast to expand and continue to
tion. Some areas of the world not only will use all of the outstrip demand, allowing for a growing export surplus.
wastepaper they recover but also must import secon- A recovery rate increase from 29.4% to 42.9% for North
dary fiber to satisfy their total needs for raw materials. America as a whole (Table 1), combined with a utiliza-
When considering the trade flows of recycled fiber, tion rate increase of about 8.5% for the forecast period
wastepaper utilization rates achieved by these areas of (22.8% to 31.3% in Table 2), allows for a doubling of off-
the world must be analyzed and compared with recov- shore exports by 2001. The U.S. will be the most domi-
ery rates. nant source for all wastepaper, exporting between 4 mil-
Table 2 shows expected utilization rates. Countries lion and 5 million tons to Canada, in addition to more
where recovery rates (from Table 1) exceed utilization than 10 million tons to offshore users.
rates are net exporters of fiber. Countries with recovery
below the utilization rates are net importers. Thus, Ja- NEW DRIVING FORCES. The key driving force for the
pan, with a recovery rate of 48% in 1988 and a utiliza- use of wastepaper has traditionally been economics.
tion rate near 51%, is a net importer. North America is Wastepaper enabled mills and countries without abun-
by far the largest source of wastepaper exports in the dant forest resources to compete effectively on bulk
world, with an export surplus of 4.6 million tons in 1988, grades with integrated producers using virgin fiber. This
expected to increase to 10.8 million tons by 2001. was the case in large paper- and board-consuming re-
Wastepaper trade flows throughout the world show gions, such as Japan and Western Europe, where it has
the importance of the U.S. as a major exporter of secon- been relatively easy to collect and process large volumes
of wastepaper. In the Far East, it is doubtful if local in-
TABLE 1: To meet increasing demand for secondary fiber, dustries could have progressed without the cost econo-
wastepaper recovery rates are expected to increase in almost mies of wastepaper. In North America, on the other
every area of the world, with North America experiencing the
hand, abundant forest resources have not historically
greatest percentage increase (13.5%) by 2001.
encouraged the use of recycled fiber.
Region
Technology has also played a role in the traditional
use of recycled fiber. Improved technologies in the fields
North America of cleaning, deinking, and handling of wastepaper have
U.S. allowed production of acceptable end products using
Western Europe — secondary fiber as the raw material source.
Seu countries
E.F.T.A. ain — This situation is now changing.
ging. Th There are new fforces
EasiemietroreandiSsA scarcely mentioned in previous times—problems associ-
Oacania ated with disposal of solid waste and the environmental
Latin America factor. The paper industry is now being told to use
piel wastepaper not because it is good for the paper industry
See but rather because it is good for the environment. The
Rica introduction of these considerations into the industry’s
thinking and growing reinforcement by mandatory leg-
World total islative measures are creating strong pressures to recov-
er and recycle more waste-
TABLE 2: A comparison of recovery rates (Table 1) with utilization rates shows North America
paper in North America.
could possibly double wastepaper exports by 2001. Despite the emergence of
environmental forces for the
Total paper Wastepaper use of wastepaper, economic
and board Wastepaper utilization reasons will continue to be
production consumption (%) important and, in many re-
1988 2001 1988 2001 1988 spects, a necessary ingredient
for promoting recycled fiber
North America 86,737 115, 198 19,778 36,030 22.8 use in the paper and board
Western Europe 57,633 78,844 19,811 31,228 34.4
E.F.T.A. countries 22,350 30,400 2,967 5,198 13.3 industry. Furthermore, tech-
European Community 35,283 48,444 16,844 26,031 47.7 nical developments in recy-
Eastern Europe 17,988 22,193 4,868 8,746 27. cled fiber handling, such as
Oceania 2,487 3,864 702 1,271 28.2 fiber fractionation, bleaching,
Latin America 10,506 15,909 4,757 7,801 45.3
Japan 24,624
in addition to the other se-
34,892 12,538 19,415 50.9
China 12,645 19,760 3,084 8,305 24.4
parate handling techniques,
Rest of Asia 12,218 22,431 8,369 15,877 68.5 will, in the long-term, bring
Africa 2,524 679 679 1,092 26.9
World total 227,362 316,669 74,586 129,766 32.8

Economics of Recycling
additional economically feasible solutions to increased The unit prices and cost of raw materials, chemicals,
secondary fiber use. energy, labor, and other production factors represent re-
gional averages. Recycled fiber prices are average prices
COST COMPETITIVENESS. With these varied forces of the recycled fiber mix used in each grade. The cost
in mind, a change exists in the current economic situa- level used for each recycled grade is that of third-quar-
tion for use of recycled vs virgin fiber for five specific ter 1989. The units are U.S. dollars (US$)/metric ton. In
grades—newsprint, printing and writing paper, tissue, the case of purchased chemical pulp, pulp substitutes,
linerboard, and corrugating medium. For comparison and high-grade deinking waste, long-term trend prices
purposes, cost estimates were prepared for the produc- have been used instead of the actual third-quarter 1989
tion of the five products for various locations worldwide prices to get a more realistic picture of the cost compe-
using both recycled and virgin fiber. titiveness between virgin and recycled fiber-based prod-
The basis for the cost estimates is a computerized ucts. Therefore, the price used for northern bleached
cost-estimating model developed by Jaakko Péyry. This softwood kraft (NBSK) pulp represents a long-term trend
model uses technical and economic mill data within a level of $650/metric ton.
simulation framework and is typically used to examine For each of the cost-competitive comparisons, the
the relative differences in production costs between ex- specifications for the grade and mills are presented, fol-
isting pulp and paper mills. However, for this study, hy- lowed by the production costs of the grade in question.
pothetical new greenfield mills were simulated rather
than using existing ones. This was done to present a NEWSPRINT. Capacity of the simulated newsprint
more generic picture and to make the results as uni- mill is the same for both recycled fiber or virgin fiber
formly applicable as possible. mills, at 220,000 metric tpy (Figure 2). The finished
The new mills represent the most modern technology product is standard newsprint at a basis weight of 45
in typical mill/machine sizes for each of the paper and g/m2. The furnish ranges from 100% thermomechanical
board grades examined. For technical and wastepaper pulp (TMP) to 100% deinked recycled fiber.
procurement reasons, the average size of a mill using re- The recycled fiber component for newsprint was a
cycled fiber as the main raw material may be smaller mixture of highest-quality old newspapers (ONP) and
than that of a virgin fiber-based mill. Costs are calculat- sorted newspaper and magazine waste collected from
ed for reels only, without regard to possible sheeting or households. Typically this mixed newspaper and maga-
converting operations. Capital costs, which have been zine waste contains approximately 70% ONP and 30%
included, represent a return on investment of 17%. magazines, pamphlets, inserts, and other advertising

FIGURE 2: Production costs for new 220,000-metric-tpy newsprint mills, in selected areas and with typical fiber furnishes, show that
recycled fiber use can be a competitive alternative to a 100% virgin fiber mill, especially in the northeastern U.S., where savings could be
$110/ton.

UK 2 Canada Canada Fed. Rep. cS: Sweden Sweden Japan US.

60/40% Quebec — Quebec. — German Northeast TMP 100% 50/50% 50/50% Northeast
TMP 100% 50/50% 60/40% 50/50% TMP 100%
Mi Wood @ Recycled fiber Chemicals (J Purchased energy {J Personnel CJ Other {Capital charges

Economics Favor Increased Use 55

materials. The yield when processing the furnish into a continuous basis. With higher rates of utilization being
deinked pulp was assumed to be 86%. forecast throughout the world, this may become increas-
Production cost estimates of new newsprint mills in ingly difficult to do and could, in the long term, put a
selected regions, with typical fiber furnishes for the re- limit on the amount of recycled fiber used in a typical
gion, are shown in Figure 2. The most competitive re- newsprint furnish.
gions are the U.K. and Quebec. In Canada, there is no
advantage from use of a partial-recycled furnish be- PRINTING AND WRITING PAPER. For printing and
cause of the low wood cost and, in particular, the low writing grades, the production cost estimates were cal-
power prices. In Sweden, a 100% TMP-based newsprint culated assuming the finished product is a typical print-
mill would be as competitive as a 50% recycled fiber- ing paper used by offices, namely an uncoated offset pa-
based operation since the high price of recycled fiber per suitable for copy paper or computer printouts. Basis
(approximately three times the northeastern U.S. price) weights of these grades would typically be in the 60 to
and the somewhat higher personnel and capital require- 80 g/m? range. For this grade, the capacities of the virgin
ments associated with two fiber lines effectively coun- fiber and recycled fiber-based mills would be consider-
terbalance the savings in wood and energy costs. ably different. Capacity of the virgin fiber mill was tak-
In general, the same problem of having two relatively en to be 280,000 metric tpy, while the recycled fiber
small fiber lines instead of one line of economical size mill, due to the considerations originally mentioned,
affects all 50:50 concept mills. Adding a second paper would typically be in the range of 150,000 metric tpy
machine at the mill site would improve, to a consider- (Figure 3). The other major difference with this grade
able extent, the total mill economy of using a 50% recy- was the brightness, with the virgin fiber product being
cled fiber furnish. Nevertheless, the savings in a north- the brighter of the two (86% ISO vs 80% ISO).
eastern U.S. mill (at a 50% recycled fiber content) are An additional variable in the equation is that two
close to $50/ton. types of recycled fiber were considered. The first was
Production of newsprint with a 100% recycled fur- white ledger computer printouts and other printed
nish would, however, look attractive in all regions stud- wood-free waste. In the second case, a 50:50 mixture of
ied. Savings in production costs range from $25/ton in magazines and ONP was used. The assumed deinked
Sweden to $110/ton in the northeastern U.S. It should pulp yields varied between 86% and 82%. In addition to
be remembered that production of 100% recycled fiber- all of the above, the virgin fiber-based mill (except for
based newsprint requires procuring a very clean, homo- Fed. Rep. Germany) was assumed to be integrated with
geneous, and virgin fiber-containing newsprint stock on a 400,000-metric-tpy kraft pulp mill.

FIGURE 3: Comparison of production costs for a 280,000-metric-tpy virgin fiber mill and a 150,000-metric-tpy recycled mill show a mixed
competitive picture. Mills using higher-grade wastes (Rec 1) generally have slightly higher costs than virgin fiber mills. However, if
lower-quality waste can be used, secondary fiber can provide cost savings.

1000 ~

800 —

&

400
- $/metrcton
US

200

UK Fed. Rep. Japan "Ue T men NS

Canada UK. Sweden Japan F
Rec2 Germany Rec2
Rec 2
South
Rec 2
Virgin
.
—
Virgin
Wign Rect Vron Rect
ee
i Wood/purchased pulp Ml Recycled fiber [1] Chemicals HM Purchased energy [[] Personnel [] Other i
Economics of Recycling
 The uncoated wood-free product presents a some- roughly 50:50.
what mixed cost-competitive picture (Figure 3). A print- The deinked pulp for the recycled fiber-based mill
ing paper mill using pulp substitutes and high-grade was based on a newspaper and magazine mix. While
deinked wastepaper has no advantage in total raw mate- this may be typical for a European or Japanese mill, it is
rial and energy costs compared with an integrated kraft not necessarily a recycled fiber furnish favored by U.S.
mill. Actually, the raw material and energy costs for a mills, where there is a tendency to use a somewhat
southern U.S. mill are less than half those of a high- higher grade of recycled fiber because of consumer de-
grade recycled paper mill. For total production costs (in- sire for a higher-quality end product. The deinked pulp
cluding capital costs), the virgin fiber-based mill has a yield for the mixed newspaper/magazine input was as-
cost advantage over a high-grade wood-free waste-based sumed to be 80%.
mill, amounting to some $170/ton in the southern U.S. The product specifications chosen were that of a tow-
and almost $115/ton in Japan. In Fed. Rep. Germany, the eling grade produced in jumbo rolls. The cost of any
production costs of a nonintegrated virgin fiber-based conversion of the jumbo rolls to consumer-size rolls was
mill and a recycled mill using high-grade waste are ap- not figured in.
proximately at the same level. A considerable cost savings is attainable due to the
If allowance is made for a lower product quality (in- use of recycled fiber in this grade (Figure 4). The savings
cluding brightness), considerable cost savings can be in raw material and energy costs are approximately
achieved in all regions, if the lesser-quality recycled fi- $500/ton and total productions costs between $350 and
ber furnish (blend 2) is used. Total production cost sav- $400/ton when pure virgin fiber and pure recycled-
ings range from $235/ton in the case of the nonintegrat- based products are compared. Although not shown on
ed virgin fiber mills in Fed. Rep. Germany to about the diagram, estimates show that production based on
$70/ton in Japan and $55/ton in the southern U.S. (com- the use of a 50:50 recycled fiber/virgin fiber mix would
parison is to integrated virgin fiber mills). result in a savings of about $200/ton in total production
The lower-quality printing paper seems interesting in costs.
areas where the competitors are unintegrated produ- Obviously, the cost comparisons can be affected
cers—for example, the U.K. and Fed. Rep. Germany. greatly by the use of a higher-quality recycled fiber to
However, it is, quality-wise, a totally different product. improve end product quality or by the use of bleached
When using lower-quality raw material, the resulting chemi-thermomechanical pulp (BCTMP) in the place of
product quality difference is reflected in the price chemical pulp. Nevertheless, the recycled fiber product
structure of the products. This can clearly be seen in consistently shows a production cost advantage over a
the price of recycled fiber-based continuous stationery, virgin fiber-based tissue product.
which is priced up to 30% to 40% lower than the virgin It should be noted that despite lower production costs
wood-free continuous stationery. associated with the recycled product, this cannot auto-
In most cases, the main advantage of the use of lower- matically be translated to increased profit since prices of
quality waste has been the ability to offer the buyers a the finished product react substantially to quality levels.
differentiated and less-expensive product, often with a However, to date, the price differential between recy-
clear gray shade for color. In
addition, this has often been FIGURE 4: Production comparison costs for a 70,000-metric-tpy tissue mill producing jumbo rolls
the only possibility for small show considerable savings are possible using secondary fiber—up to $400/ton when pure virgin
fiber production is compared with pure recycled fiber production.
unintegrated mills to contin-
ue operation since they are
not competitive with the pro-
duction of virgin fiber-based
products.

TISSUE. For tissue pro- 10007

duction, a 70,000-metric-tpy e a
machine was chosen as the
representative mill size for
both the recycled and virgin
fiber-based products (Figure
4). The additional assump-
tions are that the virgin fi- U.S.$/metric
ton
ber mill would not be inte-
grated with a chemical pulp 200
mill and also that the pur- ecg
chased hardwood/purchased
0 US. 100%
Northeast Japan Fed. Hep. Fed. Rep. U.S. Northeast
softwood mixture would be 100% Germany Germany 5A/51
recycled recycled 100% recycled 100% 5A/51 100% 100%
Recycled []Chemicals MJ Purchased [] Personne! [] Other Mi Capital
| MB Purchased MM fiber energy charges

Economics Favor Increased Use 57

 cled fiber-based and virgin fiber-based jumbo reels has pings. The average yield when processing corrugated
been somewhat smaller than the 35% difference in the waste to cleaned recycled pulp is assumed to be 92%.
production costs shown. Typically, this has been in the The cost comparative data in Figure 5 clearly show
15% to 25% range in Western Europe. Through environ- that the attainable savings in raw material and energy
mental concern and product branding, it has been possi- costs will vary with the recycled fiber content. In a case
ble in many cases to set the prices of recycled fiber- of 100% recycled linerboard, the energy costs are clearly
based end products even nearer those of virgin fiber- higher because no energy-generating pulp mill is near-
based products. In some cases, the differential has been by. The chemical costs are likewise higher because of
reduced to the 10% to 15% range. the surface sizing requirement of test liner.
In areas with high wood costs, such as Sweden, a test
LINERBOARD. For comparison of linerboard costs, liner mill can have $75 to $80/ton savings in total raw
the mill models differed in size between the virgin (kraft material and energy costs over a kraft liner mill. Howev-
liner mills) and the recycled (test liner mills) (Figure 5). er, in the southern U.S., where wood costs are low, only
The typical kraft liner mill capacity was assumed to be a minor advantage can be achieved with an increasing
400,000 metric tpy, while the test liner facility was based use of recycled fiber ($4/ton when using OCC and
on a 250,000-metric-tpy capacity. In both cases, produc- $5 /ton when 100% OCC/DLK is used).
tion costs were calculated for a 150 g/m? product. When total production costs are examined, the cap-
In principle, no technical reason exists for the recy- ital intensity of the virgin fiber mill, with its integrated
cled linerboard machine to be smaller than the kraft lin- pulp mill, clearly translates into a higher capital cost.
er machine. In practice, however, recycled liner ma- Among virgin fiber-based producers, the southern U.S.
chines tend to be smaller for raw material procurement and Brazilian (eucaliner) producers have a clear advan-
reasons, and the 250,000-metric-tpy machine size cho- tage. All the recycled fiber-based producers however,
sen is actually very large in comparison with existing are competitive in their own local markets, including
test liner machines. Japan.
Two furnishes for kraft liner were investigated: a According to calculations, in a new mill the produc-
100% unbleached kraft pulp and a mix of 80% un- tion costs of test liner are about 13% to 27% lower than
bleached kraft pulp and 20% old corrugated containers those of kraft liner in Western Europe. This also corre-
(Occ). Integration with an unbleached chemical pulp sponds roughly to the price difference. In the southern
mill is assumed. For the test liner mill, the furnish cho- U.S., the total cost difference is smaller due to lower
sen was 90% OCC and 10% double lined kraft (DLK) clip- wood costs and amounts to only about 15% to 20%.

FIGURE 5: Comparison of production costs for a 400,000-metric-tpy kraft linerboard mill with a 250,000-metric-tpy test linerboard mill
shows that the major cost difference is in capital costs for a virgin fiber mill (due to an integrated pulp mill) and raw materials and
chemical costs for the 100% recycled mills (due to lower wood costs in various regions).

700

<
Soy

U.S.$/metric
ton_

AKAN

UK. Fed. Rep. Us.

OCC Germany OUR Ge 7 OCC. i eee Ve
100% OCC 100% 100% 100%, TO Oe aire
HW Recycled fibe Chemicals @M Purchasedenergy [1] Personnel [] Other _
58
Economics of Recycling
 CORRUGATING MEDIUM. For production of corrugat- transition of newsprint production from areas having
ing medium (fluting), the choice between virgin and re- abundant wood resources toward areas having abundant
cycled fiber is not a very important consideration in recycled fiber resources.
most areas of the world, except in the U.S., since this In printing and writing grades, there would appear to
grade is already predominantly based on the use of recy- be minimal economic incentive for including recycled
cled fiber. The typical mill size studied, at 250,000 met- fiber in finished products. However, it is likely that recy-
ric tpy, was the same regardless of the fiber input (Fig- cled fiber-based products will be produced and sold, not
ure 6). The basis weight of the product chosen for because of any potential economic advantage but be-
comparison was 150 g/mz. In the case of the virgin fiber cause of a public concern for the environment and a de-
product, the furnish was assumed to be 100% NSSC sire to purchase “environmentally friendly” products.
pulp. For the recycled mill, the furnish was assumed to For tissue products, recycled fiber use can definitely
be 75% OCC and 25% mixed waste. Fiber yield on this lower the cost of production, but some quality differ-
furnish was assumed at 92%. ences exist in the products. Current indicators show
In fluting, the NSSC-based product can, in the south- that consumers in North America will be willing to ac-
ern U.S., reach similar or even slightly lower manufac- cept slightly lower product quality and, hence, will fa-
turing costs than a waste-based product (Figure 6). How- vor recycled tissue products over virgin fiber-based
ever, this is possible only in the U.S., where wood prices products.
are low. When considering the heavy capital cost of a Linerboard production in the U.S. currently already
new NSSC pulp mill, the cost comparison changes in fa- contains, for the most part, a substantial recycled fiber
vor of the recycled fiber-based product in the southern quantity (20% Occ). The economics, though, would indi-
U.S. This advantage is approximately $50/ton. A north- cate that there is a potential for increasing the amount of
ern U.S. location would be even more favorable for recy- recycled fiber used by existing mills and that there is
cled fluting. also the possibility for producing an economically viable
Given the relatively modest differences in production test liner mill. Despite apparent cost advantages, the in-
costs of recycled-based corrugated medium in various creased use of recycled fiber in linerboard will probably
regions of the world, it is easy to understand why there depend on changes in applicable shipping rules, e.g.,
is a relatively limited international trade in this product. Rule 41.
For most of the world, no competitive activity exists
IMPLICATIONS TO BUSINESS. This cost-competitive between recycled fiber-based and virgin fiber-based cor-
analysis focused on the differences between new green- rugating medium. The clear economic advantage is to-
field recycled fiber mills vs virgin fiber facilities. When ward the waste-based product. In North America, it is
considering the total spectrum of cost competitiveness, probably fair to say that the future should favor the in-
several other scenarios have to be considered: troduction of more recycled fiber medium. However, in
e The cost implications of replacing an aging kraft areas with low hardwood costs, NSSC medium can still
mill at an integrated facility with a secondary fiber pro- be a very cost-competitive product. a
cessing plant
e The potential of gaining
incremental papermaking ca- FIGURE 6: Production costs for a new 250,000-metric-tpy corrugating medium mill show that
pacity and satisfying that in- recycled fiber mills clearly have an advantage over a virgin-based NSSC mill, which mirrors the
fact that production of this grade is already based on recycled fiber use.
crement with the use of recy-
cled fiber.
Each of these alternatives
would, given the proper cir-
cumstances, probably be very
cost-competitive and cost-ef-
fective uses for recycled fi-
ber. On the other hand, some
conclusions relative to cost
competitiveness and its im-
pact on the increased use of
recycled fiber can be made
from the comparative study.
In newsprint production,
using recycled fiber currently
yields a definite cost advan-
tage. In North America, this
||
will probably mean that, in “US South —
| US. Soutn
i sd
Japan
the long run, there will be a 100% recycled elma 100% recycled 100% recycled 400% NSSC |
es 100% recycied
| [Wood BM Recycled | Chemicals WJ Purchased [] Personnel (_] Other MM Capital
ao liber eneray charges

Economics Favor Increased Use

 The Economics Are Right for U.S.
Mills to Recycle Old Newspapers
More states are enacting mandatory collection and procurement
laws to ease landfill crises, but they are ignoring market forces

ONP in the solid-waste stream on the scale encountered

By FRED D. IANNAZZI
in the U.S. is unique to the U.S. Because of this vast ton-
nage, other countries’ experiences in ONP recovery can-
f the total U.S. solid-waste stream of 145 million not necessarily serve as a model for the U.S.
metric tpy, paper and paperboard products com- Figure 1 shows the overall supply and disposition
prise 64 million tons, or 40% of the total. By far, the two balance for newsprint in the U.S. in 1987. Starting
largest components of paper and board waste are old in the center of the chart, we see that total U.S. con-
corrugated containers (OCC) and old newspapers (ONP). sumption of newsprint was 12.3 million metric tons.
occ, which is used to make the corrugating medium lay- Only 32% of this newsprint was recovered, and the re-
er of corrugated containers, is actually in short supply. mainder—about 8.4 million metric tons—ended up in
The recovery of Occ has risen from 44% to 50% over the the solid-waste stream.
past five years and is projected to rise even further in The three markets for recovered ONP are newsprint
the next few years. Market forces alone will ensure that manufacture, fiber furnish for other paper and board
occ will become a lessening burden in the waste products, and export. We can assume that essentially all
stream. the export ONP is used to make newsprint, and, there-
ONP, however, is a different story. Only 32% of ONP is fore, about half of the recovered ONP is recycled to
reused. That percentage has remained essentially un- newsprint.
changed for the past five years and shows no sign of in- There is little opportunity for increasing the reuse of
creasing. Unrecovered ONP alone accounts for 15% of ONP for nonnewsprint paper and board products; an am-
the paper and paperboard waste, or 6% of total U.S. solid ple supply of other grades of wastepaper better satisfies
waste. Since the recovery of ONP is not increasing as a these applications. To increase the reuse of ONP signifi-
result of market forces and since ONP is relatively cantly, we should encourage its increased use by news-
easy to segregate at source (not in a mixed-solid-waste print mills in the U.S., keeping a few things in mind:
stream), many states and municipalities are enacting 1. Only 24% of the fiber used in newsprint manufac-
legislation that encourages or mandates greater recy- ture in the U.S. is recycled, and 76% is virgin fiber.
cling and reuse of ONP. 2. U.S. mills produce more than three times as much
newsprint from virgin fiber as from ONP.
ONP GENERATION AND REUSE. The U.S. is by far the 3. Fully 58% of total U.S. newsprint requirement is
largest single consumer of newsprint, accounting for al- imported (almost all from Canada), despite the fact that
most 41% of world consumption—about four times the a valuable low-cost resource—ONP—is burdening the
usage of Japan, which is the second largest consumer. U.S. with waste disposal problems and costs.
The U.S. is the only country in the world whose con-
sumption of newsprint greatly exceeds its production. BARRIERS TO REUSE OF ONP. The supply of onp is
Only about 42% of the U.S. requirement is produced not a barrier to increased use. Existing supply channels
domestically. could easily collect far more ONP than is presently col-
Obviously, the U.S., as the world’s largest consumer lected if a viable market for it exists. In market terms,
of newsprint, is also by far the largest generator of ONP the volume of ONP recovered and recycled is demand
and the largest potential market for ONP. The problem of limited, not supply limited. Legislation that mandates
increased collection of ONP merely increases the supply;
Mr. Iannazzi is president, Andover International Associates, it does nothing to increase the demand. Unless demand
Danvers, Mass. This article is based upon information is increased, any supply of segregated ONP will inevita-
contained in a multi-client study published by AIA. All tons in bly end up exactly where the unsegregated ONP does
this article are metric. now—in landfills or incinerators.

60
Economics of Recycling
 COMPARATIVE COSTS: ONP VS PULP. If it can be dem- compensate for the expected growth of about 1 million
onstrated that newsprint manufacture from ONP is eco- metric tpy in additional ONP that will be available by
nomically attractive compared with virgin fiber and if 1991. What is the problem?
the newsprint mills install the capacity to increase the The problem is that projected U.S. and Canadian
demand for ONP, the supply of ONP could easily be installed pulping capacity for newsprint will exceed
increased 50%. the projected demand by about 2 million metric tons,
In the virgin fiber process, pulpwood is delivered to enough to preclude building significant new newsprint
the mill as logs, the logs are debarked and chipped, and pulping capacity before 1992-93 at the earliest. Despite
the chips are converted to pulp by cooking and me- the fact that a new mill based on ONP would, under cur-
chanical defiberizing. Most integrated paper mills are, of rent conditions, be more economical than a virgin-fiber
necessity, closer to wood sup-
plies than to urban areas.
Making newsprint out of FIGURE 1: U.S. supply and disposition of newsprint.
clean and segregated ONP re-
quires only deinking to pro-
Recycled
duce slush pulp; the remain- newsprint
der of the process is similar Imported newsprint U.S.
principally from Canada manufacture
to papermaking that starts di- virgin newsprint
rectly from logs. It should be (58% of supply)
noted that in both processes, (32% of
the product of the pulping supply)
stage is a very dilute slurry of
pulp in water. It is uneco- supply
of
10%
nomic to dry and ship the
pulp, so all U.S. newsprint
mills are integrated. The vir-
gin fiber process has a lower
raw material cost but higher
operating costs (particularly
for power), and the process
based on 100% ONP has a U.S. newsprint consumption
12,323 (100%)
clear cost advantage (Table
1). However, the quality of
newsprint made from 100%
ONP is somewhat inferior to
(6%)
790
Export
that produced using virgin fi-
Not recovered Recovered
ber. This quality difference 8,400 3,923
can be avoided by using ONP (68% ONP) (32% ONP) (10%)
1,260
Recycled
newsprint
to
as a partial substitution rath-
er than a 100% replacement
for virgin fiber. Similar to the (15%)
other
1,873
paper/board
Recycled
to
uses
or
use of OCC as a blending fiber
in manufacturing linerboard,
ONP can be used to expand
pulping facilities increment-
ally, without the costly bur-
den of expanding wood han-
dling and virgin fiber pulping
capacity.

SUPPLY, DEMAND. Even

with its cost advantages, the
additional ONP pulp capacity
that is slated to come online
by 1991 in Dublin, Ga., totals
only some 200,000 metric tpy.
This is not even enough to

61
Economics of Recycling Old Newspapers
mill, it is decidedly uneconomic to shut down an exist- and market. The existing system will supply ONP to keep
ing virgin mill and replace it with a new ONP-based pace with any increase in demand, without the need for
mill. : outside initiatives.
This situation will continue until more newsprint 4. When establishing segregation and recycling ordi-
pulping capacity is needed, at which time the lower op- nances, the advice of the potential user who must han-
erating cost should tip the balance in the incremental dle and market the product should be solicited to ensure
capacity toward ONP-based mills. As with all generaliza- that the regulations produce the highest possible quality
tions, the above has numerous exceptions, particularly of ONP for the newsprint mills.
when we consider regional supply/demand balances 5. Setting a minimum overall recycled content in
(Table 2). the newsprint that is purchased for government use
could be quite helpful in tilting new pulp lines toward
HOW TO INCREASE ONP USE. These are some sugges- ONP.
tions on what will not work and what might be success- Although the current economics appear to favor ONP
ful for increasing ONP use: over virgin pulp as the fiber stock for newsprint, indus-
1. Simply imposing regulations to increase the supply try history, investment philosophy, and mill locations
of ONP without increasing the demand for ONP will favor continuing with the traditional pulpwood feed-
not alleviate the burden of ONP in the solid-waste stock. Legislative initiatives regarding investment, such
stream. as rapid depreciation or tax incentives for ONP pulping
2. Imposing arbitrary targets for percent recovery of facilities, could be helpful.
ONP and arbitrary timetables for achieving the targets Also, because of vast differences in the regional ONP
will not create additional demand for ONP. supply/demand balances and in companies’ ONP pulp-
3. Setting up wastepaper collection and distribution ing capacities, flexible nationwide targets for ONP use
systems in parallel or competition with the existing would probably be more effective than regional targets
wastepaper dealers will not create any more demand for or company targets. With national targets, it may be pos-
ONP and will cause confusion in the existing industry sible to permit intercompany bartering of “ONP utiliza-
tion credits,” i.e., a company that was using more than
the target fraction of ONP in its newsprint could sell the
TABLE 1: Operating cost comparison for newsprint manufacture.
excess credits to a company that was not in a position to
use more ONP. In this way, the market would determine
how the industry as a whole could best comply with the
national target.
Building ONP pulping facilities requires about two
years from project approval, but, in any case, there
will be no need for additional newsprint pulping capac-
ity in the U.S. before 1991. Any timetables for increased
recovery /reuse of newsprint should be established with
industry input so that they can be supported by the
industry. a

TABLE 2: Supply/demand of onp in the U.S. (1987).

62
Economics of Recycling
Environmental Concerns, Economics
Drive Paper Recycling Technology
Paper industry will focus efforts on new methods of repulping,
contaminant removal, deinking, and bleaching of wastepaper

By DON SORENSON discards 160 million tons of garbage each year. Only 17%
of this waste is recovered and recycled. Since 41% of
municipal solid waste is paper or paperboard, the paper
Rees fiber is playing an increasingly important industry is a likely target for legislative solutions to the
role in papermaking for a variety of reasons. In solid waste disposal problem.
parts of the world with limited wood resources, the While the federal government has implemented pro-
strategy is to maximize its use or value. Figure 1 shows curement practices favoring recycling of many paper
the expected higher recycled fiber utilization rates in grades, the states are generally targeting newsprint.
countries having limited wood resources. Each year in the U.S., 12.3 million tons of newsprint are
In other parts of the world, including the U.S., the tra- consumed. Only 3.9 million tons are recovered, and only
ditional driving forces are quality and economics. In 1.3 million tons (10%) are recycled as newsprint.
many of the higher grades of paper, a point has been In the early 1990s, legislation in several states will
reached where further quality increases cannot be mea- likely require newsprint to have a 25% to 50% recycled
sured by the consumer. For producers of these grades, fiber content. At the same time, newspaper publishers
the challenge is to maintain quality at a reduced produc- and readers are demanding higher-quality newsprint,
tion cost. and the furnish is changing to a grade often viewed as
With lower-value paper, the driving force is to in- inferior. While it is natural to resist change, opportuni-
crease product quality while holding production costs ties do arise:
constant. At both ends of the spectrum, papermakers are e Quality newsprint can be manufactured from recy-
looking to recycled fiber to help meet these industry cled fiber, provided the deinking plant design is well
challenges. thought out and provided operational personnel under-
stand the unique operational parameters of the system.
ENVIRONMENT DRIVES CHANGE. Perhaps the main e Recycled newsprint can be profitable. A recent
reason for interest in recycled fiber is the lack of landfill study prepared for the American Newspaper Publishers
space. As a nation of sophisticated consumers, the U.S. Assn. shows that mills near an old newsprint supply can
achieve an economic advantage in using discarded
Mr. Sorenson, formerly with CRS Sirrine Inc., is now with newsprint.
Simons-Eastern Consultants, Inc., Greenville, S.C. Many papermakers have considered recycled fiber as
a cost-prohibitive and sometimes inferior furnish com-
FIGURE 1: The U.S. trails Japan, Fed. Rep. Germany, Italy, and
France in its utilization rate of recycled fiber.
pared with virgin pulp. For all of the reasons already ex-
amined, it is encouraging today to see developments in
process technology, which leads to better quality and
greater opportunity for use.
Recycling is a series of simple functions. While these
are interrelated, it is helpful to review each as a separate
unit. A good design will tie them together to form an ef-
ficient system. Important functions to consider include
the following:
e Wastepaper supply
e Defibering
e Contaminant removal
e Ink /ash removal
e Bleaching.
0 '
Japan ; italy {; US. Canada :
Fed. Rep.
Germany France Sweden Finland 63
 WASTEPAPER SUPPLY. Deinking mills that are run ink once it is in suspension. With ink particle size below
effectively recognize the importance of understanding ten microns and/or with high ash content furnishes,
and controlling wastepaper supply, including procure- washing offers the highest efficiency.
ment, receiving and storage, and pulping. Industry grade Due to the evolution in printing—xerography, laser
definitions define both types of paper and acceptable printing, UV cured inks—the benefits of flotation must
levels of extraneous contaminants. But frequent checks be considered. Water-based flexographic inks are even
should be made to ensure that the quality purchased is causing problems for flotation. Where the need exists for
the quality delivered. both ink and ash removal, a combination washing and
Curbside recycling programs add a new dimension to flotation system should be considered.
wastepaper management. The price may be right; how- Careful attention must be paid to the chemistry
ever, quality and uniformity may suffer. in these systems—washing requires a dispersion ap-
proach and flotation a collector approach. Dispersion
DEFIBERING. Traditionally, low-consistency (5% to and collector chemistries are quite different. Fortunate-
8%), attrition-style pulpers have been the mainstay for ly, chemical suppliers have developed chemical formu-
defibering. Today, the advantages of higher-consistency, las balancing the needs of both, and suppliers continue
nonattrition-style units should be considered. The tub- to improve methods of washing and flotation. Much of
style unit operates at 12% to 15% consistency, and the the flotation development includes better bubble-size
large helical rotor promotes top-to-bottom circulation control and mixing and a more closed, compact cell. Me-
with high-shear, fiber-to-fiber interaction. chanical aeration/mixing has been replaced by hydrau-
With high-consistency pulping, the ink can be too lic shear through static devices.
finely dispersed and perhaps redeposited on the fiber, Dispersion devices have been developed that, with a
leading to brightness loss. However, this can be avoided combination of thermal and mechanical energy, break
if pulping is continued only to the point of defibering. residual ink or stickie contaminants down to ultrafine
A second style of high-consistency unit—the drum particle size. The particle size of the stickies is suffi-
pulper—features an inclined rotating drum that op- ciently small to reduce greatly the tendency for plugging
erates at 20% consistency and also promotes defibering machine forming fabrics. Wet end chemistry helps to
through a tumbling action in the presence of water and prevent agglomeration of these particles.
chemicals. Pulp discharges through the drum’s screen-
ing section, while contaminants discharge from the BLEACHING. For lower-brightness systems general-
drum’s open end. ly involving mechanical pulps, a low-consistency sodi-
This system provides excellent contaminant removal. um hydrosulfite bleach stage is often sufficient. Where
But wet strength furnishes may be a problem. Gentle de- additional brightness is required, a high-consistency
fibering action may leave flakes in the pulp. peroxide bleaching stage is added.
The peroxide stage, followed by a sodium hydrosul-
CONTAMINANT REMOVAL. One of the biggest chal- fite stage, provides high brightness along with the color
lenges in today’s recycling systems is the removal of stripping capabilities of the hydrosulfite. Another re-
plastics, styrenes, hotmelts, and contact adhesives from ductive bleaching agent showing promise is thiourea-
the pulp. These contaminants should be removed quick- dioxide. According to published reports, one tissue mill
ly from the system while they are in large pieces. in Austria is using thioureadioxide under production
Progress has been made in both fine-slotted screen- conditions. For wood-free grades (i.e., ledger), occasional
ing and reverse cleaning technology. The fluidization use of chlorine or hypochlorite is employed. a
achieved with contoured plate design allows the use of
slot sizes of 0.010-in. on old corrugated containers (OCC) FIGURE 2: Many papermakers have considered recycled fiber
grades and 0.006-in. to 0.008-in. on ONP grades. use cost-effective.
Debate continues on the merits of cascade vs feedfor-
ward screening systems. The vibrating tailings screen-
ing position can now be accomplished with a closed, gs
nonvibrating device. &
>
©
Heavy contaminant removal is accomplished with ”
ret
forward flow cleaners. Also, cleaners provide much low- n
fe)
fe)
er energy requirements for lightweight contaminant re- (= British Columbia
2oe
moval, and a mechanically driven, centrifuge-type de- 5) U.S. South
vice removes lightweight contaminant in a single stage. =
9)
fe)
[or ($/metric
ton)
—

—
INK REMOVAL. Ink is removed from the fiber by the S
TES
combination of mechanical and chemical action in the ioe
”
Breakeven
pulper. In North America, washing systems remove the =
©
a

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180

Old newspaper delivered cost ($/metric ton)
64
 New Technology, Economic Benefits
Give Boost to Secondary Fiber Use
While the U.S. lags behind other countries, environmental concerns and
legislation are helping increase both wastepaper recovery and use

Social conscience. Some wastepaper is recovered as a

By LAWRENCE A. BROEREN
matter of social conscience. Recycling wastepaper re-
duces the number of trees harvested and helps preserve
he use of secondary fiber for pulp and paper prod- forest reserves.
ucts can lower costs significantly, preserve forest Price of wastepaper. Larger volumes of wastepaper
reserves, and assist in reducing the mounting solid are recovered from commercial-industrial operations
waste problem. With an increasing emphasis on recover- and households when wastepaper prices are high. There
ing wastepaper, secondary fiber use is growing rapidly, is also a minimum price below which the recovery of
and both fiber recovery and use are expected to contin- wastepaper falls drastically.
ue increasing. ; Price of competitive fiber. Wastepaper prices are influ-
Recovery rate is the amount of wastepaper recovered enced by the price of market pulp. One wastepaper clas-
for reuse compared with paper consumed. Utilization sification—pulp substitutes—tracks market pulp prices.
rate is the amount of secondary fiber (recovered fiber) Legislation. Some communities have laws requiring
used compared with total fiber used. The two rates will households to separate recyclable waste products (pa-
differ depending on the amount of imports and exports per, glass, metal) from other refuse for separate collec-
of paper and wastepaper and inventory changes. tion and recycling.
The sum total of all the factors affecting the recovery
WASTEPAPER RECOVERY. In the U.S., the recovery of wastepaper indicates that total recovery and the re-
rate of wastepaper for recycling is about 27%. Japan and covery rate will both continue to increase.
Taiwan have recovery rates approaching 50%, and Eu-
rope currently has a recovery rate of about 30%, with SECONDARY FIBER UTILIZATION. Secondary fiber uti-
Germany at about 35% and Holland between 45% and lization in the U.S. is about 25%. In Japan, it is about
50%. The practical recovery rate limit may be about 50%. Europe has a rate of about 48%, with Germany at
50%. In terms of imports and exports, the U.S. imports a about 45% and Holland at almost 70%. Five major fac-
very small amount of wastepaper, while more than 20% tors affect secondary fiber utilization:
of the wastepaper collected is exported. Several major Quality. Historically, low-quality products were made
factors affect the recovery of wastepaper: from secondary fiber. Currently, high- and low-quality
Standard of living. Higher standards of living are cor- products are, or can be, made from secondary fiber.
related with increased use of cultural paper, such as Technology. Contaminant removal technology, in-
newspapers, magazines, and books, and with commer- cluding equipment, chemicals, and process control, has
cial-industrial activities generating office paper, reports, been improving rapidly. The technology must link the
and computer printouts. wastepaper to the finished product.
Population concentration. The collection of waste- Contaminants. New contaminants are continuously
paper from both commercial-industrial generators and developing. New contaminants not only increase the
households is easier and more economical with a high concentration of contaminants and change the combina-
population concentration. tion of contaminants but also require improved contam-
Alternate fiber uses. The major alternate fiber use is inant removal technology.
fuel. Using fiber as fuel can be discretionary or legislat- Economics. The primary business reason for using
ed. Fiber used as fuel, however, obviously is not avail- secondary fiber is reduced costs. Reduction can be in
able for papermaking. both operating and capital costs.
Legislation. Legislation requires the use of secondary
Mr. Broeren is corporate consultant, Simons-Eastern fiber in some products. The use of postconsumer waste
Consultants Inc., Decatur, Ga. secondary fiber also has been legislated.

Economic Benefits Boost Secondary Fiber 65

 WASTEPAPER GRADES, CATEGORIES. Wastepaper is Figure 1 shows the growth in use for each category from
graded according to Circular PS-83, “Paper Stock Stan- 1986 and projected to 1991. Secondary fiber use as a per-
dards and Practices,” published by the Paper Stock In- cent of total fiber is shown in Table 2. The use of secon-
stitute of America, a division of the National Assn. of dary fiber in each of the eight U.S. regions is shown in
Recycling Industries Inc. PS-83 also defines conditions Figure 2, along with the percent of total fiber. Waste-
of sale. There are 49 standard wastepaper grades, with paper categories have been associated with specific pro-
nine grade numbers not currently in use and 32 special- cesses and finished products (Table 3).
ty grade numbers.
Wastepaper is commonly grouped into five categories: CONTAMINANTS. Contaminants include everything
e Deinking that must be removed from wastepaper to make the fi-
e Mixed paper bers usable. Common contaminants include ink, staples,
e Pulp substitutes paper clips, rocks, sand, chemicals, and stickies. Stickies
e Newspaper include all rubber-like substances that retain their
e Corrugated. tackiness.
The 1988 use for each category is shown in Table 1. The amount of some contaminants, such as ink, de-
termine the wastepaper grade. For example, hard, white
shavings (Grade 30) must be free of printing, and sorted
TABLE 1: Of the five major categories, wastepaper use in 1988
was highest for corrugated, with 49% usage. white ledger (Grade 40) must be free of heavily printed
stock.
Usage
Category (X 1,000 tons)
TABLE 2: As a percentage of total fiber, secondary fiber is
Deinking 1,714 expected to increase slowly and possibly even dip slightly in
Mixed paper 2,180 1991.
Pulp substitutes 2,901
Newspaper 3,227
1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991
Corrugated 9,747
Total 19,770 Secondary fiber (%) 24.5 24.4 247 25.2 25.9 25.6
Source: API. Source: API.

FIGURE 1: Wastepaper use is

12,000 expected to continue increasing,
with the most use remaining in the
11,000 corrugated grade.

10,000

9,000
8,000
7,000
6,000
1,000
tons
x
5,000
Waste
paper
use 4,000
3,000 : a :
2,000 : :
1,000 : :
0 iC a

1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991

H Deinking [1] Newspapers
HB Mixed papers (J Corrugated
Source: API. eS Pulp substitutes

66
Economics of Recycling
 Any material that renders wastepaper unusable as ficult to remove, especially with a washing deinking
the grade specified is classified as a prohibited material system. When the volume of nonimpact inks was small,
and is not permitted in most grades. A small amount the nonimpact ink dirt count was also small. Now that
(less than 2%) of prohibited material is permitted in a the volume of nonimpact inks is increasing, the dirt
few “low” grades of wastepaper. count is also increasing. Steps are being taken to deal
Out-throws are materials unsuitable for the waste-
paper grade. Out-throws include permitted prohibited TABLE 3: Wastepaper categories are associated with specific
materials. Allowable out-throws range from 0% to 10%, processes and finished products.

with most grades limiting out-throws to 1% or 2%.

A specific material may be classified as an outthrow Wastepaper
category Process Finished products
in one wastepaper grade and a prohibited material in an-
other. Carbon paper is a prohibited material in sorted Pulp substitutes Pulping Fine paper
Tissue
white ledger (Grade 40), which does not permit prohibit-
ed materials. The same carbon paper is an out-throw in © Deinking Pulping Tissue
Screening Fine paper
mixed paper (Grade 1), which allows up to 10% out-
Cleaning
throws. Deinking
Within the limits of the grading system, the type and
Newspaper Pulping Newsprint
amount of contaminants can vary significantly. During Screening Folding cartons
wastepaper and fiber shortages, the tendency is to re- Cleaning
duce wastepaper quality in a grade and to increase the Deinking
wastepaper grade. Mixed papers Pulping Packing
New contaminants are constantly being developed. Screening Packaging
For example, National Geographic recently had a holo- Cleaning Molded products
graphic cover and insert. Those holographs will be in- Corrugated Pulping Corrugating medium
cluded in some wastepaper for recycling. Screening Linerboard
Cleaning Kraft towels
Some contaminants, such as nonimpact inks, are sig- Asphalt dispersion
nificantly increasing in volume. Nonimpact inks are dif-

FIGURE 2: Of the eight major U.S. regions, secondary-fiber use in 1988 was highest in the east north central and mid-Atlantic regions.

New England:

i
1,339 tons, 23.6%

Mid-Atlantic:

es
2,536 tons on
46.6%
Mountain
East North Central:
and Pacific:
3,272 tons, 27% 5,612 tons, 46.4% | msAS

South-Atlantic:
East South \ 3490 tons, 17.1%
Central:
West South 1,349+ tons
Central: 12.5%
1,659 tons, 13.5%

Totoal U.S::
19,770 tons
Source; API. 24.7%

Economic Benefits Boost Secondary Fiber 67

 with the increasing amounts of nonimpact inks. The contaminants, process, and the variability in wastepaper
white ledger grade now has a higher-priced subgrade grades and contaminants, matching wastepaper to an ex-
with minimum nonimpact inks. New processing tech- isting process and finished process specifications is an
niques are being developed and used to remove non-im- ongoing, time-consuming task.
pact inks.
Coordination and cooperation between all waste- PROCESSING. As mentioned, the process must link
paper participants—buyer, user, broker, packer, sorter, the wastepaper to the finished product. The process
and seller—are essential. With significant differences in must be able to rernove enough contaminants so that the
finished product specifications, wastepaper grades and secondary fiber can be used to make the finished prod-
uct within specifications. The major process steps for
FIGURE 3: Particle-size removal by flotation deinking.
each of the five secondary fiber categories are shown in
Table 4.
Pulp substitutes should require only pulping. To pro-
vide paper machine protection, the slushed fiber is usu-
ally screened and cleaned, often with the paper machine
screens and cleaners. Pulp substitute systems often are
stretched by adding small amounts of lightly contami-
nated wastepaper. Removing these small amounts of
Particle
count contaminants may require using screens, cleaners, and
washers.
Corrugated systems require pulping, screening, and
2 10 30 100
cleaning, often in multiple stages. Traditionally, asphalt
Particle size (1)
a |Ultra dispersion dispersion systems have been used to disperse contami-
nants, resulting in‘a “clean” finished product. New cor-
Size rugated systems do not include asphalt dispersion.
(Washers) In the past, processing newspaper for newsprint has
Surface-active properties been done with a multistage washing deinking process.
| (Flotation) Current newspaper processing technology uses flotation
Specific gravity as the primary ink removal technique. Washing is also
| (Centrifugal cleaners) used, and dispersion after processing is being evaluated.
Size, stiffness
Dispersion breaks up most of the particles remaining
after processing. The dispersed particles are below visu-
(Screens)
al size and, thus, are not visual dirt. These finely dis-
persed particles can be left in, washed out, or agglomer-
ated and floated out.
Although the major process steps are similar, news-
print deinking is usually considered unique and sepa-
Removal
efficency rate from deinking other wastepaper. This is due to the
specific processing requirements for removing oily
newsprint ink. In addition, the high percentage of me-
Particle size (1) chanical pulp and the low brightness make this deinked
fiber uniquely suited for newsprint and little else.

TABLE 4: Major process steps for each of the five secondary fiber categories.

Asphalt Deinking
Process Pulping Screening Cleaning dispersion Washing flotation Dispersion
Wastepaper category
Pulp substitutes
Mixed paper
Corrugated
Newspaper
Deinking

Always.
Many in use.
Most new facilities.
Fi

68
Economics of Recycling
 In the past, the U.S. has used the washing process for e Disperger: a recent development, the disperger is
removing ink, while Europe has used the flotation pro- similar to a refiner but without cutting plates. The stock
cess. New deinking facilities usually use flotation with feeding the disperger is hot (195°F) and at a high consis-
washing. Many washing systems are being retrofitted for tency (30%). The hot, thick stock is worked mechanical-
flotation, and dispersion is also being considered and ly by the disperger, which breaks up many of the re-
tried. Flotation deinking particle-size removal is shown maining contaminants, including both ink particles and
in Figure 3. stickies. After dispersion, the ink particles are below vi-
In washing deinking systems, wastepaper is pulped sual size.
longer and at a higher pH to end up with more small e Water clarifier: because of a high level of water use,
particles (less than ten microns) and fewer medium-size contaminants must be removed so that they are not rein-
particles (ten to 25 microns). Washing will remove a jected into the stock. A dissolved air flotation (DAF) clari-
high percentage of small particles but only a low per- fier is used to remove contaminants from the water. A
centage of medium-size particles. filter can be used ahead of the clarifier to reduce stock
Water reuse and clarification is an integral part of losses.
deinking. It is especially important in washing deinking e Solid waste thickener: because most solid waste is
systems where there is a return loop from the pulper to removed from the system at a low consistency, it must
the washer to the clarifier and back to the pulper. This be dewatered to the appropriate consistency for final
loop saves heat, chemicals, and water. The clarifier re- disposition. The consistency could be 20% to 30% for
moves contaminants, specifically ink and clay, so that landfill and more than 50% for incineration. The solid
they are not recycled back into the pulper. Some amount waste is typically thickened by a belt press for landfill
of wastewater must be discharged from the system. This and a screw press for incineration. The filtrate is recy-
wastewater can be treated by conventional wastewater cled back to the process.
treatment methods.
The deinking fiber yield ranges from 65% to 85%. CHEMICAL PROCESS. In wastepaper deinking, espe-
The shrinkage, or loss, is from 15% to 35%. The loss cially flotation deinking, the chemistry is of paramount
from a 200-tpd deinking facility can be from 30 to 70 tpd. importance. Pulper chemicals include the following:
This solid waste loss must be dealt with in an environ- e Caustic for defibering
mentally approved manner. The major portion of this e Sodium silicate for a stabilizer
solid waste can be burned, spread, or landfilled. A small e Deinking chemicals:
portion must go to landfill. 1. Dispersants for washing
2. Collectors for flotation
EQUIPMENT FOR FLOTATION DEINKING. Major pieces 3. Displectors for washing and flotation
of equipment in a flotation deinking system with wash- e Calcium chloride for water conditioning
ing include the following: e Hydrogen peroxide for bleaching and preventing
e Pulper: a high-consistency (15%) batch pulper with yellowing of groundwood.
a separate dump screening system Process chemicals include defoamers and acid for pH
e High-density cleaner: a high-density (3%) cleaner adjustments. Water clarification and sludge thickening
with automatic dump require individual polymers. Bleaching can range from
e Coarse screens: a system including several stages. none to minimal to extensive. Examples of minimal
The coarse screen baskets can have holes with diame- bleaching would include peroxide added to the pulper
ters as small as 0.040 in. Feedforward screening also or hydrosulfite introduced at the end of the deinking
should be considered. process.
e Fine screens: a system consisting of several stages. Extensive bleaching would be done in a multistage
The fine-screen baskets can have slots with diameters as bleach plant. Typically, this would be CH or CEH. Be-
small as 0.006 in. Feedforward screening should be con- cause of the generation of dioxin in chlorine bleaching,
sidered as an option.
e Washers: a system that might include sidedhill TABLE 5: Capital cost range comparison for two wood-based
screens, screw extractors, gravity deckers, or new high- facilities and two wastepaper facilities.
speed (3,000 fpm) washers
e Flotation cells: flotation done in multiple (up to Facility Size (tpd) Cost (X< $1,000)
eight) cells in series. A second stage of flotation may be Wood-based facility
used for fiber recovery. Bleached kraft pulp 800 to 1,200 $600 to $450
e Forward cleaner system Bleached CTMP 300 to 600 $400 to $330
e Reverse cleaners: follow the forward cleaners. The Wastepaper facility
flowthrough reverse cleaners have high reverse clean- Deink 200 $175 to $125
Pulp substitutes 200 $100 to $50
ing efficiency and low reject rates. A mechanical reverse
cleaner is being used in Europe.

Economic Benefits Boost Secondary Fiber 69

new bleaching sequences using e Bleached chemi-thermome-
chlorine dioxide, oxygen, and Unit disposal costs at chanical pulp: $225 to $275
e Deink: $325 to $375
other chemicals are in the pro-
cess of being developed. Black approved public landfills ePulp
$475.
substitutes: $425 to
ink cannot be bleached, so it
One of the elements in deink
must be removed. are high... Approved manufacturing cost, solid waste
disposal, is currently in transi-
QUALITY CONTROL.
factors affecting
Major
secondary fiber
private landfills have tion. Traditionally, deink solid
waste disposal has been in pub-
quality are the
the capability
wastepaper and
of the process.
proven to be not only lic or private landfills at a low
Most processing equipment will unit cost in the order of $10/
remove a percentage ‘of certain
expensive to construct but ton. However, only a few land-
contaminants. Altogether, most fills are approved. Unapproved
contaminants will be removed, also costly to operate. landfills must shut down. Unit
but some will still remain. Some disposal costs at approved pub-
contaminants will be removed lic landfills are high, at approxi-
in the papermaking process. The contaminants remain- mately $50/ton. Approved private landfills have proven
ing in the paper must be within finished product specifi- to be not only expensive to construct but also costly to
cations. Processed fiber specifications typically include operate.
the following: A typical 200-tpd deinking facility for tissue products
e Brightness would cost about $30 million. This cost includes waste-
e Dirt count paper storage, flotation deinking with internal water
e Stickies count clarification, and solid waste sludge thickening. In addi-
e Ash tion, mill services, such as steam and electric power,
e Groundwood content. would necessarily be required to service the deinking
Samples are taken from each pulper and visually in- facility.
spected prior to discharging stock from the pulper. If the The deinked fiber manufacturing cost would be
pulper sample is not satisfactory, steps, such as adding about $350/ton. This is near the average manufacturing
additional chemicals and extending pulping time, may cost for bleached kraft pulp but with one-quarter of the
be taken. If the pulper stock is not satisfactory for pro- capital cost. A nonintegrated tissue manufacturer not
cessing with these additional steps, then it is put in the using deinked fiber would be using market pulp or pulp
bad-batch chest and blended with other upgraded stock. substitutes. Market pulp is currently selling at $700/ton
Other possible actions are reprocessing off-quality and pulp substitutes at $450/ton.
stock through the system or increasing contaminant re- Using deinked fiber instead of market pulp at a usage
ject rates. Some process samples are taken at selected level of 200 tpd would result in savings of $350/ton or
process locations to verify operating conditions. Bleach $70,000/day. This $24.5-million annual savings, with a
plant chemical addition rates are varied so that bright- 40% tax rate, would have a simple payout of two years
ness can be controlled. on a $30-million deinking facility.
Using deinked fiber instead of pulp substitutes would
ECONOMICS. The capital cost ranges for an econo- result in $100/ton savings, or $20,000/day. The $7-mil-
my-of-scale (cost-effective) bleached wastepaper pro- lion annual savings would result in a seven-year payout.
cessing facility are lower than those for an economy-of- Some pulp substitute equipment and buildings could be
scale bleached wood-based fiber facility. Table 5 shows used in deinking, which would reduce the capital cost
capital cost ranges. and the payout.
An economy-of-scale wastepaper facility is smaller There are five major factors for success in secondary
than an economy-of-scale wood-based facility. A waste- fiber:
paper facility may be uniquely sized for a production e Commit to secondary fiber, even though it is differ-
level that is not appropriate for an economy-of-scale ent from virgin pulp
wood-based facility. e Research the process and equipment
Bleached kraft pulp manufacturing costs vary widely. ¢ Develop operating techniques that will optimize
The deinking manufacturing cost range is within the performance
bleached kraft pulp range. The pulp substitute manufac- e Investigate the causes of low-quality pulp and make
turing cost range is higher than the deink range. Fiber the required changes
manufacturing cost ranges (given in dollars/ton) are as ¢ Make sure the facility is appropriate to process the
follows: selected wastepaper into the quality of stock required to
e Bleached kraft pulp: $236 to $445 meet the finished product specifications. a.

70
Economics of Recycling
 OCC Consumption Expected to Grow
as Cost of Virgin Fiber Increases
New technology, equipment can reduce OCC quality variations
while new opportunities for building recycled mills increase

as New England, where OCC is available but consump-

By RICHARD A. REESE
tion is low, could be locations for recycled mills.
Figure 1 shows year-end OCC prices in different areas
Roe and consumption of recycled corrugated since 1980. The same trends have occurred in all re-
containers is growing at a rapid rate. Table 1 shows gions. In 1985, relative prices increased significantly on
changes in consumption that have occurred since 1977. the West Coast due to high demand for export. This
Growth in domestic consumption averaged 1.8% from change has made it attractive for West Coast consumers
1977 to 1982 and 7.5% from 1982 to 1987. Most of the to buy Occ from as far away as Chicago, Ill. Figure 2
change in consumption has been increased use of old shows linerboard production for domestic use between
corrugated containers (OCC) in kraft linerboard and se- 1940 and 1987. Recycled linerboard was 40% of total
michemical corrugating medium. OCC now comprises production in 1940 vs 3% in 1987. Recycled linerboard
about 10% of kraft linerboard and 30% of semichemical tonnage fell from 800,000 tons in 1940 to 475,000 tons in
medium furnishes. Recycled fiber is the ‘‘fortifying fi- 1987. Figure 3 shows corrugating medium production
ber” on most semichemical medium machines. for the same period. This grade was 32% of domestic
Export tonnage has grown at an even faster rate. The production in 1940 and 23% in 1987. Corresponding re-
average annual change in export tonnage was 10% be- cycled corrugating medium tonnages were 290,000 in
tween 1977 and 1982 and 23.3% between 1982 and 1987. 1940 and 1.64 million in 1987.
Collections grew by 2.5% /year between 1977 and 1982
and 9.3% /year between 1982 and 1987. Collections were RECYCLED VS VIRGIN PULP MILLS. Recycled con-
40.2% of domestic consumption in 1977, 44.3% in 1982, tainerboard mills can be competitive with kraft mills as
and 48.8% in 1987. The practical limit for OCC recovery long as OCC prices are reasonable. Two of the largest re-
is now likely between 60% and 70%. cycled linerboard mills have cogeneration systems that
improve their economic positions.
ECONOMICS OF OCC CONSUMPTION. Table 2 shows Capital cost per daily ton is lower for a recycled mill
corrugated waste consumption by region. The large con- than for a comparable mill using virgin pulp. Cost
sumption in the East north central, Mountain, and Pacif- ranges are from $150,000 to $250,000 for a recycled mill
ic regions is primarily by mills using 100% recycled fi- and from $300,000 to $400,000 for a greenfield mill.
ber. The high consumption in the South Atlantic region Why isn’t everyone building recycled containerboard
is mostly by kraft linerboard and semichemical corru- capacity? Containerboard prices have not been high
gating medium mills. It is obvious that some areas, such enough until recently to justify new greenfield capacity.

Mr. Reese is OPTEC technical manager, Rust International

Corp., Birmingham, Ala. This article is based on a paper TABLE 2: Corrugated waste consumption by region—1987.
presented at the Third International Unbleached Kraft
Conference held in Atlanta, Ga., in November 1988. % total
New England
TABLE 1: Recycled corrugated consumption in short tons (000). Mid-Atlantic
East north central
West north central
1977 1982 1987.
South Atlantic
Consumption at U.S. mills 6,025 6,770 9,299 East south central
Exports 592 887 1,922 West south central
Total collected 6,797 7,657 11,221 Mountain and Pacific

OCC Consumption Expected to Grow 71

 FIGURE 1: Old corrugated prices. The only new greenfield capacity for containerboard in
the last ten years has been at International Paper Co.,
20 Mansfield, La., and the Inland Container Corp. 100% re-
cycled mill at Ontario, Calif.
Ke)<=)
—_ New papermaking technology in the forming and
pressing areas has made paper machine rebuilds attrac-
o Fe
tive. The high cost of capital equipment encourages op-
timization and upgrade of existing facilities. Fiber used
® Oo
in many kraft linerboard and semichemical corrugating
medium expansions has been recycled fiber.
ve
>

QUALITY DIFFERENCES. Compared with virgin kraft

ine)
ton—seller's
dock
-$/short
=. OS) containerboard, recycled containerboard has inherently
lower strength, appearance, and printability/surface
1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 196 characteristics. The differences have greater signifi-
Oe Chicago, cance on linerboard than on corrugating medium. Since
@———OAtanta, Ga the latter is sandwiched between linerboard sheets, ap-
(&——6 San Francisco—Los pearance and printability differences are not really im-
Angele:
portant. Accordingly, recycled corrugating medium has
had a much greater acceptance in box plants.
FIGURE 2: U.S. linerboard production, 1940 to 1987. Strength differences can be compensated by wet end
additives and/or running a size press. In fact, some re-
no [Oo cycled mills achieve better compression strength than
8 ae)
SsSo mills using virgin fiber. Recycled linerboard has a
“dull” look rather than the “sheen” look of kraft liner-
board. Most recycled mills add dye to the wet end or size
press to match the color of kraft linerboard sheets.
Recycled sheets generally do not look as clean as vir-
gin kraft sheets and are characterized by spots of differ-
ent sizes, color, and shape, depending on the effective-
ness of the stock preparation cleaning and screening
Production
short
tons
—000 systems. Some box plants prefer to use recycled liner-
<TDCS 2098 90.69 00.0.00088008)| board on the inside of corrugated boxes, where sheet ap-
i940 s«1950—s1960— 1970 «= 1980-1987 —~ pearance is less obvious to users.
Printing ink soaks into recycled linerboard sheets
| —O— Krall ae more than into kraft sheets. This leaves printing voids
—O— Recycled | on the surface, which can be objectionable depending
on box application. Some manufacturers feel that the
greater penetration is related to more short fibers on the
FIGURE 3: U.S. corrugating medium production, 1940 to 1987. surface. Smoothness can also affect print quality.
The presence of stickies in the sheet can cause sepa-
8,000 rate layers of paper in rolls to stick together, in addition
to causing appearance problems. Contaminants can re-
strict calendering as web consolidation tends to flatten
soy fe)S 3
the stickies and make them cover a larger area.
The presence of wax and other slippery materials can
S =)ro)is result in a lower coefficient of friction in finished sheets.
This can cause slippage of boxes from stacks and other
problems. Some mills apply a silica antiskid material
that can cause problems in corrugating plants by coming
Production—000
short
tons
off on printing plates and reducing cutter blade life. One
0 mill reported a coefficient of friction of 16 to 18 without
1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1987. an antiskid material and 25 to 27 with its application. Ef-
fective removal of waxes and other slippery materials
—&— Semichemical and kraft
can eliminate the need to apply antiskid materials.
—@— Recycled
Some U.S. mills spray silica solution on the web at the
dry end of the paper machine.

72
Economics of Recycling
 Recycled containerboard often runs differently on e Coarse screens (0.078-in. holes) to assist in the re-
corrugators than do virgin sheets. Corrugating plant op- moval of relatively large contaminants
erators must adjust operating conditions to achieve good e Fine screens (0.014-in. slots) to remove smaller con-
performance. For example, test liner can warp, so more taminants
heat must be applied to dry the web. Test liner also will e Secondary and tertiary equipment to treat rejects
not stand as much abuse on the pressure roll as kraft lin- removed from the primary fiber line
erboard. Pressure roll loadings that are 20% to 25% low- e Thickeners to increase stock consistency for storage.
er must be used when running test liner.
STATE-OF-THE-ART FOR U.S. OCC. A schematic of a
SECONDARY FIBER SYSTEMS. The key to successful basic state-of-the-art secondary fiber system is shown in
production of test liner is delivery of good-quality recy- Figure 4. The system shown is a “removal system” in
cled fiber to the paper machine. Recycled fiber contains which each unit operation is accomplished at optimum
several different types of contaminants that must be re- consistency for efficient removal of contaminants. The
moved to avoid paper appearance problems. Technology system shown in Figure 4 does not include fractionation
exists to remove virtually all contaminants from recy- by fiber length or dispersion. The following are major
cled fiber. No existing 100% recycled mills have state- components and their primary functions:
of-the-art secondary fiber systems. The challenge is to e Material handling—delivers recycled fiber bales to
install and operate a cost-effective system that will pro- pulper
vide satisfactory fiber quality. e Pulper—separates individual fibers by water dilu-
The major raw material used in recycled container- tion and agitation and removes large contaminants, such
board is occ. Types and levels of contaminants vary de- as wires, staples, rocks, and soda cans
pending on the source and end use of OCC. For example, ePulper detrasher—removes large lightweight con-
moving boxes are relatively clean and free of contami- taminants and returns good fiber to pulper
nants, while boxes used for fruit and produce often have e High-density cleaners—remove smaller heavy-
heavy wax treatment to provide a water barrier. Con- weight contaminants, such as stones, short pieces of
taminants can include the following: wire, and coarse grit
e Heavyweight materials—metal, grit, wire, sand, ce- e Coarse hole screens—remove relatively large light
ramics, and rocks and heavyweight contaminants
e Lightweight materials—plastics, polystyrene foam, e Medium-density cleaners—remove finer heavy-
wax, hotmelt weight contaminants, such as sand and grit
e Adhesives and latex-based stickies e Fine-slotted screens—remove smaller-scale materi-
e Other materials—asphalt, shives, chop, bark, and als, primarily lightweights
ink. e Through-flow cleaners—remove most lightweight
Average yield of good fiber is 85% on an oven-dry ba- contaminants not removed previously, such as waxes
sis. OCC in the U.S. is normally about one-third corrugat- e Dewatering unit—thickens stock to approximately
ing medium and two-thirds kraft linerboard. Strength is 12% consistency for efficient storage
somewhat lower than kraft pulp since corrugating medi- e High-density storage—surge capacity between stock
um is produced from semichemical hardwood pulp. preparation system and paper machine
European OCC has lower strength and different con- e Reject handling—equipment to remove water from
taminants than OCC in the U.S. The lower strength is re- rejected material to minimize landfill hauling costs
lated to the fact that European OCC normally has been e Clarification system—system to remove some con-
recycled four to five times. European OCC generally has taminants from water to permit recirculation.
less waxes and hotmelts than Occ in North America but
higher gross contaminant levels due to plastic bags and KEY GUIDELINES. Proper consistencies for efficient
other materials. Asphalt is used as a moisture barrier. contaminant removal in each operation are as follows:
European mills also use some other grades of waste- e Pulper—4% to 5%
paper in test liner, including wastepaper that is both e High-density cleaning and coarse screening—3% to
bleached and unbleached, and chemical and mechani- 3.5%
cal fibers. e Medium-density cleaning and fine screening—1.5%
Nearly all stock preparation systems include the fol- to 1.8%
lowing: e Through-flow cleaners—1%
e Pulpers to break up the bales of waste fiber and put Recommended barrier opening sizes are as follows:
paper fibers and contaminants in a water slurry e Pulper extraction plate—0.5 to 0.7 in.
e Baggers and junk towers on the pulpers to collect e Pulper detrashing unit—0.25 to 0.50 in.
wire, staples, rags, stones, and other large contaminants e Coarse screens—0.055- to 0.079-in. holes (bar-type
e High-density cleaners to assist in the removal of cylinders)
heavyweight contaminants e Fine screens—0.010- to 0.014-in. contour slots.

OCC Consumption Expected to Grow 13

 FIGURE 4: Recycled fiber system modules. Secondary and tertiary screens to process rejects from
each stage should have the same opening sizes as prima-
ry screens. Medium-density cleaners must be installed
Material ahead of the fine-slotted screens to achieve satisfactory
handling
basket life. Medium-density cleaners remove sand and
other abrasive materials that cause rapid wear of con-
tour fine-screen plates.
Pulper
detrashing Some suppliers recommend installation of fine for-
ward-flow cleaners ahead of the through-flow cleaners.
Others feel that fine forward-flow cleaners should be in-
stalled on the paper machine. Machine cleaners would
also remove contaminants that enter the system from
High-density hae,
cleaning and screening | the paper machine broke system and also from other
sources.
Few mills in Europe use reverse or through-flow
cleaners. Reverse and through-flow cleaners require
Medium-density ————— close control of operating pressures and consistency to
cleaning : achieve good separation. It is likely that fewer light-
weight contaminants in European OCC also contribute to
the lack of through-flow cleaner application.
Fine slotted a Secondary fiber equipment suppliers say that good
screening
test liner appearance can be achieved without a disper-
sion unit. However, no major test liner mills in North
America are operating without dispersion systems.
Fine through- RT aTES Some kraft linerboard mills claim to be achieving good
flow cleaning me recycled stock cleanliness with reverse or through-flow
ee oe Reject cleaners, but they are running relatively low percent-
Filtrate —<<< ==] ~sihandling ages of OCC.
It is difficult to project sheet cleanliness based on lab-
oratory trials since rejects are treated differently in labo-
ratories than in commercial installations. However, a
High-density eeSewer Landfill test liner mill is currently installing through-flow clean-
storage
ers and will shut down its dispersion system.

EUROPEAN VS U.S. SYSTEMS. Most European Occ

FIGURE 5: Fourdrinier arrangements on recycled linerboard stock preparation systems are significantly different
machines.
from that depicted in Figure 4. Most systems operate at
consistencies of more than 3% and include fractionation
Conventional fou nier with secondary headbox. — and dispersion systems. High-consistency operation re-
duces the amount of contaminants that can be removed.
Fractionation permits separation of long and short fibers
for use in top- and basesheet test liner or use of short fi-
ber on corrugating medium machines.
European systems seem to be based on taking out
coarse contaminants at the pulper and detrashing units,
high-density cleaning and screening, fractionation, and
dispersion of long fiber fraction. These systems general-
ly do not include removal of fine contaminants in clean-
ers and screens.
A basic system such as that shown in Figure 4, with
provisions for stock fractionation at 3% to 3.5% consis-
tency after fine through-flow cleaning and inclusion of a
dispersion system between the dewatering unit and
high-density storage, appears to have the best potential
for U.S. recycled mills. Commercial experience with
state-of-the-art systems will determine if dispersion sys-
tems can be eliminated.

74
Economics of Recycling
 PAPER MACHINE. Three different forming section top roll. The Voith Flexonip has a rotating flexible cover
configurations are currently used on recycled linerboard on the bottom press roll. The Sulzer Escher Wyss In-
machines (Figure 5). Current machines in the U.S. use tensa S design has a concave Nipco shoe inside a flexible
conventional fourdriniers with secondary headboxes. roll shell in the bottom position and a standard Nipco
The fourdriniers are long to compensate for the low roll in the top position.
freeness and slow drainage rates of secondary fiber fur- Wide-nip presses achieve sheet dryness of 3% to 4%
nishes. Slow drainage rates can result in a concentration higher than long-nip presses. Expected sheet dresses
of short fibers on the top of the basesheet. Low tear and would be about 45% to 47% with an LNP and about 50%
cracking/score problems can be experienced on heavy- to 51% with a wide-nip press using a typical U.S. test
weight grades, such as 69-lb linerboard. Major U.S. test liner furnish. The greater dewatering provided by a
liner producers are evaluating changes to improve form- wide-nip press would permit installation of fewer dry-
ing section performance. ers. This would partially offset the higher capital cost of
Top-wire units with vacuum dewatering are installed these units.
on some machines in Europe running 100% recycled fi-
ber. Performance is good, and one mill reported con- SIZE PRESS. One of the key questions from a tech-
cerns with dewatering capacity with top-wire units. nology standpoint is whether or not a size press is neces-
Mini-top fourdriniers are installed on several Europe- sary on a recycled linerboard machine. Most machines
an test liner machines. This concept includes forming producing recycled linerboard have size presses, while
top- and basesheets separately and joining them at a machines producing kraft linerboard generally do not
moisture content of about 10%. Overall sheet strength is have size presses. Size presses generally increase mul-
increased by forming separate lighter-weight plies. One len tests 3 to 5 points and enhance ring crush.
potential problem is low ply bond between the top- and One U.S. test liner mill does run a size press. It pre-
basesheets. Some mills spray starch between the two viously ran a size press and conducted trials a few years
sheets to improve ply bonding. Good ply bond can be ago with and without the size press. Its box plants could
achieved by closely monitoring moisture content of the not see a difference, so the mill eliminated the size
top- and basesheets at the joining point. press, allowing higher machine speeds since the sheet
There is some concern that paper machine efficiency was not rewet in the middle of the machine. The mill
will be lower using a top fourdrinier rather than a con- runs internal cationic starch, which it feels is more cost-
ventional fourdrinier or a fourdrinier with top-wire effective than operating a size press.
units. Some top fourdrinier machines installed in the All European test liner machines use size presses, op-
U.S. have not performed well. Some of the problems erating with sheet moisture content of 10% to 20% en-
experienced have been unique applications and lack of tering the size press. High sheet moisture content im-
expertise. proves starch penetration in the sheet, which is ne-
A mini-top fourdrinier may be the best choice for a cessary to achieve good sheet runability and glueability
recycled test liner machine. The major reason is better on corrugators. Some European mills indicated that they
drainage capacity by producing lighter-weight sheets could probably run without size presses if they had U.S.
and higher sheet strength. Higher strength will reduce quality OCC.
the amount of refining necessary to achieve acceptable A size press should be included on a new test liner
strength tests. A conventional fourdrinier with top-wire machine installation in the U.S. Size presses enhance
units would be an alternative selection. ring crush tests, and the growing emphasis on ring crush
adds credence to inclusion of a size press.
PRESSING. A good press section can consolidate
the web and increase mullen and ring crush tests. Recy- SUPPORT SYSTEMS. Use of recycled fiber can cre-
cled stock generally dewaters more easily in the press ate some special problems on paper machines. The key
section than virgin kraft furnishes. Sheet dryness of 3% parameter is the effectiveness of contaminant removal
to 4% higher is typical at comparable press loads. Most in the stock preparation system. Most paper machines
paper machine suppliers recommend a double-felted running recycled fiber have problems with filling on
first press followed by a long-nip or wide-nip second forming fabrics, press felts, and dryer fabrics. Some
press. There are two basic options for good test perfor- mills have developed procedures and special equipment
mance on the last press nip on linerboard machines: to minimize the effects of contaminants on the paper
e Long-nip press (LNP). This is a large-diameter-roll, machine.
double-felted press with a maximum nip pressure of Recycled fiber is more difficult to dewater on the
2,000 pli. Nip width is 2.5 to 3.5 in. forming section than virgin kraft. Some mills are run-
e Wide-nip press. These presses have nip pressures of ning double- or triple-layer forming fabrics to increase
5,500 to 6,000 pli at a nip width of approximately 10 in. dewatering capacity. Special-design press and dryer fab-
The Beloit Extended Nip Press (ENP) has a ceramic shoe rics are not necessary, but designs that are easy to keep
with a rubber blanket running between the shoe and the clean should be considered. a

OCC Consumption Expected to Grow id

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Wastepaper
Collection Practices
The collection and sorting of wastepapers, regardless of the flurry of recycling activities of
the past few years, remains basically unchanged from 50 years ago. Some new equipment is
now being used to speed up and improve the sorting process, but basically it’s still a laborious
manual process, particularly for mixed office wastepapers.
However, some major advances have been made in organizing the collecting process and in
sorting at the source by both municipalities and paper companies. This section takes a close
look at collection operations recently established by several paper companies, and examines
the techniques and equipment they use to sort by grade and to remove first-level contaminants.
The changing role of wastepaper dealers is also explored.
 “ ; ‘ ¥ a ee
/_
 Chapter 16

Wastepaper Dealer Sees Boom Ahead

as Industry Ups Recycling Efforts
Florida-based recycler employs strict quality measures to ensure
product consistency from collecting and sorting to baling and shipping

lores Paper Recycling, Miami, Fla., is typical of Eddie Flores. “That involvement led to our commercial
many U.S. companies currently involved in a na- success today, but the return of used raw materials to
tional effort to reduce solid waste disposal problems by the manufacturing process is not always as simple as it
returning valuable raw materials to the primary manu- sounds. A lot of education needs to take place, particu-
facturing process. The company’s success as a high- larly on the local levels.”
grade wastepaper collector has progressed rapidly in For Flores that meant getting involved in local recy-
concert with an increased environmental awareness in cling programs early in the process to help educate and
the U.S. and the consumption of record quantities of re- involve the whole community. He continued, “On the
cycled fiber by the paper industry worldwide. whole, corporations have better resources to educate
Recycling efforts today include a variety of collec- people and implement recycling programs. That’s why
tion techniques, with everything from household curb- we, in addition to our primary business of office and
side collection programs to organized collection and printer waste collection, decided to get involved to help
sorting operations inside companies. These activities the local government in its recycling efforts.”
have helped Flores steadily increase its “supplier com- On the commercial side, Flores provides instructive
panies” (known as loose paper accounts) as more and seminars for new suppliers’ employees to verse them in
more corporations join the recycling movement. separation techniques. “We teach a variety of topics to
help supplier company employees understand what the
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT. “We began our com- recycling program is all about. That includes the impor-
pany as active participants in the Dade County metro re- tance of the separation of various grades to facilitate
cycling program, aimed at addressing solid waste man- their reuse in the manufacturing process. Few people
agement problems in south Florida,’ explained CEO know much about that, but we’re making progress.”

HIGH-GRADE FIBER COLLECTION. Flores collects a va-

riety of high-grade fiber, including white ledger, com-
puter printout, coated book stock, colored ledger, hard
and soft white shavings, printed and unprinted bleached
board, and file stock. The company’s suppliers include
banks, attorneys, hospitals, printers and other convert-
ers, and commercial businesses.
Most of the fiber recycled by the company is used in
tissue and toweling manufacture, with the balance used
in printing and writing grades. However, Flores sees the
fine grades playing a more prominent role in recycled fi-
ber use in the future. ‘““The demand in this area is in-
creasing and will become considerably higher,” he pre-
dicted, “because more and more mills, outside of tissue
and newsprint, are taking steps to include recycled fiber
in their furnish, particularly in view of current laws and
Each bin of incoming paper is hand sorted before being baled for pending legislation.”
shipment. Of the fiber Flores supplies to paper producers, ap-

Wastepaper Dealer Sees Boom Ahead 79

proximately 60% goes to U.S. mills, while the other 40%
is shipped to various locations in Central and South
America and Europe. Among the countries currently us-
ing Flores’ products are Bolivia, Brazil, Venezuela, and
Spain.

QUALITY KEY TO SUCCESS. “We have become the

sole supplier to several mills, I believe, primarily be-
cause of our commitment to consistent quality,” Flores
emphasized. “Papermakers do not like surprises. They
want and need raw materials that are as consistent as
possible. You’ll probably find that wastepaper dealers in
general tend to have a less than favorable reputation.
With the emphasis being put on recycling today, that’s
got to change. We—dealers, brokers, and recyclers—
have to control quality.”
Flores pointed out that quality control, hands-on su-
pervision in his case, must begin with the collection and
sorting process and continue through the baling process
and even to the loading of containers for shipment. Jose Rivera Sr. (right), loose accounts director, discusses an
order with CEO Eddie Flores.
While approximately 30% of the recycled fiber received
at the plants is presorted by the company providing the
paper, Flores has implemented several in-house mea- working for his father at a local paper mill sweeping
sures to ensure his quality goals are met. For example, broke. From there, he worked in a variety of manufac-
all incoming paper is hand sorted and checked by a su- turing positions in the mill and later at his father’s
pervisor before being sent to the baling operations. A wastepaper brokerage firm. A little more than four years
second supervisor then checks all bins dumped into the ago he teamed with Luis Ziegenhirt, Flores president, to
baler. form Flores Paper Trades (a wastepaper brokerage),
A third person is then responsible for making sure which shortly thereafter became Flores Paper Recycling
bales are properly loaded in shipping containers before when the company began a dedicated effort to recycle
they leave the dock. “Fortunately, our new baler has high-grade wastepaper in Dade and Broward counties.
been outstanding,” Flores stated. The new C&M unit is Since the first days of operation in 1987, Flores has
capable of processing 50 bales (1,700 lb each)/hour and experienced phenomenal growth. “That year,” recalls
includes a state-of-the-art conditioning chamber that Flores, “we processed about 300 tons/month.”’ In 1988
has significantly improved the physical integrity of Flo- the company had ballooned to an average of 1,000 tons/
res’ bales. “You don’t want a bale falling apart halfway month, and it grew another 300% to 3,000/month dur-
to a customer,” he emphasized. ing 1989. In 1990, the company recycled between 4,200
and 4,500 tons/month and is still expanding.
PAPERMAKING BACKGROUND. Working in the paper Also in that period of time, Flores has grown to in-
industry is nothing new for Flores, who at age 12 began clude three processing plants (two in Miami, one in Or-
lando), 63 employees, 60 trucks, four balers, more than
8,000 portable bins, and a complex computer network
that includes order tracking, loose account monitoring,
and supplier and customer profiles. The company recent-
ly opened its third plant in Orlando with a base of 72
customers supplying 500 tons/month to a base of 72 cus-
tomers, a market developed in less than a year.

FUTURE PLANS. Flores says he is expecting the re-

cycled fiber business in Florida to slightly outpace
growth throughout the U.S. “I see the Florida market
growing at least 30% for the next five years, while the
overall wastepaper market will probably grow at about
20%.” As for the company itself, Flores also sees contin-
ued growth. “My goal is to be processing 10,000 tons/
month by the end of 1991. We also eventually want to
look into the Tampa and Jacksonville markets for future
Flores has over 60 trucks serving the Miami and Orlando areas. expansion.” a

80
~ Wastepaper Collection Practices
 More Recycled Capacity Will Affect
Wastepaper Supply Quality, Quantity
Analysis of various collection methods and companies must be made
to ensure a constant wastepaper stream comes into mills

By KELLY H. FERGUSON, Projects Editor Cheves, vice president of business development.

P&P: Many mills are considering adding recycled fiber to

egislation and public concern have expanded the their furnish, especially in light of recent legislation. Where
markets for recycled paper products, causing nu- will these mills get a constant supply of wastepaper?
merous North American mills to plan for recycled pro- Buck: During the past ten to 12 years, mills have pro-
duction. According to the June 1990 Pulp & Paper Project cured wastepaper mainly from dealers. It has only been
Report, approximately 54 new recycled mill projects are a matter of getting the best price for the wastepaper and
planned, including greenfield mills, restarts of idle buying it from that particular dealer.
mills, or additions of separate or new recycled lines. An- Cheves: At times, when the wastepaper market has
other 22 mills are studying or planning upgrades to im- been soft, some mills have continued to buy wastepa-
prove the quality and production of their recycling sys- per—storing it wherever possible because they knew
tems. Those new projects do not include mills already in they would need it. It is estimated that the U.S. current-
operation. ly has a 30% recovery rate of wastepaper, which means
Such increases in recycled capacity, possibly within there is much more that can be recovered. In fact, some
the next two years, mean these mills must have a con- municipalities have a surplus of wastepaper.
stant stream of wastepaper. While certainly there is Morrow: An important issue is probably how far these
enough wastepaper in North America for this supply, dealers will have to ship the wastepaper to mills. I re-
there is concern among established mills that this sud- cently attended a wastepaper seminar attended by three
den demand, without a strong collection network in of the major railroads, which indicates there are areas
place, will mean a lessening of quality wastepaper as a where there may not be large enough supplies of waste-
furnish. paper. Demand is going to push manufacturers to find al-
This same concern was shared by such companies
as Garden State Paper Co. and Southeast Paper Manu-
facturing Co. when they started up mills, prompting
those companies to set up their own procurement arms.
Recently, Stone Container announced a joint venture
with Waste Management Inc.—called Paper Recycling
International—to supply Stone’s mills with wastepaper.
Many companies are developing contracts with waste-
paper dealers, long a source of fiber for paper mills. Oth-
ers are working with local municipalities and paper
drives.
To discuss some of these concerns, Pulp & Paper in-
terviewed experts from Fluor Daniel, an engineering
company that is currently involved in various pulp and
paper industry recycling projects. Those interviewed
were Don Buck, vice president, pulp and paper business
unit; Chuck Morrow, director of pulp and paper en- Don Buck, vice president, pulp Chuck Morrow, director of
gineering; Jim Thornton, process engineer, and Tom and paper business unit. pulp and paper engineering.

81
Wastepaper Supply Quality, Quantity
 ternate wastepaper sources farther from their mills. ities, where they know there will be a wastepaper
Brokers will also be supplying paper from locations far- stream. For recycled greenfield operations, mills will be
ther from the mill, and that could have an effect on price built closer to the people than trees.
and supply.
P&P: Companies such as Southeast Paper Manufacturing
P&P: How far will mills go to get that constant supply? and Garden State Paper have set up their own procure-
Thornton: I believe mills will shift their collection net- ment agencies. Also, Stone Container recently formed a
works to limited areas. Newsprint mills, for example, joint venture with Waste Management. Do you think these
will probably backhaul wastepaper from the same areas types of arrangements will continue?
they ship product. Some mills already operate this way. Thornton: Brokers will continue to be the leading sup-
A mill in the Midwest supplies newsprint to publishers pliers of wastepaper to mills, but some of the larger pa-
in Denver, Los Angeles, and San Diego. It backhauls ONP per companies will probably set up such arrangements
[old newspapers], in its own rail cars, to use in the mill. with major end users. For example, a mill I recently vis-
Cheves: The mills we are siting that plan to recycle are ited had an arrangement with Safeway grocery stores.
looking for areas within a certain radius of municipal- The mill took all of Safeway’s corrugated containers to

Wastepaper backhauling boom

Backhauling, long a method for transport companies to cut and returning with a number of empty cars. For example,
hauling costs, has found increased interest from recycled the two main Canadian lines have about 15,000 to 20,000
paper mills looking for a way to bring in wastepaper at low cars a year returning empty. Since many of those cars are
cost. Trucking companies have practiced backhauling in dedicated to newsprint, wastepaper backhauling is perfect.
the paper industry for years, negotiating a cheaper rate to “Trucking rates are pretty well defined right now, but rail
haul wastepaper into the small number of recycled mills for lines are working hard to compete with those rates,”’
which they delivered a finished product. Conklin added. ‘‘One nontraditional way they are
According to Terry Conklin, a consultant with Simons- competing is by setting contracts based on a price per
Eastern Consultants, Decatur, Ga., ‘‘Transport companies highway mile. That makes them more competitive with the
will normally negotiate a lesser rate for the backhaul truck lines. And when a company takes a load of
because they probably wouldn’t have a haul on the return wastepaper into a mill, they are a candidate for an
trip. These companies can’t make money if they don’t find outbound load.”’
a load for the return trip.”’ A MATTER OF COST. Cost savings of backhauling
But the boom in recycling has caused rail lines to step depend on mileage. In transportation, there are two
into the competition to meet the needs of numerous new component costs: the waiting time of loading and
recyclers. ‘‘The railroads are becoming much more unloading and the distance traveled. The costs for distance
aggressive in backhauling,’’ Conklin said. ‘‘Truckers have traveled can also be analyzed for primary haul and
had most of that business because it hasn’t been on a large backhaul.
scale. Conklin uses a trucking company as an example.
“With newsprint and magazine recycling exploding, rail “Generally, a trucker’s rate for the backhaul portion of the
companies see it as a natural fit because they’ re delivering distance traveled would be about two-thirds that of the
large amounts of newsprint out of the North to the South primary haul. If a truck has a 40,000-Ib load (about as
much paper as you can get in a truck) , it will cost about
$12/ton for a 100-mile primary haul. On a backhaul, the
FIGURE 1: Based on a truck carrying a 20-ton load, the cost/ton cost would be about $10/ton for the same distance.
of a backhaul can be significantly less depending on the “However, that is a very short trip. For a haul in the 400-
distance of the primary haul. mile range, the cost difference would be about $30 for
primary vs $22 for backhaul (Figure 1) . If the mill is in an
urban area, there will probably be an average distance of
about 250 to 300 miles for a haul, so a company could save
about $5/ton. That can mean significant savings for a mill
in transportation costs.’’
While companies are always looking for a backhauling
arrangement, Conklin said the practice becomes cost
prohibitive at less than 100 miles for truck (150 to 200
miles for rail) unless a specific load is waiting to be
backhauled. By having wastepaper for pickup, mills create
a desirable situation for transporters.
“Many mills operate their own fleets this way, but | don’t
know of any setting up circuits for outside fleets on a regular
100 200 300 400
basis,’’ Conklin said. ‘‘But more mills may contract to set
Miles
up Circuits for outside fleets, especially if transporters are
—— Primary ~e@——— Backhaul delivering into major metropolitan areas, where large
amounts of wastepaper are waiting to be hauled out.”

82
Wastepaper Collection Practices
produce 100% recycled corrugating medium and test
linerboard. Such arrangements will be made as more
mills invest in recycling, but they will be set up
gradually.
Buck: More waste management companies will also be
setting up dealer-type arrangements. For example, the
company that collects garbage used to take everything
it picked up straight to the landfill. Now it supplies
containers, so households sort out their newspapers.
This will probably develop into a completely separate
business.
Cheves: | think collection is much more sophisticated
now than most people understand. At one time, people
went to grocery stores or package stores to find boxes for
moving. But if you go to those stores now, there normal-
= SR gr

Jim Thornton, process Tom Cheves, vice president,

ly aren’t any. Those boxes are going into compactors, en- engineer. business development.
abling dealers to procure OCv [old corrugated contain-
ers]. In doing that, companies are almost assured of
getting a pure supply without having to sort. not use that wastepaper, the voluntary effort collapsed.
Now that effort must be resurrected.
P&P: Do you think there will be legislation or ordinances
to mandate separation of materials at the household P&P: A large volume of high-quality wastepaper comes
level? from offices. Is there a market for that wastepaper, and
Thornton: | think there will be legislation on percent- what will it take to get offices to separate their wastes?
ages of wastepaper that must be recycled; certain states Buck: From the experience at our office, it will take the
have begun enacting such legislation, especially states initiative of key individuals within each company to get
that have a real crisis at landfills. But so far, that offices to separate waste. Fluor Daniel has a separation
is the only area where legislation has been enacted or is system within our buildings, and it has been a huge suc-
pending. cess. All responsible companies will want to do some-
I think there will be more interest directed towards thing like this.
individual grades of paper. There are certain grades that Morrow: Before offices began sorting, that type of waste-
can be recycled 100%, even though the industry isn’t re- paper was considered mixed papers. Now it is actually a
cycling at that level. There are also certain paper grades number of higher grades of wastepaper, and that prob-
that possibly can’t be recycled—for instance, contami- ably could replace many of the ledger grades as a fur-
nated papers or papers containing certain additives. nish. These grades of wastepaper will be much less ex-
Cheves: Source separation has so many advantages. pensive than mixed ledger but come very close to the
First, the person doing it will probably have a high accu- quality.
racy rate. Second, when that sorted material is picked Cheves: Recycled fine papers have not received the at-
up, it’s checked again. That’s two checks before the ma- tention that tissue, newsprint, and OCC markets have.
terial is sent to a collection center where it might be But as more end users demand fine papers with a recy-
sorted and checked again. cled fiber mix and as more legislation is enacted, the
Buck: There are volunteer programs right now. Munici- fine paper sector will be driven to use secondary fiber.
palities give containers for plastic, aluminum, glass, and
newsprint. As I drive around, I see more and more of P&P: Will mills be able to procure a constant, high-quality
these recycling bins. So there are entrepreneurs who are supply of wastepaper, especially for grades where more
getting a free supply of recyclable materials. mills are adding deinking lines, such as newsprint?
And if a municipality provides the bins and gets a Thornton: Based on my experience, there are a number
dealer to collect it, the municipality doesn’t have to col- of newsprint mills that have arrangements with brokers.
lect the real garbage as often. That can mean monetary However, quality will probably deteriorate as demand
savings for citizens. increases. There will always be a supply. But one thing
Morrow: I’m not sure municipalities will have to pass or- that could hurt the supply of ONP is the use in producing
dinances or fine homeowners to make them separate other paper grades, such as tissue. ONP is primarily used
waste, as long as those municipalities ask for reasonable in newsprint now, but that could possibly change.
separation. If you ask people to separate their newspa- Another consideration of supply to newsprint mills is
pers, they’ll probably do it. Voluntary separation and that more mills will be using magazine stock to enhance
collection of wastepaper was going very well in the late the flotation deinking operation. Even if the industry
1970s and early 1980s. There was even a surplus of uses some ONP for other segments, there should be a bal-
wastepaper at one time. But because the industry did ance with increased use of magazine stock. if

Wastepaper Supply Quality, Quantity 83

 Chapter 18

Southeast Recycling Corp. Expands

to Ensure Ample ONP Supply at Mill
Southeast Paper’s fiber procurement arm more than doubled its
number of facilities to supply an expanded Dublin, Ga., mill

Southeast Paper Manufacturing Co.’s, Dublin, Ga.,

By KELLY H. FERGUSON, Projects Editor
mill wanted to ensure the availability of quality secon-
dary fiber after startup in 1979. Mill management didn’t
s state legislators have begun pushing publishers want to depend exclusively on dealers and brokers but
to use more recycled newsprint, newsprint mills wanted to ensure a constant flow of old newspapers
have begun considering recycled lines and searching for (ONP) to the mill. The decision was made to set up a net-
a quality source of secondary fiber. Most recycled grade work of procurement and processing facilities, working
mills have used wastepaper dealers and brokers in the through a subsidiary company, Southeast Recycling
past and continue to use those sources. More recently, Corp., to provide that supply.
mills have turned to legislatively mandated municipal ‘“‘We wanted to make sure we had a secure and con-
recycling programs, which involve home sorting of recy- stant flow of the paper to the mill,” said E. James
clables and curbside collection. Fletcher, executive vice president of Southeast Recy-

84
Wastepaper Collection Practices
cling. “We also wanted to make sure the supply quality newspapers available, as well as growth well above the
met the mill’s standards, which is a special deink grade- national average.”
8 quality.”
To begin this network of procurement facilities, PROCUREMENT AND PROCESSING. When Southeast
Southeast Recycling set up offices in Atlanta, Ga., and Recycling began operation, approximately 200,000 tpy
purchased an Atlanta collection facility from Rock-Tenn was being sent to the Dublin mill. Tonnage per year in-
Co. From the base in Atlanta, other facilities were start- creased as machine production was increased. At No. 1
ed up in Marietta, Ga., Savannah, Ga., Montgomery, machine’s peak, Fletcher estimated Southeast Recycling
Ala., New Orleans, La., Orlando, Fla., Polk County, Fla., provided about 250,000 tpy.
and Volusia County, Fla. With the new No. 2 machine, about 550,000 tpy will
When the decision was made in 1987 to expand the be needed to meet the needs of both machines running
Dublin mill, including adding a second newsprint ma- at peak production. The paper is bought by the ton or
chine, Southeast Recycling added ten more facilities over the scale by pounds, and the price varies, depend-
(Figure 1). Three of the facilities were bought from Gar- ing on whether the facility picks it up or it is delivered,
den State Paper Co. Inc.—Richmond, Va., Tyson’s Cor- or whether it is sorted or nonsorted. The average, over-
ner, Va., and Silver Spring, Md. The other facilities were the-scale price is between $5 and $10/ton.
expansions—Gwinnett County, Ga., Baton Rouge, La., Southeast Recycling procures wastepaper in several
Ft. Myers, Fla., Ft. Pierce, Fla., Jacksonville, Fla., Bre- different ways. Churches and other nonprofit groups
vard, Fla., and Seminole County, Fla. hold collection drives, and the paper is either delivered
Southeast’s focus on Florida for eight of its facilities is to a Southeast facility by those groups or is collected at a
due to the state’s “high availability of newspapers and central site for pickup by trucks from those facilities.
reasonable freight rates to our plant in Dublin,” Fletcher Wastepaper brokers and dealers, normally a source
said. ‘Florida has an unusually large amount of old for quality wastepaper, provide presorted loads. Those
dealers and brokers that Southeast deems dependable
FIGURE 1: With the expansion of the Dublin, Ga., mill, Southeast can ship direct to the mill, bypassing the processing
Recycling Corp. added ten new collection centers, bringing its centers.
total to 18. Municipal programs have recently become a source
of wastepaper for Southeast. In Silver Spring, Southeast
took over the Montgomery County collection pro-
gram—the first time Southeast has had responsibil-
ity for maintaining curbside collection of newspapers.

oe
However, these programs generally mean more work for
Southeast’s facilities because less sorting is done before
a load is received.
Southeast has also worked with a few corporations in
: G winnett setting up collection programs to procure office and
Marietta @S* Atl X
SC
anta computer paper and ONP. However, in setting up such
programs, Southeast researches how much paper is gen-
erated, how much processing will be required, and how
much time will be needed to operate the program.
For example, Southeast buys all the paper generated
by Conoco Inc., a New Orleans-based oil company.
Southeast provided it with an extra container to collect
the newspapers, computer paper, and office paper. The
company is responsible for separating the paper and
loading the container. Southeast’s New Orleans facility
then collects from the large container.
Once the wastepaper is delivered to a Southeast fa-
cility, it is sorted by facility employees to remove con-
taminants, such as telephone books, junk mail, and plas-
: tic bags. Then, depending on the specific facility, the
Seminole Co.* ® *\ Brevard ~~ paper is sent by truck or rail to the mill in Dublin.
Polk x\Ft Pierce Staffing depends on the type of facility. A baling fa-
cility may have 20 to 30 employees. Some of the smaller
operations may have five or six employees. Southeast
operates five facilities that bale the newspapers and de-
liver by rail or truck. The other operations are termed

85
Southeast Recycling Corp. Expands
“loose” facilities, where the paper is sorted and loaded
loose into trucks for delivery to the mill.

ASSURING QUALITY FIBER. When the loads are re-

ceived at the Dublin mill, no further sorting is done.
Therefore, quality of ONP is left to the individual facili-
ties or the dealers and brokers delivering the loads.
The loads are inspected, and if a certain amount of
outthrows or contaminants are found, the load is reject-
ed. Once rejected, the load goes back to the shipper at
cost to the shipper. Southeast’s facilities are included in
that process and have had loads rejected.
Some of Southeast’s highest-quality ONP supply is
provided by nonprofit groups, because the amount they
are paid depends on how well the paper is sorted. But
recent legislation in some states mandating community
recycling has forced some nonprofit groups out of col-
lecting newspapers. In these areas, facility procurement
costs have been driven up, and municipalities are nor-
mally paid less per ton because more work is required to Once a shipment is received at a collection center, employees
sort loads. sort out plastics, direct mail fliers, etc. to ensure the quality of
Southeast’s facilities will not, however, accept any ONP shipped to the Dublin mill.
loads mixed with garbage, a requirement some commu-
nities attempt to bypass. In municipal programs, South-
east requires separation of newspapers from other recy-
clables at the original source—the home. However,
residents still believe they can put in junk mail, phone
books, or magazines.

EXPORTING AND BROKERING? While the Dublin mill

normally uses all the ONP procured by Southeast Recy-
cling, part of Southeast Recycling’s supply was exported
to England and Mexico during a 1989 market glut. The
only other alternative would have been to turn away
some of the collection programs, including the nonprofit
drives.
“Exporting is not our business,” Fletcher said. ‘““We
did try to maintain the flow by continuing to buy be- Southeast Recycling Corp.’s Atlanta facility has its own trucks to
cause the second machine hadn’t started up.” collect ONP.
Besides ONP, Southeast Recycling’s facilities accept
other grades—office paper, computer paper, and corru- to one place,” Fletcher said. “As our operations mature
gated grades—depending on the ability to sell the paper and the mill’s fiber needs are met, we might supplement
and the facility’s ability to handle other grades. Most of our business by procuring other grades, but only as a
the other grades comes from municipal and corporate sideline operation.”
collection programs. That paper is processed at the fa- With such extensive facilities, Southeast is set up
cilities and brokered to other dealers or sold to other possibly to move into brokering. Fletcher says, however,
companies. that is far in the future. Currently, a feasibility study is
Southeast also encourages collectors to put newspa- being done for a new mill in the Northeast, South, or
pers in grocery bags. The bags are then baled and sold Southwest. With that expansion, more procurement and
for recycled kraft pulp. Some facilities even accept glass processing facilities would probably be added.
and aluminum, especially if the facility is involved in a “Our primary objective would be just to supply our
community-run program. As a service, Southeast will mill, but I guess there is the possibility that if we get ex-
accept the glass and aluminum, process it, and sell it to cess tonnage, we could supply other users of ONP,”
dealers. Fletcher said. “I would think we would not supply a
“With some municipal programs coming online with company putting in a greenfield mill but rather a mill
multi-material collections, we may have to get into adding deinked capacity—a situation that would re-
more recyclables. People like to bring their recyclables quire less ONP tonnage.” a

86 Wastepaper Collection Practices

 Contaminant Removal, Timely Use
Vital to Quality ONP Fiber Yield
Brightness and strength decline as supply ages in storage; sorting
household collections at processing centers beneficial for clean supply

By WILLIAM C. ANDREWS mixed with the general solid waste stream.

Age of the ONP is important because the principal fi-
ber component of newsprint is mechanical pulp, which
FP: many paper grades, recycled products can be and degrades both in color and strength when exposed to ul-
should be as good as their virgin counterparts. With traviolet light and heat (Figure 1). Newspapers will yel-
recycled newsprint some individual characteristics will low in a matter of hours when exposed to bright sun-
differ, but for the end use, performance must be compa- light, as compared with business paper grades, which
rable to virgin newsprint in terms of quality of the fin- are made from chemical pulp and change very little.
ished product and operating efficiency. Characteristics Normally newspapers are not subjected to extreme
of wastepaper that affect quality and efficiency are con- light or heat and can be used even up to a month with
tamination, age, and moisture. little degradation, but they definitely will show bright-
Contaminants are a problem in the manufacture of ness and strength deterioration after six months regard-
any recycled paper product, and the worst of these sub- less of storage conditions, and inventories should be ro-
stances are pressure-sensitive adhesives and hotmelt tated on a short-range basis.
materials, collectively known as “‘stickies.” Stickies ad- Wet paper causes mildew, mold, and accelerated de-
here to machine parts and to adjacent layers of paper in terioration, particularly when stored, and has a negative
wound rolls, causing breaks on the paper machine and economic effect in terms of lower fiber content. Mois-
in the pressroom. ture should not exceed 10% of total weight.
Sophisticated screening and cleaning equipment has
been developed to effectively remove contaminants, in- WASHING AND FLOTATION CRITERIA. The Garden
cluding stickies, but no approach is perfect, and removal State deinking process is a washing method using only
efficiency is currently at about 90%. ONP. Coated and supercalendered grades, such as maga-
zines and advertising material, are undesirable because
CLEAN SUPPLY A MUST. It is important that collect- nonfibrous components comprising up to 30% of the
ed old newspapers (ONP) be clean, containing only what weight would represent a loss and an added load in ef-
is delivered with the newspaper, free of prohibitive ma- fluent treatment.
terials, and having less than 1% of out-throws. Prohibi- All of the different types of inks that are used in
tives include metal or glass of any type, plastics, lami- printing newspapers can be satisfactorily deinked by the
nated products, garbage, and non-water-soluble adhe- Garden State washing process, including oil-base inks
sives and tapes from book binding or pressroom waste. used for offset and letterpress printing and water-base
Out-throws include grades of paper such as brown bags, inks used for flexographic printing. Many publishers in
magazines, junk mail, and heavily inked pressroom the U.S. are converting to flexography, particularly me-
waste, all of which could be used but would cause qual- dium-size, and the total could reach 10% to 25% of
ity and appearance problems. printed newspapers.
The best way to improve markets for waste newspa- Flotation is very common in Europe and Asia, and
pers—or for that matter any recyclable material—is to newsprint mills in North America are also committing
concentrate on source separation before the material is to this approach. Essentially, these mills use a combina-
tion of newspapers and magazines because the mineral
Mr. Andrews is corporate lab supervisor, Garden State Paper filler or clay content of the magazines benefits the ink
Co., Garfield, N.J. removal efficiency of the flotation cells.

Contaminant Removal, Timely Use of ONP 87

 Magazines generally constitute about 30% of the GARDEN STATE’S SORTING PROCESS. To facilitate the
deinked pulp content and can be either coated or filled sorting of household collections, Bruno & D’Elia, a sub-
supercalendered grades, which would also include ad- sidiary of Garden State Paper involved in procuring ONP,
vertising flyers. Currently many of the magazines being has installed a new processing center at Port Carteret,
recycled come from preconsumer sources that are low N,J. The sorting relies on hand separation, but this is ac-
in contaminants, such as overruns, returns, and press- commodated by moving the paper along belts at waist
room waste. level on an elevated platform. The out-throws are
Postconsumer sources are largely untapped, but ex- dropped to the floor below, where they are placed on a
pansion of flotation deinking would represent a signifi- separate conveyor.
cant outlet for these grades. The fiber content of maga- The system was designed by Baling Service using a
zines, which like newsprint is a mixture of mechanical Mayfran sorting system and a Harris 10AS HRB baler.
and chemical pulps, has a higher percentage of chemical Using 12 employees—ten sorters, one truck operator for
pulp, which is stronger and brighter than mechanical loading, and one baler operator—250 bales weighing
pulp. 1,500 lb each can be processed in an eight-hour shift.
Flexographic-printed newspapers have caused more The paper from a single loading conveyor is split be-
of a problem in flotation compared with washing deink- tween two lines, each with two level sorting conveyors
ing because flotation requires a larger ink particle size in series and a hump in between for flipping the paper.
for effective removal. The water-based flexo inks are The first conveyor is run at 30 fpm and the second at 45
highly dispersed and have small particle sizes. fpm. Each line has stations for 14 sorters, although nor-
mally four are used, and two more sorters at the loading
SEPARATION TECHNOLOGY. Sorting of ONP is essen- conveyor cut and remove twine.
tially a hand operation. In the processing of highly con- The out-throws on the floor under the sorting con-
taminated wastepaper, devices such as magnets for met- veyor are periodically pushed by truck onto a separate
al removal and trommels for separation of glass, metal, conveyor at floor level that feeds the baler directly, and
and other heavy objects can be effective. But for the these are baled when the sorting conveyors are shut
sorting of different grades of paper and plastic, no me- down. Since most of the out-throws are slick inserts de-
chanical methods so far have approached the efficiency livered with the newspapers, these bales are sold as
of hand separation. magazine grades.
The best approach by far is to educate households in Other contaminants, such as twine and plastic, are
segregating newspapers at the source and avoid con- not dropped on the floor but instead are placed in sepa-
tamination with other disposable items from the start. rate containers at the sorting level for discard. Corrugat-
Newspapers are easy to handle when stacked and ed and other brown grades are initially dropped with
wrapped separately, and clean grades of ONP from well- the slick out-throws and later separated at the baling
run collection programs frequently command a higher conveyor and processed separately.
price. At Garden State Paper, these grades also go ‘“‘mill In the Garden State Paper approach, the philosophy
direct,” meaning that they can bypass the processing in sorting is to remove the contamination and have the
centers. good material (ONP) remain on the conveyor. With high-
Unfortunately, quality of paper from some municipal er grades of wastepaper, the role may be reversed, with
programs is often far from desirable, particularly when white ledger being removed at one station, color ledger
the programs are hastily organized and mandated by at another, computer paper at a third, and the undesira-
law, such as happened in New Jersey two years ago. ble grades remaining on the conveyor. =

FIGURE 1: Age of ONP is very important when considering storage. According to an ONP waste study, characteristics such as
brightness, breaking length, and burst factor decline fairly rapidly as ONP ages.

OD
pos

2
n ®o

8 £
= s
S
fa
D
Ls
Ke} ®

8 =
oO)
factor
Burst
— APA
oO
@o
rea}
—

00
0:2, °5 7 1012 14.17.19 22.24 0-2-5 7 A012:14 1:7 19.22) 24 0. 2°65. -7: 10:12 44 17 19,22
24
Age of paper in months Age of paper in months Age of paper in months
 Chapter 20

Noranda Meets New Fine Paper

Postconsumer Waste Standards
Noranda Forest Recycled Papers’ increased collection program
and Thorold mill expansion keep pace with doubled requirement

figure he estimates to be more than 35% of the available

By JIM YOUNG, Technical Editor
supply. “I think this is fertile ground,’ he observes.
“The Ontario populace is environmentally sophisticated
N oranda Forest Recycled Papers (NFRP) is a new enti- and responsive. They are keen to recycle.” Provincial
ty backed by a long recycling tradition. Established and municipal governments have sponsored programs
in November 1989, it is centered at the former Fraser on collection and equipment. Voluntary response to re-
Inc. mill in Thorold, Ont., where recycled fine paper has cycling is aided in no small measure by rapidly rising
been produced for 50 years. The mill was the first one dumping fees that will reach $150/ton in May.
licensed by the Canadian Standards Assn. (CSA) to use A company analysis states that, in general, office
its EcoLogo (Figure 1), guaranteeing that the sheet con- wastepaper contains the following:
tains a minimum of 50% postcommercial recycled paper e 55% laser- and xerographic-printed paper
by weight, including 5% from postconsumer sources. e 35% white and colored paper
The 50% recycled requirement is the easy part, at e¢ 5% groundwood paper and old newspapers
least comparatively. Postcommercial wastepaper has tra- e 3% brown kraft paper
ditionally been collected from converting facilities and e2% contaminated paper, plastic, adhesives, glass,
print shops and sorted without too much difficulty. Post- metals, etc.
consumer waste is something else again. Coming mainly
from offices, the wood-free computer and xerographic
paper used by Noranda is separated from mechanical FIGURE 1: The Thorold mill was the first one to receive the
pulp-containing newspapers and magazines, often at the Canadian Standards Assn.’s Environmental Choice logo.

office source. Further sorting by collectors/dealers sep-

arates papers with acceptable inks from those with diffi-
cult-to-deink laser and xerographic imprints.
The current North American recovery rate of post-
commercial wastepaper is already about 85% so addi-
tional supplies for recycled fine paper will have to come
from office waste. According to Gordon Sisler, NFRP’s
manager, product development, the demand for recycled
fine paper exceeds supply. In fact, some customers are
now more concerned with how the product is made
than they are with its appearance.

COLLECTION. Initially concerned about the quality

of postconsumer deinking wastepaper supplies, NFRP
considered establishing its own collection and sorting
program for office wastepaper, then opted to use its com-
mercial wastepaper broker and dealer network to supply
all of the 37,000 tpy of combined postcommercial and
postconsumer stock to the Thorold facility. (Figures are
in metric tons and Canadian dollars.)
Over 50% recycled paper
Vic Baltrusaitis, NFRP’s director of sales, says that of-
fice collection in the southern Ontario area jumped Including 5% postconsumer fiber
from virtually none to 90,000 tons in about 12 months, a

Noranda Meets Postconsumer Waste Standards 89

 Office wastepaper is valued at $0 to $25/ton when it take advantage of wastepaper as Thorold. Drawing from
arrives at one of several collector/dealer facilities in the southern Ontario, western New York, the Eastern Sea-
Toronto area. A crew of up to ten persons hand sorts an board, and reaching into the Midwest, there are 5 mil-
estimated 1% tpd/person. With mechanization limited lion people within a 100-mile radius of the mill, 125 mil-
mostly to conveyors moving the graded paper, labor lion within a day’s hauling distance.
costs are high at about $60/ton. Baltrusaitis has figured From working with a long-established broker and
that as of the end of 1990, mills were paying close dealer network, through deinking secondary fiber that
to $240/ton for computer printout paper and about has to be competitive in quality to virgin fiber, and on to
$130/ton to $160/ton for white xerographic paper from sheet formation, Sisler notes that there is no substitute
wastepaper dealers and brokers. Figure 2 illustrates for the mill’s 50-year experience. This is particularly
“full circle” fine paper recycling dynamics. Sisler pre- true in tracking the performance of the blend of both
dicts that as the circle becomes more fully closed, the suppliers and their paper grades, month after month, as
true cost of waste disposal will be shouldered by the an important aspect of process control.
generators of wastepaper. The recycling capacity was increased by a series of
small changes, led by replacing a rotor in one of the four
DOUBLING RECYCLING CAPACITY AT THOROLD. The Hydrapulpers to raise consistency from 8% to 12%. A
Thorold mill expanded its recycled pulp capacity last second Finckh primary screen with 0.01-in. slots was
year from 21,000 tpy to a current 37,000 tpy and is head- added while the secondary and tertiary screens had suf-
ing toward a 42,000-tpy goal. This July, the CSA’s 5% ficient capacity to keep up with the expansion. Process
postconsumer requirement will double to 10%. Sisler optimization steps included the installation of a waste-
explains that 10% of a 50%-recycled sheet means 20% of paper scale for bale-weight verification and proper
the fiber line will be handling postconsumer waste. “To pulper loading, the addition of a warm water system,
the guy on the street, 10% postconsumer waste is noth- and twinning the deinking fiber supply system to the pa-
ing, but that’s 20% of the 120 tpd that we cook, so we per machines, allowing each machine the option of two
will have to bring in more than 24 tpd of postconsumer qualities of deinked pulp. In the area of environmental
waste,” he says. “It’s tough to get that quantity in the treatment, the additional load remained within design
quality that we need.” The average office worker gener- limits with the help of such optimization as reducing
ates 0.5 lb of high-grade deinkable wastepaper each day, flow variations to the activated sludge effluent treat-
based on the experience of established office waste col- ment plant and improving the operating efficiency of the
lection programs. That translates to 300,000 participat- sludge thickener.
ing employees to meet the requirements of the Thorold
mill alone. AGRICULTURAL SLUDGE APPLICATION. The mill’s
Still, few mills are as geographically well situated to deinking sludge is recycled in agricultural applications,
acting as a soil condition-
FIGURE 2: Fine paper recycling dynamics. ing agent. Its high cellu-
lose content is beneficial
to high-clay soils that are
Paper mills deficient in organic mat-
ter. At the same time, the
fiber opens the structure
of high-clay soils, reduc-
Commercial Consumer ing compaction and help-
Brokers
ing to create conditions al-
lowing for better nutrient
uptake by plants. As the
Paper Dealers cellulose breaks down, it
Offices recycling takes nitrogen out of the
collectors
soil so it becomes neces-
Merchants Institutions
Document sary to add supplementary
storage nitrogen to the sludge in
the form of ammonium ni-
Waste
Materials
trate. Added at a level of
Printers haulers about 1.0% on dry sludge
recovery
facilities it prevents the depletion
of soil nitrogen.
Libraries
Clays and fillers, repre-
Converters senting about half of the
sludge weight, are not par-

Residential

Wastepaper Collection Practices

ticularly beneficial except The person in charge
in the case of sandy soils, of the laboratory, George
where clay will improve Kubanek, explains that he
soil water retention. Other and his staff are at work
ink particles and paper- developing both new and
making additives are pre- improved technology, in-
sent only in insignificant cluding recycled fiber ap-
amounts and are unlikely plications at the Thorold
to provide any measurable mill and at the Maclaren
advantage. newsprint mill in Masson,
Pilot tests were run on Que. The Centre is work-
corn crops to determine ing closely with mill per-
the benefit of sludge addi- sonnel to optimize sheet
tion. Yields improved 10% quality, papermaking fur-
to 15% with the addition nishes, and paper machine
of 12 tons/acre and 20 lb operation. Research is also
George Kubanek, right, discusses new recycled fiber application
of ammonium nitrate /ton being conducted with the
technology with S.F. Ali at Noranda’s Forest Technologies
of sludge. Some other pa- Laboratory. Thorold and Masson mills
rameters of plant growth, on improving the recovery
cob length and weight, leaf of fiber from sludge. The
color, and leaf area showed additional improvement. Centre joined in the development of Thorold’s effluent
The land application rate is usually 12 tons/acre ona treatment program, with pilot plant testing at the mill.
wet sludge basis (32% dry). The mill’s annual disposal Other research areas include optimizing chemical re-
requirements can be met by approximately 2,000 acres covery and recausticizing in kraft mills and improving
of land. Sludge is taken to landfill only when weather corrosion abatement. In addition, programs are under
prevents delivery to farm sites or if sludge is excessively way to enhance lumber, panelboard, and other wood
wet and can’t be handled by farm spreading equipment. products. “We’ve made a good start and have a strong
program under way with some very good people, but we
FUTURE 115,000-IPY EXPANSION. The doubling of are still pretty new,” Kubanek says.
the Thorold mill’s recycling capacity was the first objec-
tive of NFRP when it was formed in late ’89. At the same 90s PROJECTIONS. Don Reid, vice president, mar-
time, preparations for a 115,000-tpy mill expansion were keting, says a major thrust carrying well in the ’90s will
initiated. Don Duncan, vice president, operations, says expand on the mill’s book and offset paper business in
the process design and preliminary engineering have Canada and the U.S. Pulp from high-grade deinked
been completed, an environmental impact study has wastepaper has a number of advantages in these grades,
been made, and some pilot plant work on proposed ef- including improved bulk and opacity as well as flexible
fluent treatment systems has been accomplished. A 95- fibers from the alkaline deinking conditions. Future
acre site is being prepared for easements, and the pur- markets for nonpermanent publications may incorpo-
chase of additional land to bring power and gas to the rate a groundwood blend.
mill site and water to and from the site is under way. In addition to its 75,000-tpy capacity to produce Eco-
While the property will soon be ready for future build- Logo 50% recycled content printing and writing paper—
ing, none is planned for the immediate future. “Be- specifically book and commercial printing paper, com-
cause of the current economic climate, Noranda will not puter paper, photocopy paper, forms, and stationery—
proceed with construction in the short term,”’ Duncan Thorold can produce 25,000 tpy with a range of recycled
explains; however, data from the pilot plant will be used content by direct entry: wallpaper substrate with mini-
to update the permit application with Ontario’s Ministry mal recycled content; coated-one-side packaging paper
of the Environment. with 20% to 60% recycled content; and its new ‘“‘Renais-
sance”’ reply-card, envelope, and tablet stock with 75%
NORANDA TECHNOLOGY CENTRE. Like NFRP, the recycled content, including 30% postconsumer waste.
Forest Technologies Laboratory at the Noranda Technol- Also looking into the ’90s, Sisler says, ‘‘It is almost in-
ogy Centre in Pointe Claire, Que., is a recent develop- evitable that governments will legislate material such as
ment building on a long tradition. The Centre was estab- office waste out of dumps. I don’t see much choice
lished in 1963, primarily serving corporate metallurgical there—certainly not in an area like Toronto, which I am
processing operations. Its forest products facility was es- most familiar with. We have to focus on grades where
tablished two years ago as part of a $19-million building deinked pulp makes sense for fine paper, with other of-
expansion and is now staffed with 16 scientists and en- fice waste placed in other grades before legislators de-
gineers working in pulp and paper, environmental, and termine recycled content in every fine paper. That
wood products areas. makes it difficult for everybody.” a

Noranda Meets Postconsumer Waste Standards 91

 — Section§ passe
Sis

Pulping, Screening,
and Cleaning
Considerable improvements have been made in the basic recycled pulping operation in re-
cent years, although no major breakthroughs have occurred. Most gains have been in increased
efficiency, especially in the removal of contaminants. The trend toward higher consistencies
has lowered overall costs while improving recycled pulp quality.
This section reports the latest engineering approaches to high-efficiency pulping of secon-
dary fibers. Several mill installations are examined in terms of equipment used and specific
process designs. Screening equipment in particular is compared for different grades being pro-
duced at several recycled paper mills.
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 Increased Use of Wastepaper Spurs
Improvements in Pulper Efficiency
Design changes now allow mills to customize selection, depending on
types of wastepaper, amount of contaminants, and space availability

By GREG SLEEPER system. Wastepaper types, amount of contaminants, type

of contamination, space constraints, and end product
should be considered when making the decision to in-
Reine of wastepaper has traditionally been per- stall a pulper. Rejects removal in the beginning module
formed either in continuous or in batch pulpers, of a system is equally important because of its influence
with consistencies that normally range from 2.5% to 4% on subsequent modules. Adequate information and co-
for continuous operation and 6% to 8% for batch. In the operation between the supplier and mill will result in
past, batch pulping of material has been limited to a selection of the best alternative for the application.
maximum production rate of about 200 tpd. Above that
tonnage, continuous operation is dominant. TRADITIONAL OPERATION. Operating in batch mode
However, changes in design and efficiency have al- has always provided repetitive results and complete de-
lowed mills to customize pulper systems to fit their fibering. Installed costs have typically been greater due
needs. This means pulper selection should be given as to the larger size of the pulper, pumps, piping, and dump
much consideration as the remaining equipment of a chest. And decontamination has been accomplished by
operators manually cleaning the tank after a number of
Mr. Sleeper is senior product engineer, Beloit Corp.—Jones cycles, depending on the degree of contamination.
Div., Dalton, Mass. Continuous pulper operation has been used not only

FIGURE 1: The effect of consistency

on hydraulic vs attrition defibering.

Total
defibering

[e))
cs
=
Hydraulic
o
2
aw
oO
ja) UOIEMOd

Consistency (%)

Wastepaper Spurs Pulper Improvements 95

for larger production rates but at higher consistencies.
As consistencies increase be-
also where complete defibering
is not required. Decontamina-
Depending on the type of yond 6%, mechanical attrition
action decreases and hydraulic
tion has been accomplished by
continuous bucket-style junkers
wastepaper and end shear action increases (Figure
1). This is a result of increased
as well as junk towers that have
clam-bucket hoists.! Small holes
product, mills can select fiber-to-fiber rubbing as well as
(0.125 in. to 0.375 in.) were ini- the conveying vs pumping ac-
tially used in the extraction from low-consistency ..., tion that is needed to circulate
grate to hold back contaminants this mixture, which has a high-
and to provide good defibering medium-consistency... , or er viscosity. Also, specific ener-
(90% to 97%). gy requirements are reduced by
As the amount of plastics in- high-consistency (more than the more efficient defibering ac-
creased in grades such as old tion. Hydraulic shear defibering
corrugated containers (OCC) and 12%) repulping. benefits contaminant removal
mixed waste, the small holes by less degradation of plastics,
would plug, resulting in loss of allowing for easier separation
capacity. Larger perforations were installed in the ex- by cleaning or screening modules.
traction grates to maintain production rates, and the in- Pulper selection for a particular application should
creased hole size necessitated use of satellite pulping include consideration of such factors as production
units and/or coarse screening modules to handle the rates, available space, and the type of production pro-
rise in fiber flakes and contamination downstream. cess. Higher-consistency pulpers will allow increases in
batch production rates to approximately 300 tpd, de-
NEW PULPER DESIGNS. Improvements in pulper de- pending on the furnish. Above 300 tpd, consideration
sign and decontamination equipment during the past should be given to continuous operation or multiple
decade have allowed a more customized selection for pulpers. Available space for the installation may also
mills. Depending on the type of wastepaper and end limit the type or number of units that can be installed.
product, mills can select from low-consistency (4% to Medium- to high-consistency pulpers are recom-
6%), medium-consistency (10% to 12%), or high-consis- mended for a deinking operation, depending on the type
tency (more than 12%) repulping. Economic factors for of wastepaper used. Deinked furnishes fall into two ca-
operations, such as deinking, favor medium- to high- tegories—easily dispersible inks (e.g., newsprint) and
consistency pulping. Reducing water requirements by inks set by drying (e.g., ledger, magazine, and packaging
one-half to one-third provides a significant savings in grades).3
steam and chemical use.? Ink dispersion also improves Inks that are easily dispersed should be run at medi-

FIGURE 2: The Tri-Dyne continuous pulper with Sigma tank has a twin-fold effect that allows for fast bale submergence and increased
differential velocities.

96 Pulping, Screening and Cleaning

 FIGURE 3: Effect of early
decontamination of total system
(trom Coarse Fine
In screening
Fine efficiency.
screening cleaning

contamination
pulp
Residual
in

Modular sequence

um consistency (8% to 12% maximum) to prevent over- moval. Material has to find its way into these units by
dispersion, which could allow the particles to enter the gravity or the pumping action of the impeller. Improved
lumen of the fiber. When that occurs, the ink is virtually pulper purging units, such as the Bel-Purge, provide bet-
impossible to separate by washing or flotation deinking. ter cleaning by inducing a flow directly from the pulper
Ledger, magazine, and packaging paper are usually tank, thus conveying the rejects to the unit. Rejects are
printed with inks that do not disperse readily, resulting collected in the chamber for a preset period of time and
in specks in the sheet.’ Wastepaper containing these then sluiced to recover any usable fiber. The rejects are
inks requires high-consistency pulping. A mill can then emptied from the unit to the reject handling system.
take advantage of the improved defibering and disper-
sion action of the high-consistency pulper. FIELD RESULTS. The Beloit Jones OCC system, in-
Recycled board grades, such as OCC, should still be stalled at a southern mill, has been equipped with a con-
repulped at low consistency to ensure operation of the tinuous design 62-in. Tri-Dyne pulping unit and Sigma
ragger and other decontamination units. Improved tank tank, operating at 4% to 5% consistency. Decontamina-
and impeller designs have reduced the specific energy tion of the pulper includes a Bel-Purge (heavy and light
requirements for repulping such grades to less than 1 rejects removal), junk tower (additional heavy rejects re-
hp-day/ton because of lower power demands needed to moval), and ragger operation (baling wire removal).
circulate the tank and provide submergence of bales. Original design was for 500 tpd, but rates of more than
Most continuous pulpers operate at 200 hp/1,000 ft? 600 tpd have been achieved. The pulper was installed
to 400 hp/1,000 ft? of operating volume. Improved de- with a 500-hp motor, which yields 160 hp/1,000 ft? and
signs have lowered that to 125 to 250 hp/1,000 ft’. Figure 0.83 hp-day/ton (at 600 tpd).
2 shows the Beloit Jones Tri-Dyne with a Sigma tank, The Tri-Dyne, a multifunctional impeller, is equally
which incorporates the new design. No baffles are re- suitable for medium-consistency applications, such as
quired in the tank. Submergence is improved by the two ledger pulping at 12% and poly-coated milk carton pulp-
sharp breaks at the tank ends, which causes the circula- ing at 8% to 12%. Medium-consistency pulping of the
tion to fold back on flow, submerging the material. milk carton stock allows separation of the poly coating
from the usable fiber with little breakdown of the poly-
DECONTAMINATION IMPROVEMENTS. Regardless of ethylene, allowing for easier removal. During a triple
the type of pulper process, early removal of rejects is im- extraction process, the coating is isolated in the pulper
portant to the entire system. Figure 3 shows that early tank and then dumped to the rejects handling system.™
reject removal yields a better end-product quality, re-
gardless of the number of stages of cleaning in each REFERENCES
subsequent module. Early decontamination is influ- 1. Norm Hoch, Pulper Requirements for Reclaimed Papers, Sep-
enced by extraction perforation size, pulper purging, tember 1971, Paper Trade Journal.
2. Steve Paraskevas, Repulping Stock at High Consistency Cuts
and temperature. Power, Energy Requirements, Beloit Jones Performance Report.
While bucket junkers and junk towers are still used 3. Luigi Silveri, “Beloit Technological Update—Secondary Fiber,”
in waste pulpers, they are passive in the nature of re- 1989 CPPA Beloit Technical Seminar.

Wastepaper Spurs Pulper Improvements 97

 Chapter 22

Alkali Soaking Ups Quality, Yield

of Occ Used in Boxboard Furnishes
Installed in the reject treatment line, technique eliminates deflakers
and minimizes contaminant attrition throughout the process

possible for easy removal. If this can be accomplished, a

By ED HEALEY
significant gain in the overall yield can be achieved.

Wz treating old corrugated containers (OCC) for ALKALI SOAKING. During the past few years, cer-
the manufacture of folding boxboards or liner- tain data have been published relative to alkali soaking,
board, the principle objective is to produce a very clean, which basically involves the use of a soaking tower fol-
strong product in a system that is both economical in in- lowing the continuous pulper and dewatering press. The
stalled cost and low in power consumption. One method pulped stock is dewatered to a consistency of approxi-
of accomplishing this has been the use of soaking tower mately 30% and then diluted with caustic solution to
technology developed in Japanese mills through the 18% for soaking. This approach is particularly effective
work of Aikawa, parent company of Fiberprep. Test re- for stock deflaking.
sults with soaking tower systems have shown improved Alkali soaking in the main stock preparation line also
stock yield, lower power consumption, and improved increases drainage and strength. But it is best used in the
quality of pulp. reject treatment line, applied for defibering at as low a
In treating OCC, the most important consideration shear force as possible to minimize degradation of impu-
from the standpoint of quality is to minimize attrition rities responsible for oil spot problems.
throughout the process to keep contaminants as large as Oil spot problems can be determined with the Oil
Spot Procedure, described as follows:
Mr. Healey is president of Fiberprep, Taunton, Mass.

FIGURE 2: NaOH soaking: NaOH content vs defibering efficiency.

FIGURE 1: NaOH soaking: soaking time vs defibering efficiency.

i<e)oO

© ©ooO
©
——

Zz
= =I(o)
oO OO)
=
1)
ec)
aig
eae,
(aly
ae)
{esis
NaOH 0% goO
2
5 _
Soaking time Soaking time
12)
2s o oO
je)
NaOH 1.0% E 2 hours O hours

=© 50
i

SS 2)
oO
mo
ff
Wo
A(Ee
Keo)
hn
Ulm
YS)
|
NaOH 3.0% =
a
aSoO Soaking time
S
— 6 hours
asj=)
w oO

4 6 8 10 12 NooO
NaOH soaking time (hours) Soaking time
16 hours
ahoO

1 2
NaOH content (%)

98 Pulping, Screening and Cleaning

TABLE 1: Retained stock on 0.010-in. slotted flat screen. reject sample from the coarse and final screening pro-
cesses were combined and dewatered in the screw press
Without With and processed without soaking treatment.
soaking soaking Test 2—This system shows a conventional system, in
Pulper dump chest 33.90 % 33.90 % which a deflaker is used to improve yield and provide
Chest afer soaking _ 10.50% defibering as opposed to soaking.
First ADS inlet 27.30% 6.10% Test 3—As described under Test 0, stock was dewa-
First ADS outlet 0.74% 0.33%
First ADS light reject tered in the screw press and caustic was added. Stock
32.00% 3.40%
First ADS second reject 21.70% 6.10% was soaked for 16 hours and processed in a typical ADS-
Second ADS inlet 21.70% 6.10% type system without deflaking. The stock consistency
Second ADS outlet 0.84% 0.37% was 30% at the screw press and 18% at the soaking
Second ADS light reject 13.90% 4.10% tower. Soaking was accomplished at room temperature.
Second ADS reject 13.30% 7.60%
CVA inlet 13.30% 7.60%
CVA outlet 1.60% 0.72% TEST CONCLUSIONS. When the stock was processed
CVA reject 50.00% 67.10% by the ADS after soaking, the yield was 15% higher than
without soaking. In Test 3, the yield was 7% higher after
soaking than in Test 2, where the deflaker was installed
e Make ten to 20 handsheets based on TAPPI (Techni- in the tailings line without soaking. This shows that
cal Assn. of the Pulp & Paper Industry) standards. in this type of system, deflakers are unnecessary and
e Heat and furnace at 140°C for 20 min. the removal of the deflaker eliminates the shredding of
e Count oil spots for the individual sizes. contaminants.
e Calculate total area. Alkali soaking in the reject system contributes to an
e Convert to mm?/100 grams of stock. improvement in stock yield, increase in screen capacity,
In alkali soaking, the injection rate of caustic soda and elimination of deflakers. The freeness of the waste
and the soaking time are the most important factors. Fig- material is approximately 65 cc CSf lower with soaking
ures 1 and 2 show the effect of these factors on stock de- than without soaking in the reject line. When this mate-
fiberability. As can be seen, alkali soaking time must be rial is remixed with the primary stock, the mainstream
longer than 16 hours to obtain the sufficient effect, and 2 accepts are 20 to 25 cc CSf lower than stock not mixed
to 6 hours of soaking is of no practical value. with reject soaking. This affects power. For example, if a
final freeness of 400 cc is required and the production
SOAKING TESTS. Tests were conducted to deter- rate is 300 tpd, the required power for refining is 688
mine the results of soaking with the four systems depict- kW without soaking and 543 with soaking (a 20% to 25%
ed in Figure 3. The four systems each include a piece of reduction).
equipment developed by Aikawa of Japan called the The quality of stock after soaking is remarkably im-
ADS, which is a primary screening element. The ADS is proved at the accepts of the ADS. As can be noted in Ta-
the newest technology in the screening of OCC, provid- ble 1, the accepts as measured on a 0.010-in. flat screen
ing high-quality pulp at relatively low energy levels. improved from 0.74% to 0.33% retention with soaking.—
Principally, this machine al-
lows for both coarse screen-
FIGURE 3: Experiment flow to research the effect of alkali soaking on reject treatment with ADS.
ing and fine screening with-
in the same machine. It also
allows the selective removal
of lightweight contaminants
through the core in the pri-
mary section and further pro-
vides a gentle deflaking ac- Coarse and fine
Din ADS-50 Deflaker Fine
tion within the same unit. screen tail
The four separate systems
piped together and depicted
in Figure 3 are as follows: Coarse
Test 0O—OCC was defibered ; screen

in the pulper and rejects from

Fine
the primary ADS were used screen
as sample stock for the re-
ject soaking treatment system
(T-3).
Test 1—Rejects from the
ADS on Test 0 and the final
 Separate Pulping of Magazines, ONP
Yields Cost, Consistency Benefits
A split pulping-deinking system can take your mill past the year 2000,
delivering improved control while coping with varying furnishes and inks

sidering deinking and pulping processes, take into ac-

By DON McBRIDE
count the kind of waste stock that you will be processing
first.
Avettine system is primarily a separation process. If you are dealing with a mix of newspaper and maga-
Contaminants from old newspapers (ONP) and mag- zine stocks you might want to consider “split” pulping
azines are separated into the rejects stream and usable as an alternative to pulping them together.
fiber into the accepts stream. In a deinking system, qual- If 100% ONP is pulped at high consistency (above
ity is defined as maximum removal of ink particles and 12%) the possibility of smearing of dispersed ink parti-
other contaminants with minimum fiber loss. cles back onto the fiber can result in irreversible bright-
Deinking of secondary fiber involves repulping and ness reversion. Low- or medium-consistency (4% to 8%)
defibering, and the ink is separated from the cellulose fi- pulping of 100% ONP at a moderate pH (9.2 to 9.8) will
bers by cleaning, washing, and screening. Removal of prevent the rubbing of the easily dispersed, soft, greasy
the ink begins in the pulper and is basically a laundering inks back into the fiber.
operation. The objective is to produce a pulp of high
quality from recycled paper.
Equipment is now available to remove not only the
most troublesome contaminants but also well over 90%
of the ink. Deinking engineers can utilize this modern
technology, which involves a combination of flotation
and washing systems, to make possible the production
of very high-quality recycled paper.
In designing a system, careful matching of the latest
equipment and chemicals is essential because this will
ultimately determine the success of the system. The
deinking system we will be discussing is designed to
support 100% of the furnish for a high-speed paper ma-
chine to produce high-quality newsprint. As a combina-
tion flotation and washing deinking system with both a
kneading and dispersion stage, it will effectively remove
a wide variety of ink and contaminant combinations in
the wastepaper stream.

SPLIT PULPING. If you are considering bringing a

deinking system into your mill, you need to realize that
all wastepaper stock is not created equal. Baled waste-
paper stock comes in several varieties, two of which we
will be discussing: ONP and waste magazine. When con-
Sana OMaCUAWe
UONUNANRY
(U
Mr. McBride is deinking process engineer, Rust International A kneader, unlike a deflaker or a refiner-type dispersion unit,
Corp., Birmingham, Ala. does not chop nor disintegrate ink particles.

100
Pulping, Screening and Cleaning
 Waste magazines, however, which are heavily coated, are separated by centrifugal action, collected in a trap,
can contain hard-set inks that are difficult to disperse. and periodically dumped into a dumpster that is hauled
This type of furnish requires a high-consistency pulping to a landfill. The accepted stock is then processed
environment at a higher pH (10.0 to 10.8). This type of through three stages of coarse screens equipped with
deinking system will also deliver better control of the screen baskets having 0.051-in. holes and three stages of
pulping and deinking process. screens equipped with screen baskets having 0.012-in.
The advantages of split pulping are as follows: slots.
e Reduced chemical costs because the chemical ap- Accepted stock from the primary screens discharges
plication is optimized to the disc filter feed chest and is then pumped to the
e Controlled blending of the newspaper and magazine disc filters for thickening. The effluent from the disc fil-
pulp ters is pumped to the clarifier and, after clarification, re-
e Optimization of pulping consistency. cycled for system dilution.
In a split pulping-deinking system, baled postcon- The stock is now blended in the pulp blend chest and
sumer waste (newspaper and magazine) will be received pumped to twin-wire presses, where it is dewatered
by railcars or trucks and unloaded directly to the pulper from 8% to 30% consistency.
feed conveyor or stored in the bale storage warehouse.
Loose waste cari also be received by truck. KNEADING. After the primary presses, the stock is
If only one pulper can be used to pulp ONP and maga- discharged at 30% consistency into the high-consistency
zines, the best alternative to split pulping is a continu-
ous drum pulper. Because there is no rotor nor cutting
device on a drum pulper, contaminant attrition is much
lower.

PULPING. The pulping operation begins with load- Sodium hydroxide (caustic) creates alkalinity, swells
the fiber, releasing ink into the suspension, and induces
ing bales of reclaimed waste newspaper and magazine
saponification to hydrolize the ink vehicles and binders.
onto two separate conveyors. The wires around the
Sodium silicate acts as a wetting agent and a mild
bales are cut and the bales spaced evenly on the convey- dispersant to release the ink and also stabilizes the
ors, permitting a uniform flow of bales into the pulpers. alkalinity.
The rate of addition of the chemicals, e.g., caustic, Hydrogen peroxide gives a higher brightness to pulp.
silicate, a chelating agent, hydrogen peroxide, and a sur- It suppresses the yellowing action caused by alkali on
factant (displector) suitable for the flotation/washing mechanical or groundwood pulp.
process, is variable depending on the furnish quality Chelant/sequestrant stabilizes the hydrogen
and quantity. These chemicals help saponify the ink peroxide by the complex binding of heavy metal ions
and aluminum ions. A chelating agent is used to aid in
binder and therefore remove the ink from the fibers and
the bleaching efficiency by deactivating metallic ion
render it hydrophobic for easier removal. (See sidebox
contaminants, including aluminum (alum) . Metal ions in
for more information on deinking chemicals). the deinked pulp cause rapid decomposition of
The chemistry of a combination flotation and wash- hydrogen peroxide.
ing deinking system differs from an all-flotation or all- Diethylene diamine pentamethylene phosphonic acid
washing deinking system. Successful flotation depends (DTPMPA) is the phosphonic derivative of diethylene
on rendering larger 30- to 200-micron ink particles hy- diamine pentamethylene (DTPA). DTPMPA is more
drophobic with the aid of the clay in the magazine fur- efficient in reducing hydrogen peroxide breakdown than
nish. In a combination flotation and washing deinking DTPA. Based on recent trials, some of the benefits of
system, the standard fatty acid/calcium chloride chem- using DTPMPA are as follows:
e Higher residual H,0,
istry removes little ink in the washing stage. The small
e Less silicate use (up to 50% less)
ink particles of less than 30 microns that are removed by e Higher brightness (up to 2 points)
washing, however, are the ones most detrimental to e Improved retention of fines and fillers on the paper
brightness. Nonionic displector chemistry will remove machine because of the reduction of silicate usage
ink particles in both flotation and washing stages, re- e Improved runability and higher drying rates on the
sulting in a wider range of ink particle sizes removed paper machine
and a brighter pulp. e Less scale formation and filling of felts.
Stock is pumped from the pulper to the pulper dump Surfactant is a combination dispersant/collector or
“displector.’’ Surfactant benefits include the following:
retention chest. This chest is sized to give sufficient re-
e Providing 100% active liquid
tention time for the deinking chemicals to fully react. e Requiring no makedown system
e Requiring no added calcium chloride
CENTRIFUGAL CLEANING AND SCREENING. The stock e Combining both of the properties of a dispersant
is pumped from the pulper dump chest at approximately and a fatty acid soap collector.
3% consistency to the high-density cyclone cleaners.
Heavy rejects, such as staples, wire, and tramp metal,

Separate Pulping of Magazines, ONP 101

kneaders for a gentle fiber-to-fiber rubbing action that a conventional high-consistency tower. If wastepaper
enhances ink separation. The treatment of fibers by a stock is deposited in a dead zone of the tower, it fer-
“kneader” is unlike treatment by a deflaker or a refiner- ments and can decompose, compromising quality and
type dispersion unit. A kneader does not chop nor disin- brightness.
tegrate ink particles, plastic contaminants, or fibers. The features of the soak tower include agitation de-
At 30% consistency, intensive activity takes place be- vices that comprise four to six rakes mounted on the
tween the two counter-rotating screws of the kneader. bottom part of a shaft suspended from the center of the
Little or no relative movement occurs between the pulp tower. Dilution water, which contains residual deinking
and the screws; all of the movement goes on between and bleaching chemicals, is fed from the center of the
the fibers themselves with a lot of shearing and twisting bottom and the side walls of the soak tower. The diluted
forces. This fiber-to-fiber rubbing action effectively de- stock is scraped off by rake arms and falls to the bottom
taches the ink from the fiber. The best location for a of the tower to be discharged by a suction pump. Stock
kneader is just before the flotation stage. is pumped out uniformly, aided by continuous dilution.

HIGH-DENSITY EXTRACTION OR SOAK TOWER. Recent SEPARATION BY FLOTATION. The stock is pumped to
advances in deinking technology focus on a high-consis- the flotation feed chest, diluted to 1% consistency, and
tency soak tower that produces high-quality pulp.? Stock pumped to the primary flotation cells.
of low freeness tends to adhere to the inner walls of In a flotation cell, high-pressure aeration produces a

FIGURE 1: A split pulping-deinking system pulps, cleans, and screens ONP separate from magazines.

H202
Clarified caustic
paper silicate
machine DTPMPA
whitewater surfactant
(displector)

Furnish Newsprint pulper Dump chest H.D. Coarse Coarse

newspapers 9.5 pH 90 min cleaners screens screens
4.5% consistency 4% consistency 3% consistency 0.051-in. holes 0.012-in. slots

Magazine
Furnish pulper Dump chest H.D. Coarse Coarse
magazines 10.5 pH 90 min cleaners screens screens
10% consistency le 4% consistency he 3% consistency 0.051-in. holes 0.012-in. slots

Flotation : Thru-
feed Polen flow
Forward Bayes Gravity Twin
cleaners screens a wire
chest cleaners
0.008-in. slots presses

System
dilution No. 2
Clarifier

System
dilution
wide spectrum of air bubbles, maximizing both the col- Stock discharges from three stages of through-flow
lision frequency and attachments of the ink particles to cleaners to the forward cleaner feed chest. From there
the air bubbles. the stock is pumped to the forward cleaners to remove
Hydrophobic particles—in particular the printing ink heavyweight contaminants, such as sand, metal, glass,
particles detached from the fiber—are deposited on the and ink specks.
air bubbles and rise to the surface, creating a foam sus-
pension. The foam is separated and drawn off by the re- FINE SCREENING. Fine screening begins as stock
ject system, dewatered to a consistency of 40% to 50%, discharges from the forward cleaners into the fine
discharged to a dumpster, and then taken to a landfill or screen feed chest. The stock is then pumped to four
to an incinerator. stages of the fine screens equipped with 0.008-in. slots to
remove glass, metal, shives, stickies, hotmelts, plastic,
CLEANING. The accepted stock from the flotation styrofoam, etc. Accepted stock from the fine screens dis-
cells discharges to the through-flow cleaner feed chest _ charges to the decker/washer feed chest. The rejects
at 1% consistency. The stock is then pumped to through- from the fine screens discharge into the reject system.
flow cleaners to remove the lightweight contaminants
remaining after the stock has passed through the flot- GRAVITY DECKER/WASHERS. Stock coming from the
ation modules. Typical lightweight contaminants re- decker/washer feed chest is pumped to the deck-
moved are polystyrene, hotmelts, waxes, plastic, and er/washers for fine-ink-particle removal, washing, and
stickies. thickening. Decker/washer effluent is rich in suspend-

Disc
filter

Kneading
30 % consistency
presses

Disc
filter

System dilution
to pulpers No. 1
clarifier
Steam HoOasilicate
caustic DTIPMPA

Bleach Gravity Twin High density

Dispersion Dilution decker wire storage
tower chest
30% consistency 26 % consistency washers presses 12 % consistency} To
paper
machines

No. 3
clarifier
 ed solids (ink and ash) and will be clarified before being sion unit. The majority of these specks, after both the
used for system dilution. The decker/washers thicken kneading and dispersion stages, will be too small to at-
the stock to a consistency of 4% to 6%. tach themselves to an air bubble for secondary flotation.
Following a washing stage, all of the washer filtrate is Therefore, a postdispersion washing stage is more ap-
sent through spray filters or scalpers to recover the reus- propriate for fine-ink-particle removal. aig
able fiber. The filtrate is sent to a clarifier where the ink A dispersion unit will disintegrate any remaining
and lightweight contaminants are removed by dissolved contaminants into ultrafine particles smaller than can
air flotation, aided by polymers and flocculants. be detected by the human eye. Also, any remaining ink
particles will be separated from the fiber for secondary
DISPERSION. The dispersion stage begins with a washing.
twin-wire press. Here the stock is thickened from 4% to Bleach liquor, e.g., hydrogen peroxide, sodium hy-
30% consistency. The stock mat is then shredded by a droxide (caustic), sodium silicate and DTPMPA® are
breaker screw and transported by conveyor to a heating added into the dispersion unit, which is followed by a
screw, where it is heated to approximately 200° F by di- bleach tower, producing a pulp of higher brightness. Dis-
rect steam. persion is necessary for a high-quality pulp, but removal
Plastic, glue, and wax particles become soft and lend of ink and contaminants is the only true way to assure
themselves to dispersion. Large ink specks in the fur- high quality.
nish are reduced to 30- to 40-micron size by the disper-
CLARIFICATION. The filtrate from the presses will
discharge to the clarifier where contaminants and ink
will be separated. The clarified filtrate will discharge to
Thinking before deinking: the clarified water chest. This clarified water will be
some important considerations used for dilution in the system. The sludge from the
clarifier will discharge to the rejects processing system.
e If the wastepaper is allowed to be stored outside— The rapid adoption of the flexographic printing ink
exposed to sun and wind—the solvents and binders in formulation has caused problems for many deinking
‘the ink will evaporate, setting the dried ink onto the fiber plants. Flotation deinking is not capable of removing
and making the wastepaper difficult to deink. Sand and flexo ink, which is water-base and does not contain the
dirt carried by the wind will only add to the standard mineral oil formula of regular printing inks.
contamination problem and cause wear of expensive
Flexo inks are rapidly dispersed in the washing and
screen baskets and cleaners. Wastepaper bales more
than six months old, whether stored inside or outside, deinking process and must be removed from the filtrate
will have the same problem to a certain degree. by clarification, with some additional polymer cost. The
The wastepaper procurement person who thought dispersed ink must now be reagglomerated with the aid
he or she was getting a bargain on a large lot of older of polymers and removed from the recycled water.
wastepaper because the price was low probably did not
inquire or consider that such wastepaper is better suited CLARIFY THE PAPER MACHINE WHITEWATER. A paper
as furnish for recycled folding boxboard than for machine, besides producing paper, is in essence a giant
deinking. washer. Retention aids, alum, defoamers, rosin size, felt
Fresh wastepaper, stored inside a warehouse for less cleaning chemicals, residual ink particles, and stickies
than six months, will cause fewer problems with
brightness reversion in the deinking process. The bales
all end up in the paper machine whitewater.
should be rotated on a regular basis to assure a high- Introducing this water as dilution into a deinking sys-
quality deinked pulp. tem, without first being clarified, directly interferes
e The surface of the wastepaper storage area is also with the deinking and bleaching process. Also, the cost
an important consideration. Many deinking operations of the chemicals used in the deinking process goes up
have learned a hard lesson by storing wastepaper bales considerably to compensate for the various chemicals,
on an asphalt surface simply because asphalt is less metal ions, and ink introduced into the system.
expensive than concrete. On an asphalt surface, each Unclarified paper machine whitewater at 4.0 pH can
time the fork truck operator picks up a stack of bales or
actually set the ink into the fiber, making it very diffi-
the front-end loader operator pushes loose paper onto
cult to deink. By simply clarifying the paper machine
the conveyor, a small amount of asphalt inevitably ends
up on the conveyor and in the deinking process,
whitewater, you can prevent the contamination of the
contaminating the entire system. pulp that you are trying hard to deink. a
e The right combination of equipment, chemistry,
and employee training will make deinking a lot easier. REFERENCES
¢ Keep in mind that the design of the rejects handling 1. F. Togashi and E. Okada, 1989 TAPPI Pulping Conference Pro-
ceedings, TAPPI PRESS, Seattle, Wash. p. 343.
and sludge systems as well as the whitewater systems
2. Pollcon Engineering Co., Japan Pulp & Paper, Vol. 22, No. 1,
are as important as the design of the main deinking May 1984.
system. 3. G. Galland, E. Bernard, Y. Verac, Paper Technology Vol. 30,
No.
12, Dec. 1989.

104
Pulping, Screening and Cleaning
 Chapter 24

Cleaning of Secondary Fiber Stickies

May Necessitate Monitoring for VOCs
Felt cleaning solvents can contain volatile organic compounds,
making paper machine exhaust stacks a possible emission source

By FREDERICK H. INYARD plant, not just the individual non-CTG emission units.
Under the definition of 100-tpy non-CTG source, the
non-CTG source cannot merely apply less than RACT con-
Pree with the threat of shrinking landfill space, the trols to avoid applicability. Further, EPA can restrict
demand for recycled paper products is expected to hours of operation by legally and federally enforceable
increase dramatically in the next five years. According permit conditions to limit emissions below 100 tpy. If
to the American Paper Institute, U.S. paper manufactur- emissions are found to be above the cutoff, then the
ers plan to invest billions of dollars in plants and equip- state must apply RACT thereafter. The standards of per-
ment to recover clean, high-quality wastepaper. The in- formance are evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
stitute has set a national goal to recycle 40% of all paper
production by 1995. PAPER MILL VOCs. Paper mills using primarily re-
Paper manufacturers that plan to build new recy- cycled paper normally clean the paper machine felts
cling facilities or use existing plants for the process of and screens frequently to remove stickies that can accu-
recycling paper should be aware of Environmental Pro- mulate during the papermaking process. Recycled pa-
tection Agency (EPA) regulations for volatile organic per, in particular, contains residues that can eventually
compounds (voCcs). Standards of performance for new blind the felts and wire on the paper machine and cause
stationary sources are established under Section 111 of imperfections in the final product.
the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411) as amended. The A solvent wash is used on an as-needed basis to re-
standards apply to any new stationary source of air pol- move stickies when paper quality becomes unaccepta-
lution that “causes, or contributes significantly to, air ble. The time between successive solvent cleanings var-
pollution which may reasonably be anticipated to en- ies and can range from several hours to several days
danger public health or welfare.” depending on the quality of the recycled fiber and the
Under the act, control technology guidelines (CTGs) amount of impurities it contains.
have been issued for many industry groups. The guide- The cleaning solution consists of a caustic solvent so-
lines are designed to reflect the degree of emission re- lution made up in batches as needed. The solution is
duction achievable through the application of best rea- normally pumped from a batch tank to a spray boom,
sonably available control technology (RACT), taking into where it is applied to the felt or wire with spray nozzles.
consideration the cost of achieving such emission reduc- It usually takes about five to ten min to apply the sol-
tion, any non-air-quality health and environmental im- vent wash to the felt or screen.
pacts, and energy requirements. Water from the paper machine felts is normally recy-
RACT regulations are a major component of the strate- cled to the whitewater system. However, during the sol-
gies by which states can achieve VOC emission reduc- vent cleaning cycle, this water is usually directed to the
tions through effective implementation of the State Im- wastewater sewer. Also, exhaust stacks over the paper
plementation Plan (SIP). EPA normally requires states to machines operate continuously to remove warm, moist
impose RACT on VOC sources that can potentially emit air from above the paper machines. These are the two
more than 100 tpy but do not fall into a CTG category. possible points of VOC emissions.
This 100-tpy cutoff is intended to apply to the entire
ONE MILL’S EXAMPLE. Under the terms of an agree-
Mr. Inyard is vice president, Eder Associates, Locust Valley, ment with a state regulatory agency, a paper mill trig-
N.Y. gered RACT requirements by emitting more than 100 tpy

Cleaning Secondary Fiber Stickies 105

of vocs. The mill uses 100% secondary fiber to produce the following parameters:
tissue paper. The recycled fiber (mostly ledger paper, e The mass of solvent used per solvent cleaning epi-
register paper, and coated book paper) is trucked into sode, expressed as pounds of carbon and pounds of
the receiving yard, where the paper is weighed, inspect- VOC
ed, and stored by grade. eThe mass of vOCs exhausted from each of two
Under RACT, three areas of modifications are evaluat- stacks, expressed as pounds of carbon and pounds of
ed: product substitution, process changes, and add-on VOC per solvent cleaning episode
controls. The mill had already installed various types of e The mass of vocs discharged with wastewater, ex-
screens, cleaners, and flotation devices upstream of the pressed as pounds of carbon and pounds of voc per
paper machines to minimize the amount of stickies, and solvent cleaning episode.
a non-Voc cleaning solution was unavailable. Therefore, Test results showed that almost 97% of the solvent
the mill was forced to research various types of add-on applied to the paper machine felts was discharged with
control technologies. the wastewater. The remaining 3% was exhausted by
The mill undertook an in-depth program to demon- the paper machine exhaust stacks to the atmosphere.
strate the quantity and characteristics of VOC emissions With such a low percentage of vocs being exhausted,
that resulted from its papermaking operations. The pro- the cost of add-on controls could not be justified for re-
gram included evaluating voc emissions that result from ducing VOC stack emissions.
the removal of stickies and implementing a sampling It was originally anticipated that a much larger per-
program to quantify both air and wastewater emissions. centage of the vOCs would have been exhausted. at
Sampling of the paper machine was conducted at the the paper machine. However, when it was determined
two exhaust stacks and at three wastewater discharge that almost all of the vocs were discharged with the
points (Figure 1). Only one of the mill’s paper machines wastewater, a bench scale treatability study was under-
was sampled since the results were believed to be repre- taken to determine the fate of the vocs in the effluent
sentative of all machines at the mill. The mass of the once discharged from the mill.
solvent exhausted by each of the two stacks was deter- The bench scale treatability study indicated that ap-
mined by EPA Method 25-Byron version. Method 25 re- proximately 84% of the solvent reaching the treatment
sults are reported on a carbon-mass basis. These results plant is absorbed in the biological flow or is biodegrad-
were then used to calculate the mass of solvent exhaust- ed, and 13% is emitted into the atmosphere. Considering
ed from the paper machine. the 3% voc emission at the paper machine, this results
The sampling program quantified the fate of voc in an overall 16% emission of vOCs to the atmosphere.
emissions that resulted from the solvent cleaning op- This study clearly demonstrates that at this particular
erations. VOC emissions in wastewater and air were mill—based on the total vOCs emitted, large air volumes,
verified using mass balance calculations. Field mea- and low VOC concentrations—add-on controls to reduce
surements and analytical data were used to calculate or eliminate VOCs would be cost-prohibitive. &

FIGURE 1: To quantify air and water

Application ne Suction emissions of VOCs, the mill took
solvent wash box (typical) |Yankee samples from the two machine
dryer t Exhaust t Exhaust
exhaust stacks and at three
No. 4 No. 2 wastewater discharge points.

Stevens
former

its

To whitewater To sewer during

system except when solvent wash cycle
solvent washing sample points
Water from Nos. 1 and 2
~—#
-----------|-
oe
ee
suction boxes

endl Overflow
process
pipe
Sample
point No. 3

Wastewater
trench
Pulping, Screening and Cleaning
 Continuous Drum Repulping System
Features High-Consistency Stock
Newsprint, ledger paper, corrugated container, mixed waste recycling
claims maximum strength with minimum degradation

By MOMDOUH A. BADAWI and DICK KOFFINKE the massive amounts of wire found on large compressed
magazine bales, the mill reports that the installation is
now producing an essentially flake-free stock with a
See mills are repulping various grades of recycled lower contaminant level than that found in the news-
furnishes, such as old newspapers (ONP) and maga- print furnish.
zines (OMG), ledger paper, old corrugated containers Other systems currently under construction include
(Occ), and mixed waste, without using raggers, junkers, a 600-metric-tpd newsprint deinking application as well
or auxiliary pulping devices necessary to produce a as a 400-short-tpd installation. Both were selected after
high-quality stock. In some cases, this has minimized review of several similar installations in Europe and Ja-
downstream equipment. . pan, which highlighted the contaminant removal and
These are the more than 50 mills worldwide using a deflaking characteristics of the Fiberflow system.
Fiberflow drum repulping system from Ahlstrom-Ka-
myr, based on a new-generation pulper that combines DESIGN. The Fiberflow drum pulper consists of a
the advantages of high-consistency pulping with con- rotating drum that has both a defiberizing and a screen-
tinuous operation. This combination is most advanta- ing section (Figure 1). In both sections, a series of baffles
geous in large deinked newsprint operations. and lifters combine to reduce the baled or loose furnish
One of the features of the system is its ability to pro- to a fiber and water stock.
cess bales without removing the wires. This has been The drum is slightly inclined to move the furnish ax-
demonstrated in Europe as well as North America. ially from the deflaking section to the screening section.
Wires are cut but not removed and are passed instead The length and angle are designed to provide a nominal
through the drum pulper and discharged from the re- 20-min retention time for defiberizing.
jects opening. A patented device transfers the deflaked stock into
In a recent installation in a North American news- the perforated screening compartment where a shower
print mill, the pulper processes approximately 250 short system reduces the consistency to a level suitable for
tpd of 100% magazine furnish for blending with a sepa- pumping and high-consistency cleaning of heavies. The
rate newsprint furnish in a full deinking application. Al- accept vat, which receives the stock from the perforated
though there were some initial problems with handling section, is agitated both for good fiber distribution
and preparation for the discharge pump and is level
Mr. Badawi is stock preparation manager, Ahlstrom C&V Inc., controlled.
Largo, Fla. Mr. Koffinke is affiliated with Kamyr Inc., E. The overall design is similar to kiln construction and
Walpole, Mass. uses standard drive components, such as a parallel gear
reducer used with a girth-
FIGURE 1: incoming paper is wetted to approximately 15% consistency in the first zone of the and-pinion gear set to drive
rotating drum, then reduced to a 3% to 4% consistency in the screening zone. the drum at a predetermined
Al rotational speed. This, when
Chemicals Water combined with an automatic
_ and water
lube system, results in a low-
To maintenance unit with a high
J High prescreening uptime rating.
consistency
ep coomne Some other features, such
HD cleaner

Deflaker pump

Continuous Drum Repulping 107

as continuous washed rejects discharge, fully automatic degraded, are passed along to the reject opening, where
feed and dilution ability that can be programmed into a they are suitable for compacting and landfill with essen-
distributed control system, and constant retention time tially no fiber loss. This principle of continuous gentle
for repulping regardless of the feed rate, make the Fiber- defiberizing at high consistency results in a virtually
flow drum pulper advantageous for all types of repulp- fully deflaked, high-quality stock with a very low conta-
ing from ONP to old corrugated stock. minant level and high physical fiber properties.

PRINCIPLE. The basic principle of the system is rel- OPERATION. The pulper is basically a feed-driven
atively simple. The furnish is chemically wetted (typi- system. In a fully instrumented installation, the feed
cally caustic and water) in both the inlet chute and the rates are set by the pulper conveyor with dilution water
deflaking section to a consistency of approximately 15%. and chemicals and then controlled based on this rate. A
Through the combination of rotation and the lifters, it is feedforward level control loop on the vat then delivers
dropped a predetermined number of times while travel- the required tonnage to the downstream system.
ing through the deflaking section. Dilution water is usually supplied by the system
This action, at the high consistency, results in a gen- thickener along with whatever makeup water is neces-
tle but effective shearing force that defiberizes the paper sary. Temperatures can be held in the 100°F to 110°F
with minimum disintegration of contaminants or degra- range, which not only is beneficial in keeping various
dation of fiber properties. This is most important in pro- types of stickies in a screenable state for optimum re-
cessing recycled fibers that have already had sufficient moval but also keeps heating costs to a minimum.
work done on them initially. Adding to the continuous For practical purposes, the operational parameters
high-consistency features is the fiber-to-fiber rubbing are fiber loss and yield. Fiber losses for a typical deink-
motion, which loosens ink, size, hotmelts, etc., from the ing system are generally about 0.8% while the yield is
fibers for subsequent removal in either the screening typically 98%. This yield is based on inlet fiber tonnage.
section or in downstream equipment. Any reduction in this yield is usually because of the
Once deflaking is nearly complete, stock is trans- amount of out-throws in the furnish.
ferred to the screening section, where it is screened at a Power consumption for all sizes of the pulper is nor-
consistency between 3% and 4% while being subjected mally 0.7 to 1.0 hpe day/ton depending on the furnish.
to the gentle dropping action of the lifters. The contami- Systems are sized based on capacities ranging from 100
nants, screened through 6-mm holes and only minimally to 650 oven-dry short tpd. =

108
Pulping, Screening and Cleaning
 Chapter 26

Contour Surface Cylinders Boost

Wastepaper Screening Efficiency
A decade of improvements has increased capacity of pressure
screens, but newest design improves cylinder wear life

ity of the pulp slurry, therefore greatly reducing the ten-

By CHRISTOPHER M. VITORI and IRENEE J. PHILIPPE
dency of the screen to blind over.
This fluidization effect produces numerous benefits
he use of contour-surface, slotted-screen cylinders in the screening process, the most important being the
has increased in the paper industry in recent years. ability to process increased stock throughput, particularly
The cylinders’ benefits include lower reject rates, re- at high consistencies. When feed consistency, pressure
duced long fiber fractionation, smaller slot sizes, higher differential, and accept capacity are analyzed, it becomes
capacity, and reduced sensitivity to consistency and clear that the contour-surface cylinder provides in-
contaminant content variations. creased throughput capacity at much higher consisten-
However, high wear rates have been reported in some cies on an equal slot width basis. Although the capacity
installations for these cylinders, particularly in appli- of the contour-surface cylinder is higher than for the
cations with secondary fiber furnishes, which have a smooth-surface cylinder of equal slot width, the con-
substantial abrasive material content. Screen cylinder tour-surface cylinder allows slightly more contaminants
suppliers have tested various materials and surface to be accepted due to the reduced level of contaminant
treatments, but, in general, hard-chrome plating has alignment accompanying fluidization.* However, when
been most successful for extending wear life. But even
with hard-chrome plating, some installations have worn FIGURE 1:50X photomicrograph cross section of conventional-
the contour off in as little as a few weeks to a few contour, slotted-screen plate showing typical wear pattern on
leading edge of contour.
months. po
Before the development of the contour surface, slot-
ted-screen cylinders consisted of smooth-surface plates
with milled-through slots. A contour surface is normally
produced by milling shallow, narrow grooves parallel to
the through slots into the inlet surface of the screen
plate. The groove walls may be parallel or at an angle to
the through slot. The milled-through slot is located at or
near the bottom plane of the groove. Thus, the through
slot inlet is recessed into the plate surface.
Contour surface cylinders used in pressure screens
were first introduced in the paper industry in the early
1980s. Because of the benefits over smooth-surface cyl-
inders, contour-surface cylinders found widespread ac-
ceptance in the mid-1980s.'” Currently, it is estimated we i apace a ad

that 90% of all slotted-screen cylinders are sold with ‘Oa @ eee Ta ee ee ne ns anRR reae Le
SAE a Pe eal
Sanhe hd ome
\
some type of surface contour. | |\
|
i eee
+r ae
or eee
x Soe
en ns t ae ree en oa |
BENEFITS OF THE CONTOUR. Increased turbulence
,T T ™
| ri Ly a fos 7 L ae Ley } U,; ok L1 TL ay |
pi A I i eae Se a ae
induced by stock flowing over the contour results in re- OO Bly |Br Bist |Ble; Be @ 8 | Ae
mixing and fluidization of the pulp near the screen plate ®
a ; 4
}
8B|| |
=,
Beko
| ia
sles
=
| |
|.|
surface. Such fluidization reduces the apparent viscos- eee eee bee ok ye. Vewk :
eet ee eee a
|
are ee Sra
Mr. Vitori and Mr. Philippe are research engineers, Black
Clawson Co., Middletown, Ohio.

Contour Surface Cylinder Screening 109

 FIGURE 2: Cross section of convex-contour surface, slotted-
compared on the basis of equal efficiency (smaller slots screen plate.
in the contour cylinder), the capacity of the contour-sur-
face cylinder is still higher.
A reduction in the tendency to fractionate the long fi-
ber into the reject stream generally allows pressure
screens with contour-surface cylinders to be operated at
a lower reject rate. Lower reject rates and reduced long
fiber content in the reject stream from a primary screen
reduce the required capacity for further screening in the
secondary position. Therefore, less capital expenditure
for reject screening is required. Accept
Higher capacity allowed by contour cylinders at
equal screening efficiency also requires less specific en-
ergy (kW hour/ton of pulp) than would be required for
smooth-surface, slotted-screen cylinders.
FIGURE 3:50 x photomicrograph of cross section of hard
REDUCED WEAR LIFE. In exchange for the substan- chrome-plated, conventional contour-surface screen plate.
tial benefits, the contour-surface cylinder has a short
wear life and will eventually lose its operating advan-
tages due to contour surface erosion. Rotor peripheral
speeds up to 26 m/sec combined with higher processing
capacities result in accelerated velocities of the abra-
sive stock slurry at the plate surface and in the through
slots.
The cross section of a contour-surface, slotted-screen
plate in Figure 1 shows the typical wear pattern of the
contour surface. The leading edge of the contour has
been substantially eroded. In some cases, the contour
surface on slotted cylinders has been worn away in as
little as two weeks in extremely abrasive environments,
such as minimally cleaned low-grade mixed waste or
postconsumer old corrugated containers (OCC).
Heavy thicknesses of wear-resistant coatings, such as
hard-chrome plating applied to the contour surfaces,
have greatly increased screen cylinder wear life. In
some cases, hard-chrome plating has extended wear life
as much as 20 times normal. However, in many cases
wear-resistant coated contour cylinders still wear sub-
stantially in as little as two to eight months. It is obvious
that an improved wearing surface is needed, while the
benefits of the contour-surface cylinder are maintained.

NEW DEVELOPMENTS. A new convex contour-sur-

face cylinder design has been developed offering several different materials provides a rugged wear-resistant
advantages over the first contour-surface cylinder— contoured-cylinder surface.
greater capacities at higher consistencies, further reduc- Figure 2 shows the construction of this screen plate
tion in fractionation of long fiber into the reject stream, in cross section. The primary difference between this
and lower specific energy requirements. Furthermore, contour surface and contour surfaces produced by con-
the contour surface of this new cylinder is less sensitive ventional machining is that the material is added to the
to erosion. surface rather than removed. This better preserves the
The convex cylinder technology consists of a conven- structural integrity of the screen cylinder.
tional slotted-screen plate with vertical convex ridges The extension of cylinder wear life is provided by
made of a wear-resistant compound. This compound is taking advantage of the three very different characteris-
fused to the land area between each slot. The entire in- tics of this technology:
side surface of the cylinder then receives a heavy coat- e Contour height and shape
ing of hard-chrome plating to protect the areas not cov- e Diverse metallurgical properties
ered by the wear-resistant compound. The chrome e Reconstruction.
plating also enhances the wear resistance of the contour The convex silhouette, although slightly higher than
ridges. The shape of the contour and the combination of conventional contour outlines, is less sharp. Therefore,

110 Pulping, Screening and Cleaning

 it is less sensitive to erosion. case basis by the overall condition of the screen cylin-
The lack of sharp edges also facilitates better distri- der. Extreme wear resulting in the widening of the
bution of chrome plating across the screen plate surface. trough slot or structural fatigue of the screen cylinder
The chrome plating process, by nature, does not apply may render reconstruction impractical.
an even thickness of metal to irregular or sharp surfaces. This technology can also be applied to some designs
This is a result of electrical current densities being of conventional contour-screen cylinders if the contour
greater at the highest surfaces and sharpest outside cor- is worn but the cylinder is in good condition. Existing
ners and lowest at the recessed surfaces and inside cor- smooth-surface cylinders can also be converted to con-
ners of a surface being plated. tour-surface cylinders by adding the convex ridges and
Figure 3 is a cross section photomicrograph that illus- chrome plating.
trates this phenomena. The plating is thickest on the top
surface, and the chrome has concentrated to form OPERATING RESULTS. The new contour-surface cyl-
rounded bulges at the sharp corners. Furthermore, the inder, called PSB-90 by Black Clawson,’ offers numer-
thickness recedes as the plating descends the groove ous operational advantages over conventional contour-
wall. Excessive thicknesses are applied to the top sur- surface cylinders. Laboratory tests of the new contour
face of the contour so sufficient thicknesses reach the cylinder on screening newspaper, corrugated containers,
recess of the groove. and mixed waste furnishes, all at various consistencies,
By taking advantage of the properties of the three dif- revealed the following trends:
ferent materials used to construct the cylinder, wear life e Increased capacity potential, especially at higher
can be further increased. The base material, 316L stain- feed consistencies
less steel, provides an economical corrosion-resistant e Higher consistencies practical for a given slot size
and easily machined substrate. The compound used to e Lower specific energy requirements
produce the contour ridges has a hardness of 40 Rc. e Reduced fractionation of long fiber into the reject
However, this material is quite ductile, providing not stream
only hardness for wear resistance but also resistance to e Improved runability (less sensitive to swings in op-
minute impacts. The chrome plating has a hardness of erating conditions).
70 Rc and is therefore extremely wear resistant. The potential screening capacity with the convex-con-
The most unique feature of this technology is that the tour cylinder is greater when operated at consistencies
contour can be reconstructed. After the contour eventu- over 1.5% to 2.0% as illustrated in Figure 4. This graph
ally wears away, the convex ridges can be reapplied di- compares accept capacity versus feed stock consistency
rectly over the existing worn ridges. However, the feasi- for a given furnish with pressure differential held con-
bility of this procedure must be determined on a case by stant. Particularly when the feed consistency is above the
1.5% to 2.0% range, through put with the PSB-90 screen
cylinder is dramatically higher than with the convention-
TABLE 1: Difference in CSf values between reject and feed al-contour cylinder.
samples for conventional contour (PSL) and PSB contour
slotted-screen cylinder on newsprint, mixed waste, and Energy consumption characteristics, illustrated in Fig-
corrugated container furnishes. ure 5, reveal that at consistencies above 1.5% to 2.0% the
advantage lies with the convex-contour cylinder. This
Feed Difference in CSf (refect CSf - feed CSf) graph compares kilowatt hours per ton of pulp to feed
consistency Corrugated
consistency for a given furnish. As the feed consistency
% fiber
Newsprint Mixed waste container reaches the 1.5% to 2.0% range, the PSB-90 screen cylin-
PSL PSB PSL PSB PSL PSB der generally requires less specific energy to screen pulp.
35 10 79 (-7) 119 8 The fractionation characteristics of the new contour
50 10 69 = (-20) 170 90 cylinder are illustrated in Table 1 for each furnish at
100 = (-5) 155 26 230 104
85 25 191 80 226 34
each consistency tested. The degree of fractionation was
measured as the difference in Canadian Standard free-
ness (CSf) between reject and feed samples.
TABLE 2: Pressure differential between feed and accept for Table 1 also lists the change in CSf between feed and
conventional contour (PSL) and PSB contour slotted screen reject samples for both the new contour cylinder and the
cylinder on newsprint, mixed waste, and corrugated container conventional contour-surface cylinder. In all cases, the
furnishes. use of the convex contour cylinder resulted in signifi-
cantly less fractionation of the long fiber into the reject
Pressure differential at plugging (kPa) stream than the conventional contour cylinder at equal
(Feed kPa-Accept kPa)
Feed pulp reject rated. The new contour cylinder can be gen-
consistency Corrugated erally classified as nonfractionating on these furnishes.
% fiber Newsprint Mixed waste container
Therefore, screens can be operated at lower reject rates
PSL PSB PSL PSB PSL PSB
0.8 1525214 138 138 145 145 in many applications.
las) 138 200 138 138 138 138
2.9 117 165 124 138 124 = 131
3.5 90 165 90 124 96 124

111
Contour Surface Cylinder Screening
 = Conventional-Contour-Surface
=@)
fe
= Slotted-Screen Cylinder (PSL)
=
£E Convex-Contour-Surface als

ra) Slotted-Screen Cylinder =

Oo (PSB-90) =
© >
fol 2
o
O fod)
aes c
oy oO
ay
O Conventional-Contour-Surface © Convex-Contour-Surface
O
xt Slotted-Screen Cylinder (PSL) G
oO
Slotted-Screen Cylinder (PSB-90)
Q
ep)

2 2
Feed consistency (%) Feed consistency (%)

Figure 4: Feed consistency vs. accept capacity for screen Figure 5: Feed consistency vs. specific energy for screen
cylinders with a conventional-contour surface cylinders with a conventional-contour surface
and convex-contour surface. Clean corrugated and convex-contour surface. Clean corrugated
clipping furnish, 0.25mm slots, and constant clipping furnish, 0.25mm slots, and constant
pressure drop. pressure drop.

The runability of a screen cylinder within a given The mill reported it no longer needed to operate limited
pressure screen is defined as its ability to absorb swings thickening equipment, since the new screen cylinder al-
in operating conditions, such as feed flow rates and feed lowed it to maintain production at higher consistencies
stock consistencies. No specific measurement for screen than were possible with conventional contour-screen
runability exists. However, a measurable indication ofa cylinders.
particular screen cylinder’s runability is the pressure At two other installations, mills reported better runa-
differential at which the screen blinds over. bility, improved capacity, and a reduction in fractiona-
The screen would preferably be operated at a pres- tion of long fiber into the reject stream. At one of these
sure differential of 40 to 80 kPa (6 to 12 psi) for hood installations, the reduced fractionation was very benefi-
efficiency. Table 2 illustrates the trend of the con- cial because the mill was forced to operate at higher re-
vex contour cylinder to resist blinding over at greater ject rates than desired prior to installation of the convex
pressure differentials between feed and accept flows contour cylinder.
than the conventional contour cylinder. This indicates This mill also suffered from very short wear life of
the new cylinders are more forgiving under irregular op- screen cylinders due to the high abrasives content of its
erating conditions, requiring less operator attention. furnish. The new screen lasted more than twice as long
as previously installed conventional contour slotted-
FIELD RESULTS. PSB-90 screen cylinders have been screen cylinders. =
evaluated in several different field installations. In
all cases, the PSB-90 screen cylinders have outper-
REFERENCES
formed conventional contour-screen cylinders. At var- 1.Christopher McCarthy, “Various Factors Affect Pressure
ious installations in the Midwest and on the West Coast, Screen Operation and Capacity,” Pulp & Paper 62, no.9 (1988):
the mills were able to reduce slot sizes from 0.45 mm to 233-237.
0.35 mm, thereby improving cleanliness without sacri- i) . Peter C. Boettcher, “Results From a New Design of Contoured
Screen Plate,”’ Proceedings, TAPP! Pulping Conference, Toron-
ficing capacity.
to, Ont., Oct. 1986.
Where four identical pressure screens were located .J.L. Winkler, internal marketing report, The Black Clawson Co.,
(ee)

in parallel at a mill in the South, a PSB-90 screen cylin- March 1989.

der was installed in one of these screens. The mill re- 4. T.H. Eck, M.J. Rawlings and P.A. Heller, “Slotted Pressure
Screening at Southeast Paper Manufacturing,”
ported that during swings in feed stock consistency, the Proceedings,
TAPPI Pulping Conference, Hollywood, Fla., Nov. 1985.
new screen cylinder was always the last of the four or . Metals Handbook, 8th ed., vol. 2, ‘Heat Treating, Cleaning, and
screens to blind over and go into automatic purge cycle, Finishing,” ASME Handbook Committee.
if it blinded over at all. [o>]. Bowser-Morner, Inc., Dayton, Ohio 45401, Laboratory Report
In another West Coast mill, where thickening equip- No. T052826, “Plating Thickness Evaluation,” May 1987.
N sD are and C.C. Landegger, U.S. Pat. #4,795,560 (Jan. 3,
ment limitations required higher pressure screen accept 1989).
consistencies, a convex contour cylinder was installed.

112
Pulping, Screening and Cleaning
 Screening and Cleaning Systems
Challenged by New Contaminants
Changes in wood handling techniques along with broad use of
elastomers have led to some extreme stock preparation problems

By R.A. KOFFINKE from these systems back for further refining without ac-
tually performing any removal.
Today, probably the most widely experienced prob-
Bes of the ever increasing contaminant loading lem may be characterized by the word “‘stickies.” These
in today’s furnishes, whether they are virgin fiber are contaminants of the synthetic type that become soft
or recycled fiber, the demands upon screening and and tacky at elevated temperatures. They are especially
cleaning equipment have increased tremendously. It has detrimental in the lightweight coated and printing and
been said that we live in a plastic world. That plastic is writing grades. Some of the more common examples are
finding its way into every facet of papermaking. To help as follows: hot melts, polystyrene foam, dense plastic
combat this influx of contraries, screening and cleaning chips (polystyrene, etc.), wet strength resins, latex, pres-
equipment is constantly being improved, systems are sure sensitive adhesives, waxes, asphalt, and vegetable
being subjected to more thorough analysis, and strate- and synthetic fibers.1
gies of contaminant removal are being reevaluated. To categorize these contaminants it is necessary to
Many years ago, virtually all screening was done look at such characteristics as their specific gravity,
through slotted plate screens of either the rotary or flat their shape, tackiness, etc., in order to determine what
type. At the time, it was felt that this was the best meth- methods will be effective in removing them. There is a
od for both deflocculation and removal of the types of tendency to place all stickies in the lightweight reject
contaminants present in those early years. To keep the category, which has been shown in several studies not to
screen plates clean, vibration was the accepted practice. be true. Analyses have shown that in some cases, as
However, since tonnage and flow rates were limited in much as 75% of the contaminant loading in a process
these machines, impetus was provided for the develop- was stickies with the specific gravity equal to or greater
ment of the pressure screen. Along with this develop- than one. There is the tendency for some lightweight,
ment, screening through holes became the normal pro- tacky materials to agglomerate with other heavier filler
cedure. Again, the nature of the contaminants present particles, which changes their specific gravity. These
was such that this type of screening was satisfactory. characteristics must be taken into account when deter-
In today’s environment this is not the case. A full cir- mining the removal equipment to be used in a process.
cle seems to have been achieved, and more and more The problems generated by these contaminants are
applications are requiring slotted plate screens and high. varied. Depending on the amounts present they can fill
efficiency cleaners to remove the various bits and pieces machine clothing causing runability problems, gener-
of plastics, adhesives, coatings, etc., that are cropping up ate picks in lightweight coating applications, build up on
everywhere. dryer cans and doctors, cause breaks in rewinders, and
generate appearance problems due to specs, etc., in the
CONTAMINANTS. In a purely virgin furnish, the final sheet. Any one of these machine-related problems
types of contaminants present are fairly well defined. could be sufficient reason for reexamining the screening
They are shives, bark specs, strings, fiber bundles, etc. and cleaning portion of the process. This includes not
As mentioned, these appear to be satisfactorily removed only the machine approach systems but also back
with perforated screening and conventional cleaning. In through the stock preparation area including pulping.
fact, it was quite a common practice to send the rejects
REMOVAL TECHNIQUES. One of the fields where con-
Mr. Koffinke is vice president, Thermo Electron Web Systems,
siderable development work has been done in recent
Auburn, Mass. This article is based on a presentation to years is centrifugal cleaning. The conventional heavy-
TAPPI’s engineering conference, New Orleans, La., Sept. 14- weight or forward-type cleaner has been augmented by
17, 1986. the lightweight removal device or reverse cleaner. These

Screening and Cleaning Contaminants 113

 FIGURE 1: The Albia combination cleaner. with holes being predominant, there are now literally
thousands of slotted screen plate applications. This
trend started off with slots in the 0.20-in. range and up,
but slots have continually been reduced so that now
0.008-in. and 0.01-in. slots are very common, especially
in the lightweight coated as well as other printing and
writing grades. The 0.006-in. slots have been run, and
testing is now proceeding on slots as small as 0.004 in.
This trend has been brought about because of the size
and shape of the contaminants that appear to be most
bothersome that is, the small cubicle stickies that can
easily pass through a hole. Holes continue to be used for
removing shives and long stringy types of contraries.
There are some caveats to be observed when using
slots. First, it must be realized that there is considerably
less open area in a slotted basket. The main reason for
this is that slot length is limited by strength consider-
ations. The number of unslotted bands required for this
therefore reduces the area to at least half of a normal
perforated plate. The pitch of the slots is also important
relative to both the strength and the possibility of sta-
pling of the fibers across the slots.
The result of this is that a new look must be taken at
the capacity of a given screen plate basket. In most cases,
the apparent difficulty of running a slotted screen in a
stable condition has been due to attempting to pass too
high a flow rate through the basket. An analysis of the
actual flow velocity through the slot becomes valuable
in determining capacity limits as well as efficiencies.
Flow velocities in the range of 1 to 2 meters/sec are
common in today’s equipment, with the final selection
of velocity based on fiber length, types of contaminants,
and experience in handling similar furnishes.
The question of efficiency, especially in the high
quality lightweight coated grades, becomes paramount.
units still use centrifugal force separation techniques In a typical pressure screen, the two most important pa-
but tap the lightweight portion of the flow within a rameters affecting efficiency are the rotor speed and the
cleaner. Further developments have brought about the flow velocity through the slots. In general, the efficiency
through-flow cleaner, which essentially accomplishes is inversely proportional to the flow velocity through
the same purpose as a reverse cleaner but with reduced the slot and directly proportional to the rotor speed.
reject rates, and consequently smaller secondary and This leads to a rather simple statement. When looking
tertiary systems can be utilized. for maximum efficiency, keep the flow rate through the
Because of the wide variance in contaminant specific pressure screen as low as possible. While the screen
gravities, the combination cleaner can be a viable eco- may operate at higher flow rates without plugging, effi-
nomic solution to the problem. This equipment taps ciency is definitely being affected adversely.
both the central core of the cleaner for the lightweight One of the far reaching developments in recent years
fraction as well as the outer portion of the mass flow to that increases both the capacity and efficiency of screen-
recover the heavyweights. This results in a minimum ing is the profiled screen plate. Specially contoured sur-
number of cleaners performing two functions as well as faces are cut into the screen plate, which greatly influ-
a corresponding decrease in pumping power, piping, etc. ence the actual screening zone at the slot or perforation.
While there is a slight reduction in the removal of This results in increased capacities of as much as 50%,
lightweights with this type of cleaner, the overall stick- while still keeping efficiencies within satisfactory toler-
ies removal efficiency is enhanced because it covers the ances. Because of the ability of the profiled plate to han-
broad spectrum of specific gravity. dle increased consistencies, for any given slot size and
Changes have also been made in the screening field, tonnage, the flow velocity through the slot can be de-
particularly with regard to the use of slots for stickies re- creased considerably. As mentioned above, this results
moval. After so many years of perforated screen plates in increased efficiencies. In general, the profiled screen

114 Pulping, Screening and Cleaning

plate coupled with the higher speed rotors found in to- Another location for this equipment is in the paper
day’s pressure screens have opened up a wide range of machine approach system. As mentioned, this provides
screening possibilities which were previously felt to be a lower consistency environment but does mean a high-
unobtainable. er tonnage application since the recycle through the
wire or mold cloth must be processed through any
APPLICATION. To achieve the optimum operating screens or cleaners used. Since this location is the final
conditions for a pressure screen, certain parameters barrier before making the sheet, and since the contami-
should be established and adhered to. One of these is nants are in their smallest possible state at this location,
the capacity as mentioned above. The optimum capacity more and more applications have turned to slots. This
can be determined by both testing and experience. If seems to have been true more in Europe and the Far
tests are run, procedures for determining contaminant East than here in North America. This is probably true
levels can be very complex, especially when trying to because of the large size of fourdrinier paper machines
analyze the small particles that can affect high quality here and the corresponding increase in capital expense
printing and writing grades. to install slots. The board industry has taken the lead in
A further consideration is the reject rate. As men- this area with a considerable number of cylinder molds
tioned earlier, a simple retreatment of rejects was satis- equipped with slots of 0.01-in. width.
factory in the past, but today these rejects must be re- As a further aid in determining system makeup and
moved from the system. The effect of the primary screen equipment location, computers have become more com-
reject rate therefore becomes extremely important in mon. There are several analysis programs available that
determining the overall system efficiency. The general are being used not only to balance systems but to deter-
behavior of most pressure screens indicates that reject mine efficiency effects due to equipment placement.
rates up to 20% by weight are satisfactory in achieving Further study is being done on the commonly accepted
optimum efficiencies. Beyond that, the incremental in- full recycle system that may result in different flow
crease in efficiency becomes rather small when com- routings, which can then enhance the overall system
pared with economic considerations. Higher reject rates performance.
have been utilized, but more for stability of operation
than anything else. SUMMARY. In general, improvements in operating
Another facet of individual screen operation that is efficiencies of screening and cleaning equipment due to
quite often overlooked is control. In order to keep a lightweight removal with cleaners and the ability to run
pressure screen within its optimum operating range, it is finer and finer slots have opened up the possibilities of
necessary to know the operating conditions. This in- using secondary fiber to a greater extent, even in the
volves flow rates, pressures, and consistencies. Instru- lightweight high quality printing grades. Enhanced
mentation is available for these measurements and equipment capabilities coupled with effective system
should be used if a high-quality output system is de- analysis and control can result in the high contaminant
sired. Too often, pressure screens are installed, operat- removal efficiency necessary for these grades.: m
ing conditions ignored, and the resulting mediocre per-
formance lived with.
A further important consideration in high-quality 1. “Removal of Sticky Contaminant from Recycled Fiber,” Insti-
output from a process is the placement of the cleaning tute of Paper Chemistry Study, 1979.
and screening systems. In general, two locations in the
typical system should be analyzed. First is that area be-
tween the pulper and the thickener in the stock prepara-
tion portion of the circuit. This is the most beneficial lo-
cation from the contaminant removal aspect since it
screens out the contraries prior to refining. Refining is
destructive to the general range of contaminants, reduc-
ing them to sizes that make their removal much more
difficult in later stages. This should be of prime consid-
eration in selecting cleaning and screening equipment
location.
The major drawback to this particular location is a
need for thickening equipment since most high-efficien-
cy screening and cleaning is done at consistencies of 2%
and lower. Since refining requires upwards of 3.5%, this
dictates water removal somewhere in the process. How-
ever, development is continuing in the higher consisten-
cy screening and cleaning areas, and it looks promising.

Screening and Cleaning Contaminants 115

 Chemically Induced Drainage Boosts
Recycled Board Mill Output by 50%
Other benefits include reduced sewer losses, lower furnish costs,
fewer number of blows in dryer section, and improved sheet printability

istics of the machine are given in Table 1).

By MADELYNN T. WILHARM
LABORATORY EVALUATIONS. A common problem
[2c production in secondary-fiber board mills encountered when trying to evaluate stock drainage is to
has been an elusive goal for many years. The in- find an accurate, reproducible test that is relatively easy
creased use of newsprint and cther short fibers in these to perform. Most tests used today focus on free drainage,
furnishes has made this objective even more difficult to or water removal, on the table of a paper machine. Past
achieve. Although the use of chemicals to increase experience has shown that a dryer sheet at the couch
speed has traditionally been unsuccessful due to over- does not necessarily result in a dryer sheet at the reel.
flocculation of the sheets, new polymers specifically en- The tests used in laboratory evaluations for the board
gineered for improved drainage have shown excellent mill focused on free drainage (Figure 1). Attempts were
activity in field testing and encouraging results in field made to account for other factors that influence water
trials. removal, such as turbulence, stock temperature, and
mat formation. Because the mill was not using any
MILL SURVEY. Normally, the first step in solving a chemical programs on the machine, headbox stock
recycled board mill’s production-related problems is could be used in the screening. Temperature was main-
to conduct a mill survey. When conducted by Nalco tained by placing the stock in a metal bucket on a hot
Chemical, for example, this generally consists of a tour plate and slowly agitating it. Because of the high-soluble
of the mill to find out what additives are used, their dos-
ages, and application points. Chemical and physical
TABLE 1: One of the first steps in a mill survey is the machine
characteristics are noted. Finally, but most importantly, chemical and furnish analysis, such as these conditions
interviews are done with various crew members to get established for the studied secondary board mill.
their perspectives on the problem and to learn how they
compensate to keep the machine running. This informa- Mill conditions
tion, in conjunction with laboratory testing, is used to
formulate a recommendation. Furnish:
A Nalco survey at one secondary-fiber board mill re- Bottom liner — saturated kraft, newsprint
vealed several areas that could be improved. For ex- Filler — OCC, chip, newsprint
ample, fines and fillers were not being retained well and Top liner — envelope clippings
were depositing on the rolls and presses. This resulted
pH: 6.5
in wet end breaks and sheet defects. The sheet defects Stock temperature: 115°F
had an adverse effect on the printability of the board. In Fines content: 65 to 75%
addition, sheet formation was inadequate, causing un- Headbox
even drying in the layers and resulting in blows in the Soluble chrge in headbox: 0.8 neg.
dryer. As a result, machine speed had to be slowed sub-
Water conditions
stantially (the chemical analysis and furnish character-
Total hardness: 150 ppm
pH: 6.5
Ms. Wilharm is product manager, Nalco Chemical Co., Cl: trace
Naperville, Il]. This article is based on a presentation given at Fe,O.: 7 ppm
the 1990 TAPPI Papermakers Conference, Atlanta, Ga.

116 Pulping, Screening and Cleaning

iron content and the pH of the system, anionic polymers molecular weight and are cationic and in solution form.
were eliminated from testing. Soluble iron severely im- Because of their high charge density and low molecular
pacts anionic performance (Figure 2). When the pH is weight, these types of polymers collapse the anionic
raised above 8, iron is oxidized and no longer presents a cloud that surrounds colloidal particles. As the cloud
problem. It was not viable to raise the pH in this system. shrinks, the molecules can move closer together. This
Table 2 lists the cationic polymers that were evalu- creates conditions that allow flocculation to occur.
ated, including their charge and molecular weight. Flocculants can be defined as materials that have
Both coagulants and flocculants were included in the
evaluation.
Coagulants are defined as materials that have low
Procedure for drainage tester
TABLE 2: Several cationic polymers were evaluated, both The following laboratory test can be used to simulate
coagulants and flocculants, for chemical-induced drainage tests drainage, retention, and fines dewatering of a paper
and secondary board mill. machine stock:
PRETEST PROCEDURES
Coagulants Molecular weight e Prepare and dilute polymer solutions.
e Calculate polymer dosages on a |b/ton basis for
A 50,000 comparison.
100,000 e Determine stock consistency and adjust pH.
150,000 e Assemble drainage testing apparatus in stand.
200,000 METHOD
3,000,000
e Take 500-ml sample of headbox stock (headbox
7,000,000
consistency should be adjusted to give at least a 100-ml
10,000,000
drainage volume in 5 sec)
e Mix stock for 10 sec (i.e., mix in a Britt Jar at the
FIGURE 1: Testing speed equivalent to machine shear) , add polymer
apparatus used for treatment, and continue to mix for an additional 10 to 20
secondary board mill Sec.
was designed to focus e Pour treated sample into reservoir.
on free drainage, with e Note appearance of flock formed (flock formation
attempts to account for may indicate activity of polymer treatment—if large
other factors that flock is formed, dosage may be too high) .
influence water
e Remove plug and collect liquid for 5 sec.
removal, such as
e Measure volume (D) , and record.
turbulence, stock
temperature, and mat e Take 50 ml of above filtrate and pour through
formation. Buchner funnel-filter apparatus at constant rate of
vacuum (vacuum should be set to constant pressure
throughout the test) .
e Record time required to drain (S).
e Use additional 10 to 25 ml of filtrate to measure
turbidity of solution (T).
CALCULATIONS
D = drainage rate (ml/5 sec)
S = fines dewatering rate (sec/50 ml)

TBlank = TSample
TBiank X 100 == %
& first
fi pass
retention
improvement

COMMENTS. To approximate mill conditions, it may

be necessary to vary the following:
e Mixing speed (shear)
e Polymer contact time/ dosage
e Stock consistency.
For laboratory evaluations, 22-psi vacuum, 800- to
1,000-rpm mixing, and 1 to 3 lb/ton latex polymer
dosages were typically used.
INTERPRETATION. Look for improvements in both
retention and/or drainage—unlike the Britt Jar, this test
will give information on the latter. The suction time
results with various polymers should be compared with
the blank. An increase in suction time over the blank
indicates that the fines might be difficult to dewater and
that sheet wetness at the couch and higher steam usage
could result.
high molecular weight, are in emulsion form, and can be FIGURE 2: Anionic flocculant solution performance is affected
either cationic or anionic. As discussed, only cationic significantly by makeup water-soluble iron levels.
products were tested. All the materials evaluated were
in liquid form, although flocculants are available as both
liquid and dry.
Each product was evaluated according to the protocol
in the sidebox item on page 216. The two coagulants and
two flocculants that gave the best performance were
then tested in various combinations. The final selection,
coagulant B and flocculant G, were then tested under
various conditions. Different pHs, temperatures, soluble
charge levels, and higher amounts of recycled fibers in
Replacement
ratio
the furnish were all examined. This was done to under-
stand how the program would react if these conditions
would be encountered during a machine trial.
4 6 8 10 12 14
TRIALS RESULTS. Because the fines content of the Ferrous ion concentration, ppm
furnish was high, caution had to be exercised when
adding chemicals to the paper machine. If too many
fines were retained too quickly, the sheet would get too
wet, causing wet end breaks and blows in the dryers. Co- After the first 24 hours of flocculant addition, tray
agulant B was added at low dosages at the inlet side of solids dropped dramatically and then continued to
the stuffbox pump. Addition at this point provided good fall until the system reached equilibrium. The soluble
mixing of the chemical in the stock. Fines content in the charge moved closer to neutral as the fines content de-
headbox, tray solids, headbox total, and soluble charge creased. Sheet defects and wet end breaks dropped. As a
were monitored. Dosage was increased slowly to 5 result, production increased by 50 tpd. .
Ib/ton. After the machine stabilized over a period of After the program ran for several months, other bene-
five days, flocculant G was added to the vat in each fits became evident, such as reduced sewer loss and
cylinder. lower furnish costs because more newspaper could be
The flocculant was prepared using a Nalco 500 Series used. Because the outside plies of the sheet could be
automatic polymer feeder attached to a day tank to pro- drained faster than inside plies, water in the filler layers
vide continuous product supply. A complete makeup could escape in the dryers. The number of blows in the
system is shown in Figure 3. A distribution system was dryers was reduced.
used to feed chemical to each cylinder. Feed rates could In summary, the chemical program returned $4 to the
be adjusted for each cylinder as required. As with co- mill for each $1 spent. It also allowed the mill to take ad-
agulant B, dosage was raised slowly until 4 lb/ton was vantage of less expensive furnish components and im-
reached. prove printability of the sheet. E

FIGURE 3: A typical emulsion polymer batch solution makeup system has a mix tank that is followed by an aging tank as well as an
inline static mixer.

Dilution
Calibration water Mechanical Calibration
cylinder mixer cylinder Check Dilution
Emulsion water
flocculant valves
~

Drum or
bulk tank

3-in. line Metering Transfer

Metering tree
pump pump
(or gravity) pump static mixer
500 Series feeder -- --
3-in. drain mix tank 3-in. drain
FEEDPACK P aging tank

118 Pulping, Screening and Cleaning

 Section 6 becp—see
ae BA

T e c h n o l o g y
Deinking
Most recycling-related research and development efforts of the past decade have been fo-
cused on the deinking process. Deinking is the heart of a modern recycling operation and, un-
derstandably, is one of the mill’s most sensitive and protected operations.
As ink trends have changed, washing techniques for deinking common in most North Ameri-
can recycling mills only a few years ago, are now being augmented or completely replaced by
flotation deinking methods used principally in European mills. Radically new deinking ap-
proaches are also being tried, along with newly developed chemicals and chemical formula-
tions, with mixed results.
The 10 articles in this section report on mill experiences with various deinking systems. A
review of basic deinking chemistry is complemented by several mill “guides” to proper deink-
ing and bleaching. Environmental concerns related to the deinking process are also addressed.
4‘|
a
 Mills Considering New Deinking Line
Must Answer Environmental Questions
Physical and chemical properties of various wastepaper grades
have to be analyzed before mills can permit and handle process wastes

By ROBERT C. CARROLL and THOMAS P. GAJDA large quantities of sludge. The generation of biochemi-
cal oxygen demand (BOD;) varies significantly depending
on wastepaper grade.
D einking wastepaper for tissue and newsprint manu- To emphasize the grade-specific nature of deinking
facture continues to grow rapidly, and newfound in- mill design, consider some of the wastepaper grades that
terest in using deinked pulp in fine paper and paper- are now recycled or deinked: waxed cups, poly-coated
board is developing. While these developments are pri- diaper stock, foil coated, wet-strength, computer print-
marily fueled by legislative pressures and operating ad- out, soft whites, white envelope cuttings, old newspa-
vantages, deinking is attractive since it also provides pers, magazine, book, and ledger.”
global environmental benefits, such as extending land-
fill life and preserving forest resources’ (see sidebox, SOLID WASTE CHARACTERIZATION AND HANDLING.
“Environmental benefits’’). Four varieties of solid waste are generated by deinking
To derive the benefits of deinking, however, ques- systems:
tions must be answered and problems must be solved at e Miscellaneous wastes
the mill level. As more deinking plants are planned and e Rejected wastepaper
environmental regulations are tightened, environmental e Screen tailings
specialists are increasingly called on to answer ques- e Sludge.
tions about permitting and waste handling strategies: To obtain a disposal permit for these solid wastes,
e How are the characteristics of deinking sludge dif- each waste stream must be characterized (Figure 1).
ferent from virgin pulp sludge, and how can a mill This can be done by obtaining wastepaper samples and
dispose of sludge safely? running laboratory trials. In some instances, data from
eHow do effluent loadings and permit allowances similar installations or from wastepaper suppliers can
change when deinked pulp production replaces vir- be used. However, the most reliable data are mill-gener-
gin pulp production? ated. The methods a mill uses to handle the wastes must
e What sources must be considered in air permitting? also be determined before applying for a permit. Charac-
terizing and handling diverse wastes, wastepaper re-
WASTEPAPER GRADES—A PRIMARY ELEMENT. One jects, and screen tailings are relatively simple, whereas
major element in the environmental design and permit- characterizing and handling sludge can be complicated.
ting of a deinking mill is to know which grades of waste- Miscellaneous solid wastes. Solid wastes generated in
paper will be used. Each wastepaper grade has unique the wastepaper receiving and handling areas can in-
physical and chemical properties and contaminants that clude baling wire, pallets, and boxes. Baling wire can be
make permitting and mill design grade-specific. chopped or baled and sold for scrap. Wastepaper shipped
For example, a mill planning to use file stock will on pallets can pose a pallet storage and disposal prob-
have to consider that it may contain polychlorinated bi- lem. Pallets can be shredded and burned or can be given
phenyls (pcBs). A mill planning to use heavily coated or sold to a pallet reclamation business. Boxes used to
grades will need the capability to handle and dispose of ship wastepaper can be pulped if the mill makes un-
bleached products, or the boxes can be sold or land-
Mr. Carroll is senior staff engineer, environmental, and Mr. filled. The scope of a deinking mill project must address
Gajda is a staff specialist-technical writer, Simons-Eastern the various options for handling these wastes and in-
Consultants Inc., Decatur, Ga. clude money for handling equipment.

Environmental Questions on Deinking 121

 Rejected wastepaper. In most mills, wastepaper is in- planning to burn and landfill its sludge, the boiler ash
spected and graded as it is received, and some of the pa- must be characterized to determine if it is hazardous.
per is rejected. Rejected wastepaper consists of unusable The main concern is'the leachability of the heavy met-
paper or contaminated paper. The rejected paper can be als in the ash. There are limits on leachable forms of
sold if sufficient quantities and markets are available. It metals, such as mercury, arsenic, and chromium. Ash is
can also be landfilled, but if the paper is rejected due to considered hazardous if it fails the Toxicity Characteris-
contamination, the landfill must have a permit to re- tic Leaching Procedure (TCLP),* a test that simulates
ceive the contaminants as well as the paper. heavy metals leaching in a landfill (see sidebox, “Deter-
Food waste is a problem because it is putrescible (ca- mining if a waste is hazardous”). It would be rare for a
pable of rapidly decomposing), and many industrial mill’s ash to fail this test, but the permitting agency will
landfills do not have permits for putrescible wastes. usually require a mill to demonstrate that the ash is not
Putrescible waste landfills are expensive to operate and hazardous. Some states require annual certification that
must be covered daily with soil. Therefore, bales con- the ash is not hazardous.
taminated with food may need to be disposed off-site in To determine if the ash from a proposed mill will be
municipal landfills that are permitted for putrescible hazardous, a mill may use data from an existing similar
wastes. Such contaminants could be found in unsorted mill. If either the proposed process or wastepaper supply
office waste or blends of postconsumer wastepaper. is unique, the mill’s environmental specialists can gath-
Screen tailings. Depending on the wastepaper grade, er sludge during developmental deinking trials or pro-
screen tailings (rejects) can consist of fiber and water, duce sludge in the laboratory from representative sam-
plastic, glue, staples, rubber bands, paper clips, and oth- ples of the wastepaper. The sludge should be analyzed
er debris. The tailings will need to be drained or dewa- for heavy metals. By assuming that all the metals in the
tered for transportation to a landfill or burning. Tailings sludge will end up in the ash and be leachable, this test
are most often landfilled because they are usually non- becomes a conservative indicator of whether a mill’s ash
hazardous and nonputrescible and are composed of will be hazardous.
small amounts of fiber. A possible option to landfilling is If testing demonstrates the ash is nonhazardous, it
to burn the tailings in a boiler to recover heat and to can be disposed in an industrial or municipal landfill. It
conserve landfill volume. can also be employed for beneficial uses, such as an ad-
ditive in cement, concrete, and road-building materials.
CHARACTERISTICS, HANDLING OF SLUDGE. Deinking If the TCLP indicates the ash is hazardous, then a mill
sludge is the most expensive of the solid wastes to han- would have to dispose of it, at considerable cost, in a
dle because it is generated in large quantities. Sludge specially permitted hazardous waste landfill.
from magazine deinking usually contains fiber, ink, and Landfilling sludge. Landfilling dewatered sludge is
large amounts of clay and titanium dioxide (TiO,). often the least expensive disposal method in terms of
Sludge from newspaper deinking usually consists of fi- capital costs, although large land areas are required. A
ber and ink and is lower in ash since newsprint grades 250-tpd deinking mill operating at 75% yield generates
contain little fillers and clay. The characteristics and the about 70 tpd of sludge. That sludge, when dewatered to
volume of sludge will change from day to day depending 40% solids, consumes about 175 yd? of landfill/day, or
on the grades of wastepaper a mill uses. Deinking about 2 acres (20 ft deep) of land/year.
sludges are generally nonhazardous,? although each op- Most states now require sludge landfills to have lin-
eration must verify this. ers, leachate collection systems, and groundwater moni-
Sludge handling and disposal can be managed in four toring systems. Obtaining a permit can take six months
ways:
Burning sludge. This is an FIGURE 1: To obtain a disposal permit, each waste stream must be analyzed, which also enables a
appealing method of dispos- mill to determine handling methods.
al, allowing a mill to recover
heat and reduce landfill vol- Sources of solid waste from deinking
ume. The heat recovered by Wastepaper |
burning sludge at 40% to 50% receiving To bleaching
solids ranges from 0 to 3,000
Btu/lb, depending on its in- A es “OOS NEE SSCS
organic content. The landfill Inspection Cleaning
and Pulping and Flotation
volume required for ash dis- grading screening
posal is about 20% to 30% of
that required for sludge. Still, Rejects Trash Tailings Rejects Sludge
screen
sludge burning presents two
rejects
environmental problems: air
toxics and ash disposal. Pallets Wire Plastic Fines
Ash disposal. If a mill is Contaminated Plastic Paper clips Coatings
bales Wood Rubber bands Fillers
Wet-strength Staples Ink
paper Glue Latex
Metal Dirt
Rags Latex
122
to two years or more, depending on the level of public
interest and the workload of the permitting agency.
Beneficial reuse. Many researchers have strived to Environmental benefits
find uses for waste sludge or ways to recover useful ma-
Deinking and use of secondary fiber can have numerous
terials from it, but the economics have not been promis-
environmental and operating benefits compared with
ing.» Some waste paperboard mills, however, do reuse aspects of other various virgin pulping methods:
sludge as part of their furnish,* and a deinking mill in e Forest resources are preserved.
Wisconsin announced an interesting use for sludge: e Municipal landfill life is extended. Extending landfill
dried sludge pellets will be used as a medium for the life is critical in the northeastern U.S. and some
slow release of pesticides in agricultural applications. other urban areas.
The reuse of boiler ash in cement and concrete man- e Energy use decreases, reducing operating costs
ufacturing and as a road-building material is an estab- and boiler-generated air emissions.
lished practice. Ash used for manufacturing cement and e Odor emissions decrease. Deinking processes give
off less odor than most chemical pulping
concrete requires a low concentration of unburned car- processes.
bon, and the cost of transporting the ash to the cement e Chemical use decreases in some cases. Significant
manufacturing location must not be prohibitive. Ash is chemical savings are possible when deinked pulp is
also used as a fertilizer, and this market is growing. substituted for kraft pulp.
Landfarming. Some sludge is currently applied to e Effluent BOD; loading decreases in some cases.
farmlands as a soil supplement (hence the name “land- e Effluent flows are usually lower.
farming”) and to mill-owned land for biodegradation e Mills can sell to customers who prefer or need
(called “land application”). There are few successful ex- recycled paper.
amples of land application for three reasons: 1) large
land areas are required, 2) fine clays and fillers can lead
to poor drainage, and 3) future liability due to the poten- exhibiting yields on the higher side.
tial accumulation of PCBs or heavy metals is a concern. Effluent toxicity. Properly treated deinking effluents
However, some facilities successfully landfarm, particu- typically will not exhibit toxicity problems, although
larly where sandy soils are amended by the sludge. specific toxic compounds may become a problem as reg-
ulations tighten. For example, chloroform has been
CHARACTERISTICS OF DEINKING EFFLUENT. Effluent found in the effluent-of mills using sodium hypochlorite
wastewater from deinking mills differs from virgin pulp bleaching. Heavy metals from inks can be present in ef-
mill effluent in several ways. Deinking effluent contains fluent, but concentrations should decrease as ink manu-
fewer color bodies and higher concentrations of heavy facturers use more organic pigments.
metals and TSS and may contain PCBs. Dioxin and cyanide are other specific compounds
Biochemical oxygen demand. Five-day biochemical that, at some point in time, may become a concern.
oxygen demand (BOD;) loading from deinked pulp may While advanced bleaching technology has greatly re-
be higher or lower than that from virgin pulp depending duced dioxin formation in bleached paper, dioxins con-
on the wastepaper grade used. One comparison indi- tinue to be present in bleached wastepaper. A paper pre-
cates that by replacing groundwood with deinked news- sented by C. Rappe et al. at the 1989 Dioxin Conference
papers for newsprint manufacture, BOD, loading would reported detectable amounts of dioxins and furans in ef-
drop from 43.7 lb/ton to 31.7 lb/ton.”? Conversely, BOD, fluent and sludge from recycled fiber mills.@ Currently,
loadings from a deinked tissue mill would be higher with dioxins at the forefront of environmental debates,
than its virgin pulp counterpart, due largely to high lev- research in this area will no doubt continue.
els of starch and fines in the wastepaper. Cyanide levels in deinking sludge are usually below
Total suspended solids. The Tss from a deinking mill 100 ppb, yet problems with effluent toxicity have been
consist of fines, fillers, coatings, inks, and trace amounts reported. Toxicity due to the synergism of different
of glues and plastics. The fillers are mostly clay, titani- compounds is always a potential threat and can be diffi-
um dioxide, and calcium carbonate. The Tss from maga- cult to troubleshoot.
zine deinking are about half organic and half inorganic. PCBs were a major component of carbonless copy ink
The organics include fiber fines, and the inorganics pri- until the early 1970s.° PCBs are present in some postcon-
marily include aluminum, silicon, calcium, and titani- sumer wastepaper, such as office and hospital files (file
um. The TSS normally settle well, and primary clarifica- stock grades). PCBs are no longer used in inks, so eventu-
tion can be accomplished without coagulation aids, such ally all PcB-contaminated wastepaper will be consumed
as alum and polymer. or landfilled. Nevertheless, PCBs are present in the
Deinking mill Tss loadings are almost always higher wastepaper, treated effluent (low ppb), and sludge (low
than virgin pulp mill loadings because of the low yields ppm) of mills using file stock grades.
characteristic of deinking operations. Yields from deink- PcBs have an affinity for suspended solids, hence
ing mills range from 60% to 85%, with coated grades ex- most PCBs will be removed during primary clarification.
hibiting yields on the lower side and newsprint grades A removal efficiency of more than 90% has been report-

Environmental Questions on Deinking 123

 TABLE 1: New source performance standards from Federal If that mill converts half its production to deinking
Regulation 40CFR 430 represent actual permit limits that could grades, the new BOD; limit would be 250 tpd x 5.0 lb/ton
be expected if there are no special water-quality restrictions. + 250 tpd x 6.4 lb/ton, or a total-of 2,850 lb/day. A 14%
increase in BOD, would be allowed.
BOD; TSS The calculations are based on new source perfor-
30-day average 30-day average
Grade (Ib/ton) (Ib/ton)
mance standards from Federal Regulation 40CFR 430
(Table 1). These new source performance standards rep-
Unbleached kraft (linerboard) 3.6 6.0 resent actual permit limits that could be expected if
Unbleached kraft (bag) 5.4 9.6 there are no special water quality restrictions.
Bleached kraft 9.2 15.2
(board, course, tissue) AIR QUALITY PERMITTING. Air quality permitting
can involve toxics, criteria air pollutants, fugitive dust,
Groundwood (TMP) 5.0 9.2 and odor. Criteria air pollutants include particulates,
Groundwood 5.0 7.6 volatile organic compounds (vocs), sulfur dioxide, and
(course, molded, newsprint)
Groundwood (fine paper) 3.8 6.0 nitrogen oxides.
Except for a relatively few federally regulated air pol-
Deinked (fine paper) 6.2 9.2 lutants, hazardous and toxic air emissions are regulated
Deinked (tissue) by the states. State-regulated toxic emissions include
Deinked (newsprint)
metal oxides from boilers, organics from process vents,
Paperboard from wastepaper and bleach plant emissions. Currently, there is a particu-
lar emphasis on bleach plant emissions of chlorine, chlo-
rine dioxide, and chloroform.?? While requirements in
each state vary, limits are based on workplace threshold
ed.3 Sludge containing small amounts of PCBs is current- limit values (TLVs) established by the Occupational Safe-
ly landfilled, although it could be burned if furnace con- ty & Health Admn. (OSHA) or the American Conference
ditions are adequate to assure PCB destruction. If a mill’s of Government Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH).
removal of suspended solids from the treated effluent is voCs contribute to ozone formation. Some sources of
efficient, minimal amounts of PCBs will be discharged. VOCs are paper machine wire cleaning solvents, deink-
Concentrations of PCBs in treated effluent can trigger a ing solvents, and boiler fluegases. In some cases, math-
periodic monitoring requirement and possibly an efflu- ematical modeling is necessary to predict ground level
ent limit. If the concentration in treated effluent is unac- concentrations of air pollutants, such as VOCs or air tox-
ceptable, a mill must consider tertiary treatment, such
as chemically assisted clarification and filtration.
Determining if a waste is hazardous
TREATING DEINKING EFFLUENT. Deinking mill ef-
fluents can usually be treated by conventional biological There are two ways to determine if a waste is hazardous:
systems, such as aerated stabilization basins or activated e It can be compared with an EPA list that identifies
sludge. The effluent BOD, concentration will affect the hazardous wastes and processes.
choice of treatment options. The optimum BOD, concen- e It can be tested to determine if it exhibits any of the
tration range is 150 to 350 mg/] for activated sludge, 100 four hazardous characteristics.
Deinking wastes are not ‘‘listed’’ wastes. The
to 500 mg/1 for aerated stabilization basins, and 1,000 to
“hazardous characteristics’ are used to determine if
30,000 mg/l! for anaerobic treatment. The low sulfur
unlisted wastes, such as deinking sludge or boiler ash,
content of deinking effluent makes anaerobic treatment are hazardous. The four hazardous characteristics are
a possibility. toxicity, ignitability, reactivity, and corrosivity.
One significant factor influencing the design of treat- EPA has recently changed the test that determines if
ment facilities is the amount of BOD, removed in prima- a waste is toxic. The new test, published on Mar. 29,
ry clarification. For virgin pulp effluents, 10% to 30% 1990, is called the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching
BOD; removal is normal, whereas 50% is common for Procedure (TCLP). It replaces the Extraction
deinked pulp effluent. Also, larger than normal sludge Procedure (EP), which had been used since 1980. The
handling equipment must be specified. TCLP is designed to simulate the leaching of metals and
pesticides that might occur in a landfill and is described
in the Code of Federal Regulations, 40 CFR 261,
PERMIT ALLOWANCES. Assuming that the receiving
Appendix II.
stream is not water-quality limited, permit allowances In the TCLP, a solid waste sample and an acetic
will change, and a mill will need to modify its effluent extraction fluid are placed in an extraction vessel and
permit when a deinking operation is added. For ex- agitated for 18 hours. The extract is analyzed for 31
ample, a mill producing 500 tpd of newsprint from ther- organic chemicals (including pesticides) and eight
momechanical pulp (TMP) would have a 30-day BOD, metals. The EP required analysis of six pesticides and
limit of 500 tpd x 5.0 lb/ton, or 2,500 lb/day. eight metals.
Although the TCLP is easier to run than the EP,
laboratory costs will be higher because the analysis
includes additional compounds. The cost to analyze a
single waste sample will be about $1, 100.
124
ics. Many complex factors exist, beyond the scope of this ducing the exposed “working face” in the landfill. More
article, to determine whether modeling is necessary and expensive control techniques include regulating pH and
which models to use. using oxidants, such as permanganate or hypochlorite,
Fugitive dust. Particulate emissions from open, non- to discourage reduced sulfur formation. It is easier to an-
point sources, such as storage piles and roads, are ticipate these problems in the design of the plant than it
termed fugitive dust. Fugitive dust will not increase as a is to solve them after the facility has been constructed. m
direct result of the deinking process but may increase
from associated activities, such as construction, road REFERENCES
use, and coal storage. Fugitive emissions can be con- 1.L.A. Broeren, “New Technology, Economic Benefits Give
Boost to Secondary Fiber Use,” Pulp & Paper 11 (1989): p. 69.
trolled by paving, vegetation, and enclosing conveyors 2. Circular PS-88, “Paper Stock Standards and Practices,” Paper
and storage piles. Off-site, over-the-road transport of fly Stock Institute of America, January 1988.
ash or screen tailings, which can blow out of trucks, will 3. NCASI Technical Bulletin No. 587, “Response of Selected
require covering truck trailers. Pulp and Paper Industry Solid Wastes to the RCRA Toxicity
Deinking processes produce less odor than chemical Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP),” May 1990.
4. Code of Federal Regulations, 40 CFR 261, Appendix II, Mar.
pulping, but potential problem areas exist. There is a 29, 1990.
sufficient quantity of sulfur in wastepaper to produce 5.H. Edde, Environmental Controls for Pulp and Paper Mills,
reduced sulfur compounds, which can produce offen- Noyes Publications, 1984.
sive odors. Odors can be minimized by eliminating areas 6. A.M. Springer, Industria] Environmental Control-Pulp and Pa-
per Industry, Wiley & Son, 1986.
in the process where the pulp can stagnate and decay 7.J.D. Denit, R.W. Dellinger, and W.D. Smith, “Development
and by using oxidizing agents, such as hydrogen perox- Document for Effluent Limitations Guidelines and Standards
ide or sodium hypochlorite, in the pulper. Adjusting the for the Pulp and Paper, and Paperboard Source Category,’ EPA
process’s pH may decrease the formation of some odor- 440/1-82/025, October 1982.
8.C. Rappe, B. Glas, L.O. Kjeller, and S.E. Kulp, “Levels of
ous organic acids. PCDDs and PCDFs in Swedish Paper Industry Products,” pre-
Odor also becomes a concern when sludge is land- sented at the Dioxin Conference, Toronto, Ont. September
filled. The sludge should be kept as dry as practical to 1989.
avoid anaerobic conditions that produce odors. A prop- 9. R. Derra, “PCB Problem and Its Importance for the Paper In-
erly designed leachate collection system and proper dustry,” Allg. Papier-Rundschau, May 1973, pp. 670-688.
10. R.A. Flick, “Recent Experiences in Air Permitting,” Presented
sloping will help keep the sludge dry. Another method at the NCASI Southern Regional Meeting, June 1990.
of reducing sludge odor is to minimize air contact by re-

Environmental Questions on Deinking 125

 Deinking of Secondary Fiber Gains
Acceptance as Technology Evolves
More mills are considering deinking lines as process and equipment
knowledge grows, but an analysis of options is necessary

25% utilization rate forecast for the year 2000. However,

By LAWRENCE A. BROEREN
if the Environmental Protection Agency’s goal of a 40%
utilization rate is attained, an additional 1.4 million tons
he recent explosion of secondary fiber use in paper of deinked secondary fiber will be used in newsprint in
products has been driven by economic and legisla- the future.
tive forces. This trend is expected to continue, with the Tissue manufacturers are expected to use 1.8 million
most significant growth in deinked secondary fiber. tons of the new supply of deinked secondary fiber, and
In the U.S., wastepaper use increased from 12 million fine paper manufacturers are expected to use 0.8 million
tons in 1970 to about 15 million tons in 1979 (Figure 1). It tons.
remained at about 15 million tons for the next four
years, but, in 1984, use began increasing again, reaching SECONDARY FIBER ECONOMICS, LEGISLATION. Eco-
a high of 20 million tons in 1989. nomics is one force driving the use of secondary fiber.
The use of deinked secondary fiber in newsprint, tis- The operating cost of producing deinked secondary fiber
sue, and fine paper is expected to increase by 5.8 million can be lower than producing virgin fiber. For example,
tons in the next ten years (Figure 2). Most of the new an efficient deinking mill that has an economical supply
supply of deinked secondary fiber—3.2 million tons of wastepaper can produce deinked fiber for fine paper
—will be used in newsprint. That increase is based on a at a cost of $300 to $400/ton (Table 1). The operating cost
to produce virgin kraft fiber is about $300 to $500/ton,
Mr. Broeren is corporate consultant, Simons-Eastern while the market price for kraft pulp can be up to
Consultants Inc., Decatur, Ga. $700/ton.
FIGURE 1: Annual U.S. utilization of wastepaper consisting of mixed paper, newspaper, corrugated, pulp substitutes, and deinking
grades has continually increased.

2)
a
) oknn
ee
le)
ep)
e
2
eSjo)
=

126
Deinking Technology
 TABLE 1: Typical operating costs to produce secondary fiber.
FIGURE 2: The use of deinked secondary fiber is expected to
increase by 5.8 million tons in the next ten years. Most of the new
supply will be used in newsprint.
$/ton
Newsprint 140 to 170
Tissue 275 to 375
Sys;
million tons
Fine paper 300 to 400

SZ
TABLE 2: Typical capital costs (200-tpd system—in million million tons
dollars).

1.8
Fine million tons
Newsprint Tissue Paper <8
Major equipment 8 7 million tons
Total direct costs 30 28
Total capital costs 39 36
Unit costs
($/daily ton) 195,000 180,000 265,000

TABLE 3: In ten years, half of the newsprint used in California Newsprint Tissue White papers Total
must contain at least 40% postconsumer wastepaper.

Percentage of newsprint that must

Date of compliance
legislation.
contain at least 40% wastepaper
In Florida, publishers pay a 10¢/ton tax on news-
Jan. 1, 1991 25%
Jan.
print. The tax is refunded if the newsprint contains at
1, 1994 30%
Jan. 1, 1996 35% least 50% recycled fiber. In 1992, the tax increases to
Jan. 1, 1998 40% 50¢/ton.
Jan. 1, 2000 50% Connecticut requires newsprint to contain 20% recy-
cled fiber by 1993 and 90% recycled fiber by 1998.
The California legislation, passed on September 29,
1989, is significant because California is a large news-
The unit capital costs for a deinked secondary fiber print-consuming state, and its environmental policies
facility are also less than for a virgin fiber facility. Unit often influence the formation of environmental policies
cost is the capital cost divided by the daily production throughout the country.
rate. Table 2 shows typical capital and unit costs for In California, recycle-content newsprint is defined as
three types of deinking mills. newsprint containing at least 40% wastepaper (postcon-
The unit capital cost for a deinked fiber facility for sumer). Publishers must use increasing amounts of recy-
fine paper is $265,000/daily ton and is significantly low- cle-content newsprint over the next ten years. In 1991,
er than the unit cost of $500,000/daily ton for a virgin for example, 25% of the newsprint used by publishers
fiber facility. From an operating and capital cost view- must contain 40% postconsumer wastepaper. In 1994,
point, it is clear why economics is driving the increased 30% of the newsprint must contain 40% wastepaper. Ta-
use of deinking secondary fiber. ble 3 shows the usage schedule required by the Califor-
In addition to the economic forces, however, legisla- nia legislation.
tive forces are also present. The goal of legislators is to
encourage or require secondary fiber use to conserve TECHNOLOGY. The quality of deinked pulp has
forest resources and reduce the flow of waste to land- been improved by technological improvements in
fills. Federal legislation has established recycling goals deinking equipment and chemicals, even when low-
and requirements for finished products. Paper towels quality wastepaper is processed. Significant improve-
purchased by the U.S. government, for example, must ments in technology have occurred in pulping, screen-
contain a specified amount of secondary fiber. ing and cleaning, lightweight contaminant removal,
Current state legislation focuses on using secondary flotation, and postdeinking fiber treatment.
fiber in newsprint. States considering recycled news- e Pulping. High-consistency pulping decreases conta-
print legislation include Illinois, New Jersey, New York, minant breakdown, which enhances contaminant re-
and Wisconsin. In the meantime, Louisiana, Massachu- moval. Wastepaper can be pulped at high consistency in
setts, Nebraska, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, batch and drum pulpers.
and Virginia have legislation pending. Florida, Con- e Screening and cleaning. Low- cegect-rate screens and
necticut, as well as California have already passed cleaners have reduced the number of stages required for

Deinking Gains Acceptance 127

efficient screening and cleaning. Ink removal can be obtained by flotation, washing, or
e Lightweight contaminant removal. Lightweight con- a combination of the two. A deinking system can have
taminant removal has historically been accomplished at one chemical loop (alkaline) or two chemical loops (al-
relatively low efficiencies. The new flowthrough centri- kaline and acid). Postdeinking fiber treatment, if incor-
fugal cleaners have higher lightweight contaminant porated, can include dispersion or dispersion followed
removal efficiencies. A new mechanical lightweight by flotation and/or washing.
contaminant removal device operates at an even higher
efficiency than centrifugal cleaners but is also more
TABLE 4: Wastepaper in each category is processed differently
expensive. and used in specific products.
e Flotation. Single-stage flotation systems are avail-
able. One design is pressurized, and another is atmo- Process Finished product
Wastepaper category
spheric. In the pressurized system, the foam collapses as
Pulp Pulping Fine paper
it leaves the pressure vessel. In the atmospheric system, substitutes Tissue
the foam is removed from the flotation cell by vacuum
Fine Paper
and then is collapsed. Deinking ~ Tissue
Deinking
e Postdeinking fiber treatment. Several postdeinking
Newsprint
fiber treatments are available. Dispersion, the most com-
Newspaper Deinking Folding cartons
mon, can be followed by flotation and/or washing. The
use of postdeinking fiber treatment has been limited Pulping Packing
Mixed Screening Packaging
due to the high capital and operating costs, but it is ex- paper Cleaning Molded products
pected to increase during the 1990s.
Pulping Corrugated medium
Screening Linerboard
WASTEPAPER GRADES. The grades of wastepaper Corrugated Cleaning Kraft towels
are defined in Circular PS-83, Paper Stock Standards and
Practices, published by The Paper Stock Institute of
America. Wastepaper is categorized as follows: TABLE 5: Tissue, newsprint, and white paper mills throughout
e Pulp substitutes North America are using deinked pulp as part or all of their
e Deinking grades furnish.
e Newspapers
e Mixed paper Tissue mills
e Corrugated. e Erving Paper Mills, Erving, Mass.
e Fort Howard Corp., Green Bay, Wis.
Wastepaper in each category is processed differently e Fort Howard Corp., Rincon, Ga.
and used in specific products (Table 4). Deinked fiber is e Wisconsin Tissue Mills, Menasha, Wis.
used primarily in three finished products—tissue, news- e James River Corp., Glens Falls, N.Y.
print, and fine paper. Deinked fiber is widely used in tis- e James River Corp., Green Bay, Wis.
e Kimberly-Clark Corp., various locations
sue products, and its use is growing. Many tissue prod-
e Pope & Talbot Inc., Eau Claire, Wis.
ucts are made from 100% deinked fiber, while most e Pope and Talbot Inc., Ransom , Pa.
newsprint does not contain it. However, because of the © Scott Paper Co., Winslow, Maine
recycled newsprint legislation, manufacturers and pub- e Tagsons Papers Inc, Mechanicville, N.Y.
lishers are showing a significant interest in deinking. e Wisconsin Tissue Mills, Menasha, Wis.
Currently, nine newsprint mills in North America use Newsprint mills
deinked fiber. Of these mills, four use 100% deinked e FSC Paper Co., Alsip, Ill.
pulp. e Garden State Paper, Carfield, N.J.
e Golden State Paper, Pomona, Calif.
Some manufacturers of fine paper use deinked pulp. e Manistique Papers, Manistique, Mich.
Due to this success, favorable economics, and environ- @ Quebec & Ontario Paper, Thorold, Ont.
mental considerations, interest is emerging in manufac- e Smurfit Newsprint, Oregon City, Ore.
turing fine paper from deinked pulp. Table 5 lists some e Smurfit Newsprint, Newburg, Ore.
mills using deinked pulp in tissue, newsprint, and white e Southeast Paper Manufacturing, Dublin, Ga.
e Stone Container, Snowflake, Ariz.
paper.
White paper mills
e Appleton Papers, West Carrollton, Ohio
DEINKING PROCESSES. Manufacturers must consid- e Fraser, Thornold, Ont.
er three main processing parameters as they approach ® Boise Cascade, Vancouver, Wash.
the design of a deinking facility: e P.H. Glatfeiter, Neenah, Wis.
e Which ink removal method to use © Georgia-Pacific, Kalamazoo, Mich.
e Miami Paper, West Carrollton, Ohio
e How many chemical loops to use
e Simpson Paper, Pomona, Calif.
elf postdeinking fiber treatment should be incorpo- e Sorg Paper, Middletown, Ohio
rated, and if so, what type of treatment to use.

128
Deinking Technology
 The preferred ink removal method is flotation, fol- Deinking chemicals
lowed by washing. A one-loop alkaline chemical loop is e Caustic
best for tissue and white paper. For newsprint, a one- e Sodium silicate
loop system is used with washing, and a one- or two- e Hydrogen peroxide
loop system can be used with flotation. e Calcium chloride
Postdeinking fiber treatment enhances the quality of e Soap
deinked pulp and is often incorporated to reach the Bleaching chemicals
highest quality level or to allow the use of lower-quality e Hydrogen peroxide
wastepaper. The postdeinking treatment systems are rel- e Hydrosulfite.
atively expensive in both capital and operating costs. Five major equipment suppliers can provide a com-
plete or nearly complete deinking system: Beloit Jones,
DEINKING CHEMICALS AND EQUIPMENT. The deink- Black Clawson, Bird Escher Wyss, FiberPrep (Lamort),
ing process involves both mechanical and chemical sys- and Voith. These companies can supply information, as-
tems. Both are equally important. The following chemi- sist in arranging deinking mill visits, and conduct de-
cals typically used are for deinking and bleaching: inking trials. Table 6 shows some of the major de-
inking equipment suppliers and the equipment they
TABLE 6: Some of the major deinking equipment suppliers and manufacture.
the equipment they manufacture. The optimum deinking system is a multi-supplier,
“mix and match” system, where the most suitable
Suppliers Equipment equipment is selected for each process step. The capi-
tal cost is also usually lower with a mix-and-match sys-
Ahlstrom Drum pulpers, screens tem because the most cost-effective equipment can be
Arus Andritz Belt presses
selected.
Celleco Cleaners, disc thickeners
Dorr-Oliver Washers, disc thickeners Figures 3, 4, 5, and 6 show typical system designs for
Finckh Drum pulpers, screens two newsprint deinking systems (a one-loop and a
Hooper Gravity deckers, screens two-loop system), a tissue system, as well as a fine paper
Hymac (Thune) Screw presses, gravity deckers system.
Krofta Clarifiers

FIGURE 3: A block flow for a one-chemical-loop newsprint FIGURE 4: A block flow for a two-chemical-loop newsprint
deinking system. deinking system.

From fine From thickening

Wastepaper Wastepaper
storage screening storage ? Sulfurous
Rejects| Reverse cleaning acid
Pulping (lights) Pulping High: Forward
chemicals High- chemicals : cleaning
consistency consistency }-, }
pulping ie Thickening pulping Ros
(30% BD)
ae Fine n
Pulper Pulper a screening
To
screening screening | : : slots :

landfill To landfill
Reverse
High-density Flotation High-density cleaning
cleaning Rejects cleaning : (lights)

Course Course Thickening |...

Pane screen holes screen holes (30% BD)
Slots Sludge

ee ee Bleaching == 2-22 --- ry

=
Flotation Flotation
Storage
Le, Eo eae Bleaching
.M. white- jp
Forward cleaning ewwwater
Thickening].
(30% BD) [” To paper
machine
neFine screening slots To paper
machine To dirt Rejects thickening
cleaning
Rejects thickening To reverse To landfill To
cleaning ewer
To landfill To sewer Alkaline loop Acid loop

Deinking Gains Acceptance 129

 THE ELEMENTS OF A DEINKING PROGRAM. The four problems and operation. For example, one current prob-
major elements of a deinking program include waste- lem in newsprint deinking is removing letterpress print-
paper procurement, finished product requirements (de- ing ink from the washing filtrate. The ink is readily re-
fined by end use requirements), the deinking process moved from the fiber but is difficult to remove from the
(both mechanical and chemical systems), and manage- filtrate during clarification. Hence, it is recirculated
ment involvement, including support for R&D. back into the deinking process. As the use of letterpress
Procurement, including wastepaper testing, down- printing increases, a way to get the letterpress ink out of
grading, and rejection, is the foundation of a successful the system will have to be developed.
deinking program. One step in developing a deinking Likewise, nonimpact inks are difficult to remove and,
program is a study of wastepaper availability and qual- further, can show up in the finished product as ink
ity. Considerations include price, quantities, location, specks. As new inks, binders, and printing processes are
and shipping. developed, there will be no shortage of problems that
Another step is visiting several deinking facilities. will need to be solved. It is important, therefore, for
Most North American deinking facilities are closed to management to support R&D so it can meet the chal-
visits, but European facilities are more accommodating. lenges deinking provides.
Equipment supplier presentations can also provide an A list of the critical factors in developing a successful
opportunity to find out what equipment and processes deinking program includes the following:
are available. e Acceptance
Deinking program leaders need to bring together the e Research
people within their organization that have expertise in a e Development
variety of areas, including research, operations, manage- e Investigation
ment, and engineering. Engineering consultants can also e Reasonable facility
be helpful. e Procurement.
Deinking trials should be run, but there are limita- Finding the right combination of deinking equipment
tions to such trials. For example, whitewater is not recy- and processes is like trying to solve Rubic’s Cube. There
cled during a trial, and trials are usually too short to op- are numerous ways to solve the puzzle, and, at first, the
timize chemical usage. myriad of combinations and interrelationships of moves
R&D should be part of a deinking program to assist in can be overwhelming. As time goes on, however, the
defining the process and finding solutions to deinking patterns and results of moves become clearer. a

FIGURE 5: A block flow for a tissue deinking system. FIGURE 6: A block flow for a fine paper deinking system.

Wastepaper storage From thickening :From reverse .

Bleaching cleaning
Pulping
chemicals High- High- — ¢ [White-
consistency
pulping
|
Storage| consistency
pulping
xe!
: :
=) water
clarifier
Bee : Thickening
To paper machine
(30% BD)
Pulper screening
N To
fon ot landfill
High-density
High-density
cleaning

Course ;Rejects
screen holes} Flotation
Flotation
on RATE t i i White-
. :
W: ater
Forward cleaning otation filter

- Fine screening slots a ; Bleaching

Reverse cleaning (lights)

-(Fiter}y Forward cleaning :

; Pe > basFine screening slots .

Washing (ash removal) k= :
: Rejects Reverse cleaning (lights)|_ Machine
: thickening
Thickening
Rejects thickening : . . -
To storage To landfill 1°
sewer
To landfill To sewer thickening -

130
Deinking Technology
 Mill Chemistry Must Be Considered
Before Making Deink Line Decision
Understanding the complex relationship between the various
chemical additives can help optimize performance in a deink mill

By KENNETH E. SCHRIVER istry on the overall system, the various steps of the
deinking process are reviewed in this article for the sim-
plified combination system illustrated in Figure 1.
Me deinking systems are designed to remove a
variety of contaminants. In addition to foreign ma- PULPING STAGE. The first stage in the deinking
terial that enters the system with the furnish, the system plant is the most common point of chemical addition.
must also remove coatings (clays, waxes, latexes,), adhe- Chemicals added to the pulper may include, but are not
sives, and the most common contaminant, printing inks. limited to, the following: caustic soda, sodium sili-
Designing a system to accomplish this efficiently is cate, a surfactant, hydrogen peroxide, and a chelant.
difficult enough. In addition, the extent to which deink- The pulper is usually an ideal point of addition because
ing systems are “closed” has increased as restrictions on the chemicals can be applied at a relatively high concen-
mill effluent and solid waste disposal throughout North tration, and the mechanical action helps mix them into
America have increased. the pulp for maximum effectiveness.
This increases the potential problems from chemical Also, as the ink is removed by the action of the fibers
buildup and interaction within the system. In designing rubbing against each other, the presence of a surfactant
new deinking systems or when seeking ways to opti- helps stabilize the ink particle in solution and reduces
mize existing systems, it is necessary to consider not reattachment. The type of surfactant used will depend
only the unique mechanical and chemical requirements on the stage that follows—flotation, washing, or both.
of a given furnish but also the impact that a specific Caustic soda is often added to the pulper to raise the
chemical treatment may have on other aspects of the pH to effect swelling of the fiber, which also aids in the
mill. It is important to consider the ‘total chemistry” physical removal of the ink, much like a coat of paint
within a deinking system or within an entire pulp and will crack and peel off a balloon when it is inflated.
paper mill. Many of the binders found in inks break down more
There are basically two techniques for removing sus- readily at higher pH also.
pended ink from a pulp slurry: washing and froth flota- With groundwood-containing furnish, if the pH is
tion. For many years, washing has been the most com- raised much above 10, the pulp will yellow unless hy-
mon process in North American mills, especially for drogen peroxide is present. To prevent decomposition of
newsprint deinking. In groundwood-free deinking mills, the peroxide by metal ions, sodium silicate and organic
new types of inks have entered the furnish—specifical- chelants are often added. The peroxide also appears to
ly, polymeric and nonimpact inks, such as laser, UV radi- help lift the ink from the fiber and will accomplish some
ation-cured, and heat-set. bleaching of colored material and lignins. The sodium
These inks are almost impossible to remove by wash- silicate acts as an alkaline buffer and a detergency
ing because of the difficulty in dispersing the polymeric builder. It is also a moderate dispersant and, as such, can
materials comprising them. For this reason, the number reduce the ink particle size, making flotation more diffi-
of mills using froth flotation in the deinking process has cult if too much is used.
increased. The most versatile deinking processes use If freshwater is used for the makeup in the pulper,
both washing and flotation stages in ‘‘combination” or then the effective chemical concentrations are deter-
“hybrid” deinking systems. mined entirely by the chemical addition rates and the
To better understand the unique chemical require- pulp consistency. There may be, however, a return loop
ments of these systems and the impact of a given chem- from a washer, thickener, or clarifier in the deinking
mill that provides part of the water going to the pulper.
Mr. Schriver is technical manager, Lion Industries Inc., In this case, there may be some equilibrium concentra-
Vancouver, Wash. tion of chemicals, ink, and fines that exist within the

Mill Chemistry for Deinking 131

 loop. A change in the type of ally in the range of 30 to 60 mi-
chemistry going into the pulper The successful performance crons. The larger particles, gen-
erally contaminants other than
will often be accompanied by a
ink, are removed by screens and
need for change in chemistry of a deinking system cleaners. Particles smaller than
elsewhere in the loop.
30 microns must be removed by
FLOTATION. Deinking that
is... .dependent on having washing, and this stage is placed
after the flotation stage when
is accomplished by froth flota-
tion is most effective on inks not
a general understanding of possible. Removal of the larger
amenable to dispersing, such as particles early in a flotation
the polymeric inks previously the chemical composition of stage leaves less total ink to be
mentioned. Froth flotation cells removed in the washing stage,
utilize primarily dispersed air the various makeup and which therefore increases the
and some dissolved air, as com- overall efficiency of the system.
pared with dissolved air clari- dilution streams within In froth flotation, ink must be
fiers, which are used in effluent stabilized as insoluble, hydro-
clarification. Ink is removed by the system. phobic particles. As will be dis-
attachment to a small gas bub- cussed, washing surfactants are
ble, which is introduced into a designed to disperse the ink par-
dilute pulp slurry, typically 0.8% to 1.2% consistency. ticles into small, hydrophilic colloids. Washing surfac-
The foam formed at the top of the flotation cell is re- tants may produce a substantial foam in a flotation cell,
moved from the slurry, and these rejects are usually fur- but preferential removal of the ink rather than the fiber
ther concentrated prior to disposal. The dilution water is not achieved. Instead, froth flotation has traditionally
is normally derived from the thickening or washing been accomplished using a “collector,” a type of surfac-
stages that follow flotation. tant that acts by gathering the ink particles into large ag-
Particle size is an important aspect in froth flota- gregates and rendering them hydrophobic.
tion.** The particles must be large enough so that a col- The collectors used in flotation systems in Europe for
lision with a gas bubble is ensured yet small enough that years are fatty acid soaps (Table 1). The soap may be
the resultant bubble-particle agglomerate survives the added as a dry material directly to the pulper at addi-
ascent to the flotation cell surface. tions of roughly 0.7% to 1.0% of pulp weight. The soap is
The optimum size for effective ink flotation is gener- soluble as added but is made insoluble by the addition

FIGURE 1: Basic schematic diagram of a combination deinking system with flotation followed by washing.

Coarse Fine
screens and Flotation
screens and
cleaners cleaners

SELES
aL

Thickening
and washing

Pulp
storage

132
Deinking Technology
TABLE 1: General chemical structure of several classes of
of concern in solid waste disposal.
surfactants commonly used in deinking systems. The
An alternative is to add a commercial clay directly
alkylphenol ethoxylates and linear alcohol ethoxylates are
traditional washing surfactants, the fatty acid soap is a collector, into the system prior to the flotation stage. The clay
and the fatty acid ethoxylate is one type of combination then becomes another “chemical” variable, although it
surfactant or displector. is one that is relatively easy to monitor and control. Not
all clays give equal performance, however. Character-
CH,(CH.),(CcH.)(OCH,CH.),,-OH ization of the various types of clays and testing their im-
_ Alkylphenol Ethoxylate pact on flotation deinking has been carried out in the
lab.”
CH,(CH.),-(OCH.CH.),,-OH

Linear Alcohol Ethoxylate WASHING. Washing, loosely defined, involves pref-

erential rinsing of undesirable particulates from the
CH,(CH.),C(0)07/Na* pulp. In deinking, washing involves the process of
Fatty Acid Soap dispersing the ink particles to a size small enough
that they can be removed by rinsing through the fiber
CH.(CH,),-C(0)-(OCH.CH.),,-OH mat.
Fatty Acid Ethoxylate The process is distinguished from thickening in that
with the latter, nothing is removed from the system.
Washing also requires that the particulate in the effluent
of calcium ions, usually from calcium chloride, prior to be removed in an additional stage, usually clarification.
the flotation stage. To maximize yield and minimize clarification costs, a
The resultant insoluble aggregates of collector and side stream containing only part of the effluent may be
ink collect preferentially at the gas bubble solution in- clarified.
terface and are floated to the top of the flotation cell and There is ysually an equilibrium concentration of fi-
mechanically removed. This type of chemistry can have ber, ink, and chemicals within a washing loop, and re-
a very significant impact elsewhere in the system. The duced volume should be balanced carefully so that ink
addition of the metal ions to precipitate out the soap removal efficiency and pulp quality do not suffer. Shifts
may create undesirable scaling problems. If the soap is in that equilibrium can also be realized by changing the
allowed to carry forward with the fiber, deposits can washing surfactant or by changing the clarification
form in the paper machine system. Interference with chemistry.
sizing operations, acid formation, and corrosion have In most washing, ink is removed as colloidal parti-
also been observed in some systems. cles, which are smaller than 30 microns. Low-foaming
Perhaps the least understood aspect of froth flotation nonionic surfactant is usually used as the dispersant.
is the apparent requirement of high ash content in the This washing surfactant stabilizes the ink particle in
pulp feeding the flotation cell. There is a linear relation- solution, making it hydrophilic. A popular class of
ship between the amount of clay added and the ink re- surfactants for this application has been ethoxylated
moved in a flotation stage, as measured using image alkylphenals, although in some applications ethoxy-
analysis® and pulp brightness. lated linear alcohols have been used. The difference
A typical working target for optimum flotation is to between the two classes of surfactant can be seen in
have an ash content in the pulp feeding the flotation cell Table 1. ;
of at least 8% to 10%, preferably 12% to 14%, Approxi- Often, proprietary blends of different surfactants are
mately 25% to 30% of the added clay is removed with used, depending on the type of furnish and the me-
the flotation cell rejects. chanical restrictions of a given system. These surfac-
Depending on the types of washing stages, a sub- tants are typically 100% active liquids applied in the
stantial fraction of the remainder can be carried forward pulper at 0.5% to 0.75% of pulp weight, although addi-
with pulp to the paper machine. The clay addition is tional surfactant may also be used prior to a washing
usually accomplished by blending a certain amount of stage.
coated waste with the furnish going into the pulper. The traditional collectors, fatty acid soaps, are very
However, this method has several disadvantages, includ- poor dispersants, and, therefore, poor washing surfac-
ing the following: tants. This may not be of much concern in systems using
e The degree and type of coating varies considerably only flotation, but in the increasingly prevalent combi-
between bales of waste. nation or hybrid systems, the lack of dispersing chemis-
e There is only a limited supply of coated waste try leads to unsatisfactory performance in the washing
available. stages following flotation.
e Magazines, a common source of coated furnish, of- Unfortunately, it is usually not possible to simply add
ten contains inks that are more difficult to deink than a traditional dispersant-type washing surfactant into the
the majority of furnish and may contain metals that are system with the fatty acid soap. The strong dispersing

Mill Chemistry for Deinking 133

action in the pulper by these surfactants drives the ink The choice of clarifier chemistry will thus be a func-
particle size below 30 microns, where they are no longer tion of the amount of clarification to be achieved, the
effectively floated. type of surfactant of other dispersants present in the ef-
Even if the washing surfactant is added at a different fluent, and the concentrations of the ink, ash, and fiber.
point in the system, such as just prior to the deckers or Often two chemical treatments are required to clarify
presses, the recirculation of the effluent back to any a given effluent stream effectively. The primary floccu-
stage prior to flotation can cause the dispersant concen- lant is generally a low-molecular-weight cationic liquid
tration to build up, causing a reduction in the flotation polymer or papermaker’s alum to neutralize the system
efficiency. charge and build “pin floc.” This fine suspension is then
To obtain the maximum benefits of the combination further treated with a secondary flocculant, such as a
froth flotation/washing systems now installed and be- high-molecular-weight anionic polymer or possibly a
ing installed, products have been designed specifically weakly charged cationic.
for use in these systems. Some common names for these The molecular weight, charge, and dosage rates of
products are ‘“‘dispersant-collectors,” “displectors,” and these polymers are dependent on the deinking system
“combination surfactants.”® They are usually propri- and the chemistry used in the flotation and washing
etary formulations of alkoxylated fatty acid derivatives. stages. The flocculant characteristics may also depend
Hence, they share some of the physical properties of on the furnish, in that the type of ink being removed
both dispersants and fatty acid collectors. will put different demands on the clarification system.
For instance, Lion Industries, formerly Lion Chemi- For instance, flexo inks, which are water soluble, con-
cals, has developed five distinct lines of products in this tain a strong dispersant as part of the ink formulation
class. Variations within each product line can also be and typically require higher dosages of flocculant.
made according to the specific application. These prod- The successful performance of a deinking system is
ucts have several unique advantages in combination critically dependent on having a general understanding
systems over the more traditional soap chemistry. of the chemical composition of the various makeup and
They are 100% active liquids, like the washing sur- dilution streams within the system. This is because the
factants, but they are only mild dispersants. They may chemistry at a given point in the system is determined
contain a fatty acid derivative, but they require no by not only the added process chemicals mentioned pre-
added calcium since they are not precipitated out of viously but also the characteristics of the freshwater,
solution like the fatty acid soaps. Additionally, they such as hardness, and the residual chemicals brought
do not result in deposit formation elsewhere in the back from other mill processes.
mill. For example, a common source of makeup is to bring
back water from the paper machine. If alum is being
CLARIFICATION. Following a washing stage, all or used on a newsprint machine, however, the same alumi-
part of the effluent containing surfactant and ink is sent num hydroxide gel that aids the papermaker in retain-
to the clarifier, where it is removed from the system by ing fines at the machine can also act to strongly bind the
the addition of flocculants. Essentially, one must undo ink particles to the fiber within the deinking mill.
what has just been accomplished, in that the finely dis- Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the aluminum ion
persed ink must now be reagglomerated so that it can be concentration by neutralization or clarification prior to
separated from the recycled water. introducing this water into the deinking process.
As discussed, effective washing requires dispersing Other paper machine additives—e.g., felt cleaning
the ink. However, the cost of clarifying the effluent in- products, defoamers, or solvents used for stickies con-
creases with the degree to which it is dispersed. Usually, trol—can interfere with deinking chemistry and effec-
the cost of clarification in a combination system will be tiveness if sufficient concentrations are present in the
less than in a washing-only system because the surfac- makeup water or if compatible products are not used.™
tants used are weaker dispersants. This is possible, in
turn, because the majority of the ink is removed as larg- REFERENCES
er particles in the flotation step. al RG. Horacek, “Deinking By Washing,” TAPPI Monograph Se-
The flocculants work in a reverse manner to the dis- ries.
2. D.R. Crow and R.F. Secor, TAPPI Journal 70, no. 7 (1978): 101.
persants. The foreign material in the effluent is collect- 3. L. Marchildon, M. LaPointe, and B. Chabot, Pulp & Paper Cana-
ed until a floc forms of sufficient mass that it can be re- da 90, no. 4 (1988): 90.
moved either by settling or by floating in a dissolved air 4. A. Larsson, P. Stenius, and L. Odberg, Svensk Papperstid. 87,
clarifier. Since washing effluent contains some fiber, no. 18 (1984): r158 no. 3 (1985): r2.

clarification lowers overall yield and increases disposal Bi rN Zabala and M.A. McCool, TAPPI Journal 71, no. 8 (1988):
ie
costs. Therefore, a balance must be achieved so enough 6. M.A. McCool and C.J. Taylor, TAPPI Journal 66, no. 8 (1983): 69.
clarification is accomplished to remove the dispersed 7. K.E. Schriver and S. Bingham, paper to be presented at 1990
ink and maintain product quality, but not so much as to TAPPI Pulping Conference.
reduce the yield intolerably. 8. R.B Horacek and B. Jarrehult, Pulp & Paper 63, no. 3 (1989): 97.

134
Deinking Technology
 Deinking Equipment Demand
Increases as More Mills
Study Wastepaper Use
Major suppliers worldwide discuss their process equipment
developments for improving pulp cleanliness and brightness

By JOHN PEARSON, International Editor

thickening, and hydrosulfite bleaching. Process waters
from the BDS and flotation and thickening stages are
collected, treated, and recycled. The resulting pulp has a
WAY sstcpepe: looks set to become an increasingly im- brightness of 70 to 72° and can be used in fine paper or
portant part of the papermaking furnish during super-newsprint grades.
the 1990s. Currently, worldwide wastepaper consump- For tissue production, Voith recommends BDS, fol-
tion is about 31% of total paper and board production. lowed by washing/thickening (initial brightness 65 to
By the end of the decade, that figure could pass 40%. 70°), dispersing, hydrosulfite bleaching, and wash-
Pressures leading to the increased utilization rate are ing/thickening. Final stock brightness of greater than
numerous and include environmental concerns among 80° can be reached. Process waters are clarified and ash
both consumers and governments and tight virgin fiber and fillers removed. A similar system could also be used
supplies in some countries. in the case of wastepaper containing a high proportion of
Legislative changes may put a burden on paper- flexo inks. Washing and clarification are said to take
makers to raise the wastepaper content ‘of their fur- care of the unfloatable inks.
nishes. But, at the same time, consumers will continue
to demand high-quality paper grades. For this reason, all SPLIT FLOTATION GAINS ACCEPTANCE. Explaining its
major suppliers of deinking equipment are developing strategy, Sulzer Wyss (SEW) of Ravensburg, Fed. Rep.
systems to improve cleanliness and brightness. Im- Germany, saysit developed the concept of “‘split flota-
proved dispersion and combined flotation deinking and tion” some years ago and that this idea has since found
washing systems are among the latest developments. wide acceptance.
Secondary fiber used by papermakers today contains
BDS FORMS THE BUILDING BLOCK. Voith, of Fed. a number of printing inks, coatings, and other compo-
Rep. Germany, has designed a new elliptical deinking nents that disturb the traditional deinking system. SEW
cell, said to allow better air flow to a larger surface area. says these printing inks can be divided into two groups:
Apart from this, other design aspects, such as plugging- soft and greasy, and brittle and hard. Soft, greasy inks
proof injectors and self-priming air intake, remain as in must be treated gently, with low energy density. If the
previous models. To meet demands for larger systems, energy density is too high, these types of inks are wiped
the company now offers a module that can handle 320 onto the fibers, leading to greyness in the stock. For this
tpd of accept in one line. reason, soft, greasy particles are removed before disper-
Process development from Voith involves the use of » sion by screening, cleaning, preflotation, and washing
dispersing machines, bleaching during dispersion, flota- and/or partial washing.
tion after dispersion, and combined washing and flota-. Hard, brittle inks are reduced to a grain size by dis-
tion systems. One such system, for producing a 100% persion (intensive fiber treatment). These can then be
deinked furnish for newsprint, starts with what Voith washed and floated off. Further flotation and washing
calls the standard BDS sequence (pulping, prescreening can be used if necessary. SEW says this split-flotation
at medium consistency, flotation deinking, cleaning, method leads to a very clean half stuff with a high
low-consistency screening, and dewatering). This is fol- brightness. Washing out of fibers on the paper machine
lowed by combined dispersing and peroxide bleaching, is also minimized by this method, says the company.
followed by hydrosulfite bleaching. The final product
has a brightness of 65 to 68 ISO. FINAL ASH CONTENT OF 2% ACHIEVED. Black Claw-
Voith says the highest achievable results have been son Internationl, U.K., makes similar points. The trend,
reached with a system consisting of a BDS sequence fol- says the company, is to use three basic elements in
lowed by dispersing with peroxide bleaching, flotation, the deinking process: flotation, washing, and disper-

Deinking Equipment Demand Increases 135

TABLE 1: Some recent and planned flotation deinking installations. (Table 1 continues on next page.)

Company Mill Startup Capacity Wastepaper ;

Country name location date (000 tpy) grade End use Supplier
Austria Steyrermuhl Steyrermdhl 1989 84 Np, Mag Newsprint Voith
Brazil Clinton Pessoa Santa Therezinha 1988 42 Mag, Wf waste Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
Brazil Scott Copa Cruzeiro 1988 30 Mag, List Tissue Voith
Canada Atlantic Packaging | Scarborough, Ont. 1988 60 Ctd, Unctd Tissue Voith
Corp. d :
Canada Atlantic Packaging Scarborough, Ont. 1988 150 Np, Mag Newsprint Voith
Corp. :
Canada Cascades Inc.' Kingsey Falls, Que. 1990 64 Led Tissue Beloit
Canada Cascades Inc. East Angus 1990 21 Ctd bk, List, Mag White board Lamort-Fiberprep
Canada Kruger Inc. Bromptonville 1990 63 Np, Mag Newsprint Lamort-Fiberprep
Chile CMPC Puente Alto 19911 53 Mixed waste, Np, Mag Tissue Lamort
China Yingkou' — 1990 10 Np Linerboard Black Clawson Int
Colombia Familia Medellin 1991 21 Off. waste Tissue Lamort
Colombia Papeles Nacionales Pereira 1990 18 Wt Tissue Lamort
Costa Rica Tissue producer — 1989 7 Mag, Led, Ctd Tissue © Sulzer Escher Wyss
Czechoslovakia Steti Steti 1991 35 Np, Mag Newsprint Lamort
Denmark Brodrene Hartmann Tondem 1989 18 Np, Mag Egg trays Sulzer Escher Wyss
Denmark De Forenede Papir Copenhagen 1991 42 Wf sorted paper Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
Ecuador Technopapel Quito 1990 9 Np, Mag Tissue Lamort
Finland Tampella Tampere 1991 25 Np, Mag FBB Sulzer Escher Wyss
Finland United Paper Mills Kaipola 1989 135 Np, Mag Newsprint Voith
Finland United Paper Mills Kaipola 1989 120 Np, Mag Newsprint Voith
France Matussiére-et-Forest Turckheim 1988 42 Mag, Prom Pr/wr Voith
France Matussiére-et-Forest St. Girons 1989 21 Mag ae Voith
France Papeteries du Bourray St. Mars-la-Briére 1988 28 Prom, pr trim, List Pr/wr Lamort
France Papeteries d’Essones — Corbeil-Essones 1989 42 Mag, Np, bk, lacq Pr/wr Lamort
Germany, Fed. Euler Bensheim 1988 16 NCR broke File board Lamort
Rep.
Germany, Fed. Friedrich Erfurt Wuppertal 1990 28 Wf paper Wallpaper base Voith
Rep.
Germany, Fed. Gruber-Weber Gernsbach 1990 53 Wdcentng, wf Topliner Sulzer Escher Wyss
Rep.
Germany, Fed. Haind! Papier Schongau 1989 265 Np, Mag Newsprint Voith
Rep.
Germany, Fed. Hermes Dusseldorf 1990 44 Sorted waste Pr/wr Sulzer Escher Wyss
Rep.
Germany, Fed. Niederauer Mahle Duren 1989 28 Mixed waste Board Voith
Rep.
Germany, Fed. Not disclosed _ 1989 77 Wadecning, wf Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
Rep.
Germany, Fed. Strepp Kreuzau 1989 50 Wdentng pr/wr Tissue Voith
Rep.
Germany, Fed. Peter Temming GlUckstadt 1990 53 Np, mag Pr/wr Lamort
Rep. See
Germany, Fed. Peter Temming GlUckstadt 1990 35 Np, mag Pr/wr Lamort
Rep.
pets Fed. Peter Temming GlUckstadt 1990 21 Np, mag Pr/wr Lamort
ep.
peer Fed. Not disclosed _— 1989 42 Sorted waste Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
ep.
eens Fed. Not disclosed — 1989 44 Sorted waste Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
ep.
Honduras Tissue producer — 1989 4 Ctd paper, Led Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
Indonesia Fajar Surya —_ 1990 25 Col. led White board Lamort-Aikawa
Indonesia PT Pakerin Surabaya - 1990 28 Sorted Waste, List Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
Indonesia PT Pakerin' — 1990 8 Led Board Black Clawson Int
Indonesia Surya Kertas — 1988 21 Col. led Pr/wr Lamort-Aikawa
Indonesia Surya Kertas — 1991 21 Np White board Lamort-Aikawa
Italy Cartiera Lucchese Porcari 1990 70 Wt MG papers Lamort
Japan Daini Paper — 1988 18 Np Printings Lamort-Aikawa
Japan lyo Paper — 1988 12 Col. leg Tissue Lamort-Aikawa
Japan Hyogo Seishi = 1989 20 oe Newsprint Voith
Japan Nihonkako Paper Takahagi 1989 21 Ctd wf book Ctd paper Lamort-Aikawa
Japan Nihonkako Paper Takahagi 1989 21 Ctd wf book Ctd paper Lamort-Aikawa
Japan Nihonkako Paper Takahagi 1990 21 Ctd wf book Ctd paper Lamort-Aikawa
Japan Nihonkako Paper Takahagi 1990 21 Ctd wf book Ctd paper Lamort-Aikawa
1. Flotation/ washing system. Abbreviations: Ctd = coated; Unctd = uncoated; FBB = folding
boxboard; Np = newspaper; Mag = magazines; Prom = promo-
tional material; Led = ledgers; List = computer listings; Pr/wr = printings/writings, Wdentng
= woodcontaining paper; Wf = woodfree Paper, HPBK = heavily
printed bleached kraft.

136
Deinking Technology
 sion. Treatment of the clarified water loop to remove re- production, BCI has introduced its new DNT Washer. It
sidual inks (particularly flexo inks) is seen as a growing is said to be highly effective in removing inks and ash.
trend. Final ash contents of less than 2% are achieved using a
For the preparation of wastepaper stock for tissue ledger furnish containing over 25% ash.

TABLE 1, continued: Some recent and planned flotation deinking installations.

Company Mill Startup Capacity Wastepaper

Country name location date (000 tpy) grade End use Supplier
Japan Talo lyomishima 1989 45 Np Pr/wr Voith
Japan Taio Kawanoe 1989 60 Mag Newsprint Voith
Japan Taio Mishima 1989 110 Newsprint Voith
Japan Takao Paper 1989 35 Np, List Comic book Lamort-Aikawa
Japan Tamagawa Paper 1990 28 Np, List Comic book Lamort-Aikawa
Japan Tokai Pulp Shimada 1989 46 Np Copier paper Lamort-Aikawa
Kenya Panafrican Paper Mills Webuye 1991 26 We Pr/wr Lamort
Rep. Korea Mitto Paper Seoul 1990 53 Wf waste Pr/wr Sulzer Escher Wyss
Malaysia Not disclosed 1989 18 Led, List Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
Mexico Inpamex (Copamex) Uruapan 1989 35 List, white led Pr/wr, tissue Lamort-Licar
Mexico Kimberly-Clark Corp. Bajlo 1991 210 Mag, List Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
Mexico Papeleras Higienicos Monterrey 1989 25 Mag, office waste Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
Netherlands Celtona BV Cuyck 1991 26 Ctd wf board Tissue Lamort
Netherlands Celtona BV Cyuck 1990 53 Ctd wf board Tissue Lamort
Netherlands Van Houtum BV Swaimen 1990 . 28 Np, Mag Tissue Lamort
Pakistan Packages Lahore 1988 i Wdentng, Wf Tissue, MG Sulzer Escher Wyss
Romania Piatra Neamt 1990 20 Mixed waste White liner Beloit
Spain Echezarreta SA Legorreta 1988 30 List Printings Lamort-Licar
Spain Papelera d’Orpi SA Carme 1988 5 Office waste, Np Tissue Lamort-Licar
Spain Romani Esteve SA Barcelona 1990 28 Led, News, White bd White liner Beloit
Sweden Hyite Bruk' Hyite 1989 175 Np, Mag Newsprint Beloit
Taiwan Ban Yu' 1989 60 Np Board Black Clawson Intl.
Taiwan Ban Yu' 1989 60 Np Board Black Clawson Intl.
Taiwan Cheng Loong Taipei 1990 25 Mag, Wf, List Pr/wr Sulzer Escher Wyss
Taiwan YFYu' 1990 30 Led Board Black Clawson Int
Thailand Hiang Seng Bangkok 1990 18 FBB, Wf waste Liner, pr/wr Sulzer Escher Wyss
Thailand Patcharavit Bangkok 1989 9 Sorted waste Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
Thailand Not disclosed 1989 14 Led, List Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
U.K. Kimberly-Clark Ltd. _ Coleshill 1991 26 Wf Tissue Lamort
U.K. Shotton Paper Co. Shotton 1989 165 Np, Mag Newsprint Voith
U.S. Atlas Tissue Mills' Hialeah, Fla. 1990 25 Led Tissue Beloit
U.S: Erving Paper Mills’ Erving, Mass. 1989 32 Led Tissue Beloit
U.S F.S.C. Paper Co. Alsip, Ill. 1990 81 Led, List, Mag Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
U.S. James River Corp. Ashland, Wis. 1988 37 Ctd pr/wr Tissue Voith
U.S. James River Corp. Green Bay, Wis. 1989 85 Led Tissue Voith
U.S. Miami Paper W. Carrollton, Fla. 1988 55 Led Pr/wr Sulzer Escher Wyss
U.S Miami Paper W. Carrollton, Fla. 1988 55 Led Pr/wr Sulzer Escher Wyss
WS; Putney Paper Co. Putney, Vt. 1989 9 Led, cup stock Tissue Sulzer Escher Wyss
U.S. Smurfit Newsprint Oregon City, Ore. 1989 130 Np, Mag Newsprint Beloit
Corp."
U.S. Sorg Paper Corp. Middletown, Ohio 1989 44 Book,Led,cup stock Tissue, pr/wr Sulzer Escher Wyss
U.S. Stone Container Corp. ' Snowflake, Ariz. 1988 110 Np, Mag Newsprint Beloit
U.S. Stone Container Corp.' Snowflake, Ariz. 1989 125 Np, Mag Newsprint Beloit
U.S. Tagsons Papers Inc.' Mechanicville, N.Y. 1990 16 Np, Mag Tissue Beloit
U.S. Tissue producer 1990 65 Ctd paper, Led Tissue Sulzer Excher Wyss
U.S. Tissue producer 1989 23 HPBK Tissue, pulp Sulzer Escher Wyss
U.S. Not disclosed’ 1989 80 Led Tissue Beloit
U.S. Not disclosed 1990 80 Np, Mag Newsprint Beloit
U.S. Not disclosed 1990 160 Np Newsprint Beloit
U.S. Not disclosed 1989 70 Mag Newsprint Voith
Venezuela Maracay. Maracay 1990 32 Led Tissue Beloit
Yugoslavia Krsko Krsko 1990 48 Np, Mag, Led Pr/wr, Newspr Beloit
Prom = promo-
1. Flotation/ washing system. Abbreviations: Ctd = coated; Unctd = uncoated; FBB = folding boxboard; No = newspaper, Mag = magazines;
HPBK = heavily
tional material; Led = ledgers; List = computer listings; Pr/wr = printings/writings; Wdentng = woodcontaining paper, Wf = woodfree paper,
printed bleached kraft.
cP rg TS nS nt ESE

Deinking Equipment Demand Increases 137

 Voith’s new flotation cell is
elliptical for better air flow.

HYLTE SHOWS THE WAY. This year’s reference list in new deinking lines for tissue production in 1989, up
from Beloit also shows an increasing use of combined from 25% in 1988.
flotation-washing deinking systems. One 500-tpd line is Lamort’s opinion on stickies and varnishes is that hot
at Hylte Bruk in Sweden. It uses Beloit’s Pressurized dispersion is not sufficient. Removal is the only cure.
Deinking Modules (PDMs) for the deinking process. Im- The T version of its Gyroclean is said to develop an effi-
mediately after these, stock is treated in the forward ciency of 95 to 99%, compared with 70 to 75% for con-
cleaners and is then thickened and diluted four times in ventional reverse cyclones in a single stage or lower
Hedemora disc filters and Thune screw presses. An with two or three stages. The new unit, which has a ca-
after-flotation stage, with two more PDM units, is used pacity of up to 520 m3/hour at 1.6% consistency, can be
to remove residual ink. placed before or after flotation. For removing varnish
and lacquer specks, Lamort has introduced the ELP 136,
DEINKING STARTS WITH THE PULPER. Reviewing de- 3-in. cleaner. It is said to develop efficiencies of 85 to
velopments in deinked pulp for tissue making, French 95%.
group Lamort says that new printing inks, lacquers and Turning to newsprint production, Lamort says the
contaminants, present in increasing quantities, have re- deinking line put on the pulping equipment should
quired changes to the traditional washing-hot dispersion integrate flotation deinking and washing, depending
line. The company says it believes deinking starts with on grammage and the percentage of deinked pulp used.
the repulping equipment. Its Helico Pulper is designed Again, stress is put on the deinking equipment, which
to achieve ink detachment and ink calibration adapted should allow efficient ink detachment. For removing
to washing or flotation deinking. Industrial studies using stickies, Lamort quotes a trial using a Gyroclean T
laser inks have shown that the dot count is reduced by at a European newsprint mill. The mill used the unit
at least 50% when changing from a low consistency to a to clean 45% to 50% of the deinked pulp flow to its
Helipoire system, adds the company. twin-wire paper machine. As a result, any unplanned
Flotation deinking is now commonly used in tissue downtime for wire cleaning has been el minated, , Says
systems for removing ink specks that would not other- Lamort. _
wise be washed out. Plug-free MT injectors and the abil- Finally, on printings /writings, tenor saysthat a ma-
ity to operate with double or single aeration are features jor development is selective flotation of washer { ltrate.
of the group’s Verticel flotation deinking cell. The com- The combined high-yield, Wasting otaiian “sy
pany says the Verticel achieved a market share of 35% said to result in high ae

138
Deinking Technology
 Chapter 33

Chemical Application Expands in

Washing/Flotation Deinking Systems
Synthetic, active liquids called displectors provide good adhesion
and superior results in combination washing /flotation systems

By ROBERT G. HORACEK and BENGT JARREHULT

CHEMICAL MECHANISMS. A typical surfactant is il-
lustrated in Figure 3, with the hydrophobic part to the
Des in North America was once performed al- left and the hydrophilic part to the right. The hydropho-
most completely by multiple-stage washing sys- bic part may consist of fatty alcohols, alkylphenols or
tems. This technology relied on the use of dispersants to other oil-soluble substances. The hydrophilic part con-
diffuse ink into colloidal particles below 30 microns. sists of cationic, nonionic or anionic molecules. When a
This was possible with conventional printing processes, surfactant is drawn like this it is usually an anionic sur-
but is not possible with the use of heavily coated, highly factant with a part consisting of a glycol chain.
polymerized, or nonimpact inks, such as ultraviolet, A primary requirement for effective washing is fine
heat-set, Xerox, laser and ink jet. The explosion of the ink dispersion so that particles can pass through the fi-
computer age has had the biggest single effect on deink- ber network and screen of a washing device. Conven-
ing system design due to the proliferation of nonimpact tional washing dispersants lower the surface tension to
inks and the related difficulty and high cost of obtaining improve penetration of the area where the ink is in con-
wastepaper containing fully dispersible inks. This has tact with the fiber, and by hydrophobic interaction they
caused many North American deinking mills to add attach their hydrophobic chain to the ink particle.
froth flotation modules. Thereby, the hydrophilic part is directed toward the wa-
Dilution washing is the mechanical process of rinsing ter phase. The particles covered with a hydrophilic lay-
dispersed ink particles from pulp. Ink-laden washing ef- er are commonly called mycelles and will not adhere to
fluent is clarified to concentrate ink for economical other surfaces in the solution.
treatment and disposal, and recycling of second- or As in washing, flotation starts with the removing and
third- washer effluent is a typical way of minimizing _ washing of particles, but the same degree of dispersion
water consumption. Froth flotation, or dispersed air flo- is not required. A collector is added to agglomerate ink
tation, is the chemimechanical process of selectively into larger particles and attach them to the air bubbles.
floating ink particles from dilute pulp. As much as 20 to Collectors are required for effective flotation and are
25% air (by volume) is injected or drawn into pulp to usually anionic molecules or micron-size particles cov-
provide bubbles to pick up the particles. The concen- ered with anionic molecules (fatty acid). Fatty acid col-
trated foam is removed from the surface for further lectors are precipitated with calcium or aluminum ions
treatment and disposal. to form larger, insoluble aggregates from ink particles
In almost every modified system, washing equipment and collector particles. With injection of air in the flota-
has been retained to remove dispersible inks and ash, tion cells, the agglomerated ink particles adhere to the
and the modified systems are referred to as combination bubbles, rise to the surface and are skimmed from the
or hybrid washing/flotation systems. Chemically, this system.
creates a substantial problem. This is because effective Because of the importance of ink particle size in rela-
washing depends on rendering ink particles hydrophilic tion to removal efficiency by various types of equip-
(attracted to water) so they are removed with washing ment, it is always important to have a clear idea of the
effluent, while flotation requires particles to be hydro- waste furnish and inks to be encountered. Optimum flo-
phobic (repels from water) for proper collection and at- tation, just as in washing, requires ink particles to be in
tachment to bubbles. a certain size range. If they are too small, the collision
with a rising air bubble will not occur. When they are
too big, they are more likely to be knocked off a bubble
Mr. Horacek, formerly with Berol Chemicals Inc., is now eastern
regional manager, Lion Industries Inc., and Mr. Jarrehult is with
before it reaches the surface. Particles must also be suf-
Eka Nobel Inc., Paper Chemicals Division. ficiently hydrophobic to be accepted by the air bubble.

Washing/Flotation Deinking 139

 When they are too hydrophilic, they will be repelled, ber surface. The collecting action does not work on the
which is the primary reason washing dispersants are not principle of calcium bridging and, therefore, is not as
effective for flotation. pronounced as with the fatty acid/calcium chloride ap-
proach. Displectors make possible the removal of ink
DEVELOPMENT OF SYSTEM TECHNOLOGY. As pre- with washing equipment, which does not occur with flo-
viously discussed, the wide particle size distribution tation collectors.
commonly encountered in many waste furnishes has led The benefits of displector application in combination
to installation of flotation and washing equipment in the systems are illustrated by comparing results with news-
same systems. Berol, now part of Nobel Industries Paper print/magazine wastepaper (Figure 4). In the flotation
Chemical (NIPC) group, saw the need for more effective module, the use of a dispersant results in a large amount
products for combination systems and several years ago of foam, but it does not carry much ink and increased
developed a series of dispersant/collector systems as brightness is marginal. In the washing section, however,
well as a unique series of single-product ‘‘displector”’ a pronounced increase in brightness is achieved because
(DISP-ersant /col-LECTOR) formulations. of the finely dispersed ink. Using the fatty acid/calcium
Displectors are synthetic, 100%-active liquids and chloride collector system, a very good flotation effect is
have become particularly popular in North America due indicated with the flotation module, but washing de-
to their simplicity and effectiveness. They provide good vices provide virtually no ink removal.
adhesion to air bubbles in flotation and are so hydro- Since the displector is necessarily a compromise, re-
philic that fine particles do not reprecipitate onto the fi- sults are not always quite as good as with the collector

FIGURE 1: Washing. FIGURE 2: Flotation.

140
Deinking Technology
in flotation, but there can be significant removal in e Reducing or eliminating use of bleach or optical
washing. The combined effect is, therefore, almost al- brighteners while maintaining desired brightness
ways superior to either a dispersant or a collector. e Reducing chemical addition and overall costs vs
Whenever a waste furnish containing a wide variety of washing dispersants
ink particle sizes is used, the combination system and e Improving quality and process stability and elimi-
displector chemistry will provide superior results. nating process buildups that previously occurred
In addition to superior results in combination wa- with the use of fatty acid/calcium chloride
shing/flotation systems, displectors also offer additional e Operating at changing temperatures and process
process advantages over the conventional fatty acid /cal- conditions.
cium chloride approach: Quality in these mills has reached 60 to 62 brightness
e They are 100%-active liquids, easy to handle and (GE) with newsprint/magazine furnishes and 81 to 82
store. with groundwood-free furnishes. Berol has also been
e They require no makeup or dilution before use. able to help pinpoint mechanical and process deficien-
e They require no calcium chloride addition or hard- cies in several cases during optimization work, which
ness monitoring/adjustment (especially important helped improve the overall system effectiveness. a
in areas having soft water).
e They are stable and do not depend on balance of
hardness and soaps for effectiveness. FIGURE 3: Elementary surface chemistry.
e They will not result in or contribute to scaling on
equipment in any part of the system.
e They result in very low carryover from the deinking
system, causing virtually no impact on other paper
mill operations, including the yankee coating or siz-
ing, and will not cause organic buildup on tissue
machine wires and felts.
e They result in no acid formation or in any related
damage.
e They result in lower fiber losses.

COMMERCIAL APPLICATION. Currently, there are

ten combination washing/flotation deinking installa-
tions in North America that use Berol displectors. These
systems cover the widest variety of applications, includ-
ing waste furnishes such as newsprint/magazine, var-
ious mixtures of groundwood-free grades and high pro-
portions of Xerox, laser, and ink-jet print. The wash-
ing/flotation systems range from the very simple to the
FIGURE 4: Brightness raise with flotation/wash
most technically up-to-date and sophisticated sys-
tems.The flotation module is located in several different
system locations.
Berol has developed related displectors to meet spe-
cific mill conditions or needs in several instances. After
flotation startups, several mills continued to add the sol-
vent-based dispersant used previously for washing, in
addition to the displector. However, subsequent testing
confirmed that results were as good or better using the
displector alone, and the dispersants were eliminated.
This significantly reduced their chemical costs in addi-
tion to improving product quality.
With use of the displector and combination washing/
flotation technology, these systems have been able to
achieve many of their objectives:
e Downgrading waste furnishes to cheaper grades
e Achieving sufficient quality to displace expensive
bleached market pulp
e Achieving effective ink removal with high concen-
trations of laser and other nonimpact inks

Washing/Flotation Deinking
 Chapter 34

Fiber Substitution with Pulper

Deinking Reduces Furnish Costs
Inks are either removed from the fibers without further mechanical
treatment or dispersed well enough not to cause operating problems

the furnish, using appropriate deinking chemicals, and

By T.W. WOODWARD
carefully controlling pulping conditions. All are equally
important in achieving the objective.
onventional deinking involves mechanical treat-
ment following repulping for separating ink parti- PULPER DEINKING CHEMISTRY. The functions of
cles from fiber. Pulper deinking is an alternative method pulper deinking chemicals are similar to the functions
in which the inks are solubilized, dispersed, or other- of chemicals in a washing deinking system, the main
wise rendered innocuous in the pulper without further difference being the degree of chemical] action. Deinking
mechanical treatment. chemicals must be chosen very carefully relative to fur-
Pulper deinking allows mills with no deinking facili- nish type, pulping parameters, paper forming equip-
ties that are using uninked or lightly inked waste as fur- ment, and final sheet characteristics.
nish to downgrade their furnish to printed or heavily Both positive and negative effects of residual deink-
printed material without sacrificing product quality. As ing chemicals on system operation and sheet quality
a result, cost savings to mills of $20 to $25/ton can be must be anticipated, and proper steps must be taken to
achieved. compensate for them. Printed wastepaper containing
Many paper and board mills using virgin pulp, un- inks that cannot be rendered innocuous in the pulper
printed pulp substitute, or lightly printed secondary fi- must be removed by prescreening.
ber can considerably reduce furnish costs by utilizing
more heavily printed waste. Conventional deinking fa- LABORATORY TESTING. Many questions concerning
cilities allow this substitution by removing the ink from the viability of pulper deinking can be answered with a
the fiber and subjecting the fiber/ink suspensions to a thorough laboratory investigation. The following factors
mechanical treatment (e.g., washing and/or flotation), should be determined in the laboratory:
which separates the ink from the fiber. e Types of furnish that are candidates for substitution
In pulper deinking, inks are removed from the fibers e Levels of deinking furnish that can be tolerated
and rendered innocuous in the pulper without further e Necessary pulping parameters
mechanical treatment. This is accomplished by careful- e Chemicals and addition levels required
ly adjusting the chemistry of the pulper to achieve maxi- e Impact on sheet quality (including optical and phys-
mum ink breakup, emulsification, peptization, and dis- ical properties).
persion. The objective is for most of the ink to be This preliminary laboratory work is mandatory for all
removed from the pulp during the papermaking process potential pulper deinking applications. Once this infor-
and the remainder to be retained in the final sheet with- mation is obtained, a systematic program approach can
out adversely affecting sheet quality. The main advan- be developed for each mill situation.
tage to the mill is a significant reduction in furnish
costs without the addition of capital-intensive deinking PRESCREENING. As mentioned previously, pulper
equipment and systems. deinking programs are designed for specific wastepaper
For pulper deinking to be viable, inks must be broken grades. Therefore, an effective prescreening procedure
up and dispersed into small enough particle sizes (less is critical to the success of the program. A unique spot
than 0.10 microns) so that ink particles remaining with test has been developed for use on coated paper and pa-
the sheet do not affect the quality of the finished prod- perboard waste. If incoming secondary fiber passes the
uct. This can be accomplished by carefully prescreening spot test, it is certain that inks and coatings will be prop-
erly processed in the mill system. Careful prescreening
Mr. Woodward is manager-specialty chemicals, Betz with the spot test eliminates the possibility of costly
Paperchem Inc., Jacksonville, Fla. contamination and assures optimum sheet quality.

142
Deinking Technology
 In applications utilizing ledger and computer print-
out (CPO) waste, microscopic techniques can be used to
identify laser-printed material. If uncertainty still exists
about using any waste fiber, the laboratory pulper can
provide a clear picture of how the furnish will deink by
simulating actual operating parameters and chemical
additions.

TOTAL SYSTEM APPROACH. Pulper deinking is via-

ble only when all factors affecting the outcome are con-
sidered. Addition of deinking chemicals to the pulper
represents just a small portion of the overall effort re-
quired to make the program successful.
Pulping parameters, such as pH, temperature, time,
L
A spot test prescreens coated paper and paperboard waste.
consistency, mechanical action, and chemical addition,
have a major impact on deinking efficiency in the
pulper. Each of these must be controlled and optimized ily printed bleached sulfate (HPBS) at a treatment cost of
to ensure the success of a pulper deinking program. $35/ton, which includes the cost of caustic for pH con-
The potential impact of new furnish and deinking trol. The savings for the mill are as follows:
chemicals on machine operation and sheet quality must
be addressed. Pulper deinking can have a residual
Previous topliner furnish cost $230.00
chemical effect in the following areas of papermaking: 100% HPBS @ $170/ton — 170.00
refining, fiber bonding, drainage, sizing, forming, reten- Deinking cost = 39:00
tion, deposit control, and pressing and drying. The rela- Savings of topliner furnish ($/ton) $25.00
tive importance of each of these factors will vary from
mill to mill. They do point out, however, the importance If this was an uncoated boxboard mill, a recommenda-
of implementing a carefully planned deinking program tion might include substitution of LPBS at $230/ton for
that encompasses many parameters and considerations the pulp substitutes currently being used, which might
other than a specific deinking product selection. For fi- frequently be hard-whites or envelope cuttings ($420/
ber substitution by pulper deinking to be successful, it is ton).
extremely important that each application be studied Tissue and toweling. In the tissue and towel industry,
from this total systems approach so that problems are pulper deinking can be an effective means of reducing
anticipated and addressed prior to the initiation of a costs by a partial or total substitution of a lightly or
program. heavily printed bleached board into furnishes that con-
tain 100% envelope cuttings or 100% unprinted solid
PULPER DEINKING OPPORTUNITIES. Replacing ex- bleached sulfate.
pensive white or lightly printed furnish via deinking, The following scenario is for a 50% furnish substitu-
without major capital expenditures, and by a less costly tion of LPBS with a pulper deinking treatment cost of
inked furnish is the primary objective of pulper deink- $30/ton (this includes the cost of caustic for pH control):
ing. The following examples demonstrate cost-saving
opportunities available through pulper deinking. All Envelope Unprinted
prices are based on wastepaper costs quoted for second- Previous furnish cost $420.00 $500.00
New furnish:
quarter 1988. 50% of above — 210.00 — 250.00
Coated boxboard. Pulper deinking allows use of low- 50% LPBS @ $230/ton =o) eos OO)
er-cost substitutes for market pulp and/or the unprinted Deinking cost = 15700 000)
or lightly printed grades currently used in top liner, un- Savings ($/ton) $ 80.00 $120.00
derliner, or bottom liner. In the following case, the top
liner furnish consists of 75% lightly printed bleached SUMMARY. The traditional deinking process uses
sulfate (LPBS) and 25% forms ledger: mechanical systems to provide suitable furnish from
printed waste stocks. Pulper deinking is an alternative
75% LPBS @ $230/ton $172.50 method that allows many secondary fiber mills pulping
25% white ledger @ $230/ton 57.50 high-quality white pulp substitutes to use more heavily
Costs ($/ton) $230.00 printed wastes. The mills achieve a quality finish with-
out additional equipment. A pulper deinking program is
Since the mill produces coated board, ink needs only to complex, and many factors other than merely adding
be dispersed finely enough so as not to show through the deinking chemicals to a pulper must be carefully con-
coating. Pulper deinking allowed the use of 100% heav- sidered to make the program work. a

Fiber Substitution with Pulper Deinking 143

 Chapter 35

Flotation Deinking Is Critical in

Unit Process Method of Deinking
Integral unit processes are required for making a flotation
operation a viable system for removing inks from usable fiber

times large, are shaped like plates, are not stiff, and tend
By ANDY HARRISON, Technical Editor to pass through screen slots and larger perforations.

Daw is the process of removing the ink from us- THE DEINKING SYSTEM. Deinking systems are inte-
able paper fiber. Improved deinking technology in gral processes made up of separate unit operations.
the past few years has allowed more recycled fiber use Many systems use only some of these unit operations.
in the papermaking process while maintaining and im- The mechanisms of removal are based on different prin-
proving quality of the final product. This has been ciples of operation. Ultimately, the design must be pat-
achieved due to better understanding of deinking tech- terned after the type of furnish used and the finished
nology (see sidebar), improved equipment, and more ef- pulp required.
ficient chemicals for ink removal. The most prominent Though ink particles are typically in the range where
deinking process today is the flotation system. This pro- flotation is most efficient, other contaminants are nor-
cess removes the largest range of ink particles found in mally found in wastepaper containing ink. Other types
wastepaper and, when used in combination with var- of removal equipment, such as cleaners and screens, are
ious other deinking processes and specific chemical ad- found in deinking processes because contaminants like
ditives, can remove virtually all types of ink particles. stickies and plastics are removed as well. In addition,
The deinking process of separating ink particles from cleaners and screens remove the inks that flotation sys-
usable fibers is done by submitting printed wastepaper tems have difficulty handling. In combination, the var-
to a number of component systems. The individual sys- ious systems work together to remove many varieties of
tems can be used in combinations or singularly depend- contaminants and the widest range of ink particles.
ing on type of furnish used and quality of finished prod- The following are brief descriptions and operating
uct required. parameters of some of the processes used in the deink-
Different ink particle sizes require various types of ing system.
equipment for effective removal. Figure 1 shows the Pulper. Pulping, which is usually performed on a
comparison of removal efficiencies vs particle size. The batch basis, is where the wastepaper and chemicals are
diagram shows that washing efficiency is best at a range added. Separation of the ink particles from the fiber be-
between 1 and 10 microns. Flotation efficiency is high gins as fiber-to-fiber action, and chemical reaction with
through the next range of 10 to 150 microns. Cleaning the ink vehicle causes dispersion of the ink particles.
equipment works best at 100 to 1,000 microns and Deinking plants use higher-consistency pulpers, up to
screening at 1,000 microns and above. 15% consistency, with helical impellers to achieve the
Figure 1 also indicates other factors of ink particle best rubbing action between fibers.
properties that relate to the efficiency of each deinking Alkaline-based chemicals are also added to disinte-
process. In the washing process, where water is separat- grate wastepaper into an ink-pulp solution. Ink separa-
ed from the fiber, particles that are hydrophilic (attract- tion from the fiber can then be achieved in the subse-
ed to water) tend to go along with the water as the fiber quent process.
solution is dewatered. In the flotation process, where air Screening. The screening system consists of slotted or
and chemicals are added to the solution, particles that perforated pressure screens and tailing screens. These
are hydrophobic (repel water) tend to attach themselves screens are used to remove plastics, Styrofoam, and
to the air/chemical additives, hence separating from the stickies.* Separation of contaminants from fiber occurs
fiber. Cleaning systems work on differences in specific due to the variance in size and stiffness. Ink particles are
gravity and tend to remove ink particles that are rela- shaped like plates and are pliable. Therefore, they are
tively large. Screening technology is an effective remov- more apt to align themselves with the paper fiber and
er of large, stiff particles. Ink particles, though some- pass through the screen slot. This phenomenon makes

144
Deinking Technology
screening very poor for removing ink. However, screen- to the top of the cell where a foam is produced. The ink-
ing is the most efficient way of removing stickies typi- laden foam is then taken off by skimmers or vacuum.
cally found in most printed paper waste furnishes. Flotation is the most effective method of ink removal,
Cleaning. Cleaners can be broken down into two especially in the 10 to 150 micron range, where the ma-
groups: light cleaners and heavy cleaners. The premise jority of ink particles are found. Below 10 microns, flota-
of cleaning technology is based on specific gravity. Light tion is not as effective.
cleaners, or through-flow cleaners (reverse cleaning), Washing. Types of washers include gravity deckers,
separate contaminants that are less than the specific sidehill screens, dewatering screws, and twin-wire ma-
gravity of water or density of 1. Heavy cleaners, or for- chines (Figure 2). The method of removal is simply to
ward cleaners, separate contaminants greater than 1. dewater the fiber and take along the ink particles with
Cleaners remove specks most efficiently and ink parti- -the water. Small particles, typically below 10 microns,
cles in the 100-to-1,000-micron range. are more likely to be removed by washing. As the size
Flotation. The flotation system consists of a flotation gets larger, the particles tend to be trapped in the fiber
cell or combination of cells that are injected with a matrix, making removal more difficult. Washing effi-
waste fiber solution. Tiny air bubbles and chemicals are ciency begins to decrease as particle size dips below 1
mixed with the waste fiber solution. Chemical addition micron because the particles adhere to the fiber surface.
helps separate ink from the fibers. After separation oc- Dispersion. This method of treatment breaks the
curs, the air bubbles attach to the ink particles and rise ink down into small fragments that are undetectable by

FIGURE 1: Removal efficiency of varying unit operations depends on particle size of the contaminant and other properties.

Flotation Deinking in Unit Process Method 145

the naked eye. The ink particles are not actually re- which are created by adding chemicals to the system
moved but dispersed into the fiber. Dispersion can be prior to the flotation cells. Typical chemicals used are
accomplished by chemical addition, steam injection, or described in Table 1. The equipment, design, and theory
mechanical mixing units. Though dispersion hides de- of flotation deinking of various vendors are examined in
tectable ink particles from sight, the side effect is a the following examples.
darker pulp. To counter this problem, many mills add Beloit. The Beloit deinking flotation cell is a selective
bleach to give whiteness to the pulp, although this does flotation process in which ink particles are attached to
not always work. air bubbles that rise to the surface of the pulp, producing
inky foam that is then removed. The Lineacell, intro-
FLOTATION DEINKING. The flotation process has duced in 1983 (Figure 3), and the Pressure Deinking
emerged as the dominant deinking method. The sepa- Module (PDM), introduced in 1987, are Beloit first- and
ration process requires specific chemical conditions, second-generation deinking cells. The mechanism of

FIGURE 2: BEW’s Vario split washer effectively removes small particles.

FIGURE 3: Beloit’s flotation deink cell removes ink particles with virtually no fiber loss.

i
))
-ARNANERRRR

Deinking Technology
flotation of these units can be divided into three stages. The injector works according to the venturi principle,
1. Aeration of the ink suspension by controlling the without any external blowers or compressors. The high
exact amount of air into the stock and breaking turbulence in the pulse exchange pipe ensures frequent
this up into controlled bubble size contact of air bubbles and ink particles, resulting in
2. Mixing and attachment of the ink particles and air good ink collection. Those ink-laden air bubbles then
bubbles, forming an ink bubble complex or foam rise to the surface of the deinking cell, forming a black
3. Separation of foam from the fiber solution. froth that overflows into the foam trough.
In the aeration zone, air is added with accurate con- The basic design and main dimensions of the injector
trol into the flow stock. Many tiny bubbles are produced determine the specific air intake related to pulp flow,
at approximately five times the ink particle size to ob- whereas the available energy mainly controls air disper-
tain maximum ink particle removal. These bubbles are sion. For the efficiency of the injector, the most impor-
generated hydraulically in the aeration and mixing tant parameters are specific airflow, specific energy, and
zones. Ideal sizing of the bubbles is achieved by adding throughput through the single injector. Provided the air
chemicals, such as surfactant to reduce bubble size, and bubble diameter is regarded as constant, the efficiency
optimizing the geometry of the aeration zone. of an injector increases with increasing airflow simply
The mixing zone improves the attachment of ink par- because higher airflow rates mean a larger surface area
ticles to air bubbles by increasing the intensity and fre- for ink particle collection. There is a limitation beyond a
quency of collisions. By using micro-turbulence, this certain specific airflow rate. Further improvement of ef-
process is optimized, increasing ink removal efficiency. ficiency does not occur when the injector design no
PDM makes use of high pressure to increase the ink-to- longer allows complete dispersion of the high amount of
air mixing action by further controlling the size and air.
amount of air bubbles. The mixing zone is the most Each injector design has its own specific air-intake
critical stage in the process since attachment of ink par- characteristic. Voith multi-injectors have optimum air-
ticles to air bubbles is crucial to the success of flotation flow rates of approximately 50% of the pulp flow
deinking. pumped from cell to cell. High energy input improves
The separation zone brings the foam to the surface of flotation efficiency by better dispersing the air into fine
the stock where the foam is then taken off with a mini- bubbles.
mum of fiber removal. The Lineacell uses a vacuum sys- All injector designs have optimum throughput. Any
tem designed to remove only the foam and not the fiber deviation from that optimum reduces the efficiency re-
stock. PDM uses internal pressure to expel the foam re- markably. Consequently, each injector flotation system
jects directly to the rejects handling unit. should always be operated at that optimum flow rate. To
Voith. The Voith flotation unit is the Multi-Injector- overcome throughput variation, Voith developed tubu-
Cell. The object of the Multi-Injector-Cell is the com- lar flotation cells that are connected to each other by
plete separation of the inks from the fibers. Optimal large openings in the sidewalls. These openings permit a
efficiency is achieved by developing the relevant param- balance of flows in case the actual throughput is less
eters of the flotation machine, which include the specif- than the nominal flow. This important feature allows
ic air load, the energy applied for dispersing the air into the injectors to always operate at their optimum, despite
fine bubbles, and the injector design. the actual production rate. Even a reduction to 50% of
The phenomena in Voith’s
flotation cell can be broken TABLE 1: Major chemicals used in the flotation process.
down into the following sin-
gle actions:
ePumping the pulp from
cell to cell
e Air intake by the injector
e Dispersing air into fine
bubbles
e Collecting the ink parti-
cles on the air bubbles
e Separating air from the
cleaned pulp
e Separating the ink-laden
froth.
Air intake, air dispersion,
and collection of the ink par-
ticles on the air bubbles take
place in the injector itself.

Flotation Deinking in Unit Process Method 147

the designed capacity is possible without any interven- Flotation is performed at consistencies up to 1.3%
tion of the operator. through two Fiberprep/Lamort Verticel Deink Cells in-
Other important features of the Voith flotation cells stalled in series. These are double-aeration units with
are the large diameter of the injector nozzles, to prevent 100% recirculation in each cell. Air introduction is ac-
any plugging by coarser impurities, and the closed tubu- complished with venturi-type injectors, without requir-
lar design, to avoid any ink-laden vapors. ing external compressed air. This air is mixed in the in-
Fiberprep. New printing processes, new types of ink, jectors with the incoming stock, ensuring complete
and varying impressions require careful consideration mixing and availability of sufficient air for entrapment
when designing a system for deinking all grades of pa- of ink particles over the full system to provide a means
per. Considerations are based on raw materials, end use, of floating the ink from the system. These injectors are
quality requirement of the final paper product, and op- designed with large orifices for trouble-free operation.
erating cost. The stock circulates upward and then overflows
The flotation process is designed to remove all free downward toward the accept of the cell. A portion of ac-
inks from the pulp slurry (Figure 4). Air is injected in cept stock from each cell is recirculated and reaerated to
volumes of approximately 30% relative to stock flow provide a final polishing effect before its discharge.
through injectors that are designed to efficiently mix the The Verticel system requires no secondary cells for
air (in bubble form) with the inlet stock stream. The air fiber recovery. The positive removal of foam is done
bubbles trap the ink particles and carry them to the top through a vacuum system, resulting in system fiber
of the cell for removal. losses of less than 2%.
Design of the injectors is critical. The incoming pulp Black Clawson. Flotation deinking has become much
must be passed at the correct velocities to effect proper more common in removing today’s difficult-to-remove
shear forces, and the air must be introduced at the exact inks, such as laser printing and copier printing. The
point of pressure transition to ensure bubble formation Black Clawson flotation machine is the Ultra Cell, a
at the size proper for trapping and conveying the inks. multistage unit that can be operated with a single pump.
Based on mill experience, four air-stock sequences Consistency of 1% stock is pumped into the upper cell
are required to achieve 100% removal of the free, float- and then gravity-fed to the remaining cells. Air is intro-
able ink. In the Verticel system, 4.6 such contacts occur. duced into the furnish by a variable-speed diffuser,

FIGURE 4: Fiberprep flotation deinking loop.

148
Deinking Technology
which provides precise bubble size control. Additional spirals toward the center. The foam discharges by grav-
diffusers may be used at each individual cell location ity, feeding into a centrally located collecting pipe. The
for multiple introduction of air. As the ink-laden froth accepts flow out the bottom, where level control is be-
rises to the surface, self-adjusting floating skimmers re- low the fluid line. The accepts can go through another
move the contaminants. The process is repeated in each deinking cell to ensure absolute ink removal. A typical
cell until all of the accepts and rejects are discharged flotation system has four flotation cells in series, de-
from the bottom of the unit. pending on throughput and deinking requirements.
Black Clawson’s philosophy toward flotation deink- BEW believes that flotation will continue to be an im-
ing is to interact the flotation cell process with other portant technique in the future. As the types of contami-
deinking processes. For example, chemical addition in nation increase and become more complicated, the tech-
the pulper provides better mixing and allows the use of -nology to separate ink from fiber, improve overall
a simplified chemical addition in the flotation cell. High brightness, and reduce fine contents will also improve.
clay content and removal in the flotation cell enhances Environmental compatibility will improve as well. @
flotation efficiency but also reduces washer load and
improves washer efficiency.
REFERENCES
Bird Escher Wyss. The CF Deinking Cell, the flota- John Mattingley, “Chemical Use and Cost in Flotation Deinking,”
tion unit by BEW, uses a unique aeration principle to ac- Pulp & Paper International 20, no. 6 (1978): 64.
quire proper dispersion and separation of ink particles Lothar Pfalzar, ‘“‘Deinking Technology and its Application in
at low operating costs. Air bubbles are introduced into Waste Paper Recycling” (Voith Inc.).
W.H. Siewert, Future Stock Preparation Development Trends.
the flotation cell by a step diffuser. The self-suction ef- Michael A. McCool and Luigi Silveri, “Removal of specks and
fect of the step diffuser creates efficient aeration with- nondispersed ink from a deinking furnish,” Tappi Journal 70,
out the use of compressed air. Air and gray stock are first no. 11 (1987): 75.
mixed in the narrow portion of the diffuser. Then, they Jaakko Péyry Oy, “Today We Know More about the Deinking Pro-
flow through the larger-diameter section of the diffuser cess” (Sulzer Escher Wyss Inc.).
Michael A. McCool and C.J. Taylor, “Image analysis techniques in
where the flow of the suspension is reduced, resulting recycled fiber,” Tappi Journal 66, no. 8 (1983): 69.
in low flow speeds and low flotation tank turbulence. As Peter E. DeBlanc and Michael A. McCool, “Recycling and separa-
the suspension enters the cell, foam floats to the top and tion Technology” (Beloit Corp.).

Flotation Deinking in Unit Process Method 149

 Chapter 36

Proper Deinking Chemistry, Bleaching

Technique Crucial to Pulp Brightness
Bleaching trials of deinked groundwood grades show that understanding
residual ink’s impact on brightness will help improve pulp quality

count for 36% of the total. When Canadian production is

By MICHAEL DODSON and LOWELL DEAN
included, more than 20 million tpy could potentially be
recycled in North America.
Te U.S. paper industry has historically recycled
about one-fourth of its total production, except WASTEPAPER QUALITY. A readily available supply
during World War II. This rate is approximately half that of wastepaper is not enough. The resulting pulp must
of countries with limited natural resources, such as have adequate quality for its final end use at competi-
Great Britain, Holland, or Japan. The U.S. recycling rate tive manufacturing costs. The key pulp quality issues
peaked during the war years at 35% due to the need for are strength at a reasonable drainage rate and good opti-
conservation of raw materials. After the war, legislation cal properties (brightness, opacity, and cleanliness). This
was passed to stimulate the development of natural re- article deals with the brightness quality spectrum that
sources, which gave the production of finished goods can be expected from peroxide and hydrosulfite bleach-
from virgin materials a distinct economic advantage. ing of deinked groundwood content pulps.
Although newspaper was recycled during the war, Various key factors determine the brightness of de-
afterwards, until the mid-1970s, recycling back into inked pulp. They include the following:
newsprint was practiced by only one corporation, Gar- e Type of wastepaper
den State Paper. In the mid-70s, three mills in the U.S. e Pulping/deinking chemistry
began recycling newspaper because of wood supply e Efficiency of ink removal by washing or flotation
limitations. Before that, most deinking was conducted equipment
with wood-free wastepaper, mainly for tissue produc- e Amount and efficiency of water clarification
tion and to a lesser degree printing and writing paper. e Bleaching method.
Wood-free grades have become less available, forcing Meeting quality expectations requires good perfor-
major wastepaper consumers to evaluate groundwood mance in all areas. Furthermore, since many of these
wastepaper grades. Also, over the next decade more factors are interrelated, there may be compromises be-
high-quality mechanical fiber will be used in tradition- tween them. This places a great importance on field op-
al wood-free grades, with the increased acceptance of
bleached chemi-thermomechanical pulp (BCTMP). As the TABLE 1: Groundwood grades (newsprint, uncoated
use of groundwood grades increases, so will the need for groundwood, coated groundwood) account for a significant
upgrading quality through bleaching technology. portion of paper production, making those grades major
candidates for recycling.
Why should there be an interest in recycling ground-
wood grades? Table 1 lists the U.S. production of all
1989
grades of paper and paperboard. As the table shows,
annualized'
groundwood grades (newsprint, uncoated groundwood,
Newsprint 6,088
coated groundwood) account for a significant portion of Uncoated groundwood 1,754
total paper production. In fact, the 11.7 million tons ac- Coated groundwood 3,894
count for 31% of 1989’s paper production and, if tissue is Coated free-sheet? 3,300
excluded (much being unrecyclable), these grades ac- Uncoated free-sheet 11,043
Other printing/writing 1,494
Packaging and other paper 4,925
Mr. Dodson is southeast regional manager, and Mr. Dean is Tissue 5,636
manager-chemical sales, Lion Industries, Vancouver, Wash. Total paper 38,133
Total paperboard 38,492
Total paper and paperboard 76,625

1. American Paper Institute.

2. Pulp & Paper estimate.
timization of deinking chemistry, water clarification, FIGURE 1: Good brightness can be obtained through application
and bleaching conditions. of peroxide up to 1%. However, increasing the application level
The type and quality of the paper furnish is probably further gives only incremental improvement.
the major factor in determining ultimate brightness de-
velopment of deinked pulps. The proper wastepaper
grade should be selected based on the final product with
respect to strength and optical property needs. Both the
proper grade and the age and homogeneity of the fur-
nish are important.
Lower-quality grades can contaminate wastepaper
and must be avoided. Adherence to guidelines such as
the paperstock standards and practices of the Paper
Stock Institute of America are effective in minimizing
contamination. Age of the wastepaper is also important,
especially in groundwood grades, which are more sus-
ceptible to yellowing from light than wood-free grades.
Even short periods (less than six months) of aging can
result in the loss of one or two brightness points. Severe
aging or yellowing from sunlight will result in even low-
er brightness and ink removal problems.
In general, newsprint brightness varies depending on
the region where it was manufactured. West Coast 100% newsprint, 60% newsprint /40% coated magazine,
newsprint produced from darker wood species is nor- and 100% coated magazine. The information on 100%
mally about 55 brightness, while southern newsprint is newsprint is a compilation of data accumulated during
approximately 57 and eastern Canadian and northeast- 16 years of bleaching of commercially generated de-
ern U.S. newsprints are normally 59 and higher. Since inked pulps. This is supplemented by recent work on a
newsprint sales tend to be regionalized, it can be antici- commercial pulp made from a 60% newsprint/40%
pated that deinked pulp brightness will be dependent on magazine furnish and a lab pulp made by simulating a
the region in which the wastepaper is collected. flotation/washing system from 100% magazine stock.
The majority of coated groundwood paper is No. 5
grade, although there is also production in the higher- 100% NEWSPRINT BLEACHING. Deinked pulps do not
quality No. 4 grade. Much of this production has low ba- respond as well to bleaching as virgin pulps.’ For in-
sis weight and is used in magazines. The basesheet stance, in peroxide bleaching of mechanical pulps, six to
brightness for No. 5 paper is typically 64 to 70 brightness eight point increases can be expected from 1%, 12 to 15
depending on individual mill quality specifications, points from 2%, and 17 to 18 points from 3%. These
coating coverage, and coating brightness. numbers can be contrasted with the curve in Figure 1.
The uncoated groundwood grades have the widest Good response is obtained with up to 1% peroxide ap-
range of brightness levels. Upgraded or specialty news- plied. However, increasing the application level further
print is on the low end of the spectrum at 61 to 65 bright- gives only incremental improvement.
ness, while some supercalendered grades can be as high Residual ink and metal contamination critically af-
as 74 to 76 brightness. These grades are probably the fect the response. In fact, some deinked pulps with high
most difficult to segregate as postconsumer waste since metals and residual ink give only limited response—two
much ends up as inserts in newspapers. to four point increases with 1% peroxide. High residual
ink and metals can be the result of a system closure that
BLEACHING OF DEINKED PULPS. Groundwood de- is too tight, especially with respect to fines removal. The
inked and wood-free pulps are bleached by different metals and ink have a tendency to travel with the fines,
chemicals. Traditionally, wood-free pulps have been so it is important to establish the proper balance be-
bleached to 76 to 80 with chlorine-based oxidants. Sin- tween yield and good bleach response in addition to us-
gle-stage hypochlorite bleaching is most common. Both ing chelants for metal control.
CEH and CH bleach sequences are used when waste- Interestingly, hydrosulfite bleaching also seems to be
paper quality is lower and brightness standards higher. affected by residual ink, although to a lesser degree than
Delignifying bleaches, such as chlorine or hypochlo- peroxide bleaching. This effect may be more a masking
rite, are not appropriate for groundwood due to the high of residual ink than hydrosulfite decomposition from
loss in yield. Traditionally, sodium hydrosulfite and hy- iron, although the variation in response is not well un-
drogen peroxide have been used to bleach deinked derstood. In mill operations brightness response on
groundwood pulps. 100% newsprint varies from five to eight point increases,
The following discussion endeavors to define the with six to seven point increases being normal. When
brightness development of deinked pulps made from only a six or seven point increase is required, hydrosul-

Deinking Technique Crucial to Brightness 151

 100% newsprint 60% /40% 100% coated
Bleach Bleach Bleach
Brightness response Brightness response Brightness response

Deinked pulp 47 to 50 = 54 to 56 = 62 to 67 —
TABLE 2: Mechanical pulp in coated
groundwood has a higher brightness
Single-stage
hydrosulfite* 53 to 57 6 to7 60 to 63 6 to7 68 to 74 6 to 8
than in newsprint, resulting in a
significantly higher brightness vs Single-stage
peroxide? 53 to 58 6 to 8 60 to 64 6 to 8 71 to 77 9 to 10
100% newsprint.
Two-stage
peroxide/hydro*® 57 to 62 10 to 12 63 to 67 9 to 11 74 to 80 12 to 13

1. 1.0% sodium hydrosulfite applied.

2. 1.0% hydrogen peroxide applied at high consistency.
3. 1.0% hydrogen peroxide/ 1.0% sodium hydrosulfite applied.

fite bleaching is preferred over peroxide due to its lower As magazine is added to newsprint, pulp characteris-
chemical and capital costs. Groundwood paper deinking tics change in three ways. Strength properties increase
is conducted at low temperatures, 110° F to 120° F. When since coated groundwood has a much higher kraft con-
hydrosulfite bleaching is installed, consideration should tent. The mechanical pulp in a coated groundwood
be given to heating the pulp to 135° F to 150° F because sheet has a higher brightness—typically 64 to 70—than
this should give one point higher brightness than lower in a newsprint sheet. This difference results in a signifi-
temperatures. cantly higher brightness (six to seven points) vs 100%
For mills that require greater than a 55 to 57 bright- newsprint (Table 2). Slightly higher brightness can be
ness with a 100% newsprint furnish, serious consider- expected if either high-quality newsprint is used or if
ation should be given to two-stage bleaching. The perox- the newsprint is sourced from eastern Canada or the
ide stage can be moderate or high consistency. High- northeastern U.S.
consistency bleaching requires higher capital but has As magazine addition is increased, ash content also
lower chemical costs. increases. For good flotation performance, a minimum
amount of ash is required. Unfortunately, ash can be
60% NEWSPRINT/40% MAGAZINE BLEACHING. Until detrimental to peroxide bleaching.? The ash carries high
a year ago, two Canadian operations were the only mills levels of metals, even to the degree that the effective-
in North America using a mix of newsprint and coated ness of a chelating agent can be overwhelmed. Thus, it
paper. Currently, there are two in operation in the U.S. is important to have adequate washing if peroxide
and three new systems have been approved. The sys- bleaching is a part of the process.
tems being installed are combination flotation/washing A laboratory study was conducted on pulp produced
deinking plants. Thus, there is not much information on in a combination deinking system with minimal wash-
bleaching response of these pulps in U.S. and Canadian ing. The ash content was high (about 9%). The purpose
wastepaper furnishes. of the study was not only to check the response to per-
Care must be used in drawing direct conclusions oxide bleaching but also to compare Lionsperse 855, a
from European data. For example, their furnishes in- proprietary chelant, with DTPA. This initial study indi-
clude not only newsprint and magazines but also print- cates that more severe conditions (longer retention,
ing and writing paper. There is little segregation of higher temperature) should be used than when bleach-
wood-free wastepaper for wood-free deinking as in ing pulp from 100% newsprint.
North America, and this can affect the base brightness Using pulp of 53.6 initial brightness, a five-point in-
and bleachability. crease was obtained with 1% peroxide by bleaching for
two hours at 10% consistency. Another half-point in-
crease was obtained using 1.5% peroxide. Improved re-
FIGURE 2: In bleaching of both 100% newsprint and a 60% /40% sults were obtained since 30% to 40% residual peroxide
newsprint/magazine blend with hydrosulfite, similar responses
were obtained, except that responses leveled off at lower
remained and high-consistency conditions were not
dosages for the blend used. Either 0.2% DTPA or Lionsperse 855 as a pretreat-
ment gave similar results. With Lionsperse 855 as the
chelant, 58.9 brightness was obtained with a peroxide
residual of 32% vs 58.7 and 37% residual with DTPA.
A different sample from the same system was tested
for hydrosulfite bleach response. Comparing 60% /40%
blend with 100% newsprint produced similar bleach re-
sponses, except that the response leveled off at lower
dosages for the blend (Figure 2). This difference could
be explained by the lower amounts of mechanical fiber
available for bleaching reactions in the blend. Single-
—— 100% newsprint
stage hydrosulfite bleaching gives adequate brightness
—— 60%/40% newsprint/
magazine
for standard newsprint and low brightness (low 60s) for

Deinking Technology
specialty grades. For higher-brightness grades, a two- 1% applied and in excess of 50% residual with 1.5% ap-
stage bleach plant could be necessary. plied. Further optimization (including longer retention
and higher consistency) should improve the results of
100% COATED BLEACHING. Deinking of 100% coated this study.
wastepaper has the greatest potential for use in higher- Lionsperse 855 was evaluated to determine the feasi-
brightness grades of paper, such as coated and uncoated bility of reducing costs by partially replacing silicate in
groundwood, as well as tissue. Currently, only two mills the peroxide bleach liquor. With 0.2% chelant, the sili-
in the U.S. use this furnish. cate level could be reduced from 3% to 1% at an equal
To round out this study, a sample of magazine stock brightness of 71.6. The residual peroxide level was
was deinked in the Lion research laboratory. The paper slightly lower without silicate, 48% vs 44%. At this re-
was deinked using flotation followed by two wash stages placement ratio, savings should be more than $1/ton.
with a 60 mesh screen. A typical deinking formulation Although hydrosulfite bleaching was not conducted
was used with 0.1% Lionsperse 855, 1% sodium silicate, on this sample, previous lab work and mill experiences
0.5% H,O,, 0.5% Lionsurf FA-709, and 0.5% NaOH. indicate that a slightly better bleach response can be ob-
After deinking, the pulp with 62 brightness was used tained with coated groundwood. This response may be
for subsequent peroxide bleaching. Chelant pretreat- the result of lower residual ink levels since magazines
ment on this pulp did not improve the bleach response, have a lower ink content initially than newspaper. Also,
indicating that ash removal was effective with the labo- ink removal from coated paper is easier since the ink is
ratory washing techniques. However, this indication on the coating and has not penetrated into the fiber.
does not imply that chelants will not be necessary in a The deinking and bleaching of 100% coated paper
commercial installation where higher residual ink and produces the highest-brightness pulp. This pulp could
ash levels can be expected than in lab pulps. be used in higher-quality grades since a properly de-
Bleaching with 1% peroxide for two hours at 10% signed deinking and bleaching system could produce 74
consistency gave a 9.5% lift to 71.6 brightness. Using to 80 brightness (Table 2). a
1.5% peroxide resulted in an additional increase of 0.5
to one point. More severe bleaching conditions should REFERENCES
be used on this pulp than on the 60% /40% blend. Even 1.G. Galland, E. Bernard, and Y. Verac, “Achieving a deinked
pulp with high brightness,” Paper Technology, Dec. 1989, p. 28.
at a bleaching temperature of 150°F (vs 135°F for the 2. D. Ring, “Deinking of Coated Groundwood Papers Using Hy-
60% /40% blend), there was 46% residual peroxide with drogen Peroxide,” PITA Symposium Proceedings, March 1990.

Deinking Technique Crucial to Brightness 153

 Chapter 37

Appropriate Chemical Additives Are

Key to Improved Deinking Operations
Process chemistry should be studied to find the most effective way
to deink secondary fiber prior to selecting a chemical additive program

gories are obviously interrelated, with the chemical type

By T.W. WOODWARD
being the most important factor when considering the
chemistry of ink removal.
Mee deinking technology has made possible the Basically, printing inks consist of pigments, providing
production of high-quality paper from printed sec- color and contrast to the ink, incorporated into a vehicle
ondary fiber. This technology consists of a careful that carries the pigment and binds it to the sheet. Other
matching of deinking equipment and chemistry. The additives (modifiers) may be used to provide the ink
performance of deinking systems, whether washing or with special properties. Modifiers are usually added in
flotation, is greatly dependent upon the type and con- small amounts. The pigment is not soluble in the vehi-
centration of the deinking chemicals. cle and must be mechanically dispersed. With respect to
Another equally important consideration in the se- deinking chemistry, it is the vehicle that determines the
lection of deinking chemicals is the fiber furnish. Deink- ease with which inks may be removed from the fibers.
ing processing aids are chosen carefully, relative to the Ink vehicles commonly consist of a resin (either natural
type of printed secondary fiber, system type, end prod- or synthetic) and a solvent. There are many types of ve-
uct, and percentage of deinked stock in the final prod- hicles, their composition depending mainly upon the
uct. With proper use of deinking process aids in con- method by which the ink is dried.
junction with modern deinking facilities, it is possible to The ink industry is rapidly developing new ink vehi-
achieve brightness and dirt levels equivalent to or better cle systems. Unfortunately, the trend appears to be to-
than those of the unprinted secondary fiber. ward vehicles that are increasingly resistant to conven-
Given a deinking system type and furnish, there re- tional deinking chemicals. Food & Drug Administration
mains a myriad of potential chemical programs suitable and Environmental Protection Agency regulations tend
for producing the desired grade. Careful laboratory to inhibit the development of novel chemicals for deink-
work designed to simulate the system should provide ing these chemically resistant inks and varnishes. The
sufficient information to allow trials in the plant, where thrust in deinking over the last decade has been in de-
further changes can be made until optimization is velopment of new technology for mechanical removal of
achieved. Knowledge of the function of deinking chemi- ink particles.
cals will allow blending in order to maximize results.
DEINKING PROCESS. Deinking of secondary fiber in-
PRINTING INKS. The classification of printing inks volves repulping or defibering, during which the ink is
is not rigorous and is based on application, chemical removed from the fibers; cleaning and screening; sepa-
type, drying method, and special properties. These cate- rating ink contaminants from fiber stock; and if neces-
sary, bleaching.
Pulping may be batch or continuous, although the
Mr. Woodward is a group leader, New Market Research, Betz batch method is more commonly used as it provides bet-
PaperChem Inc., Jacksonville, Fla. ter control of the process. Some mills prefer continuous
pulping as it provides more production for a unit of giv-
en size. Chemicals are normally added to the pulper just

154
Deinking Technology
prior to the addition of furnish. Consistencies are usual- achieved in a conventional pulper. Chemical energy is
ly in the range of 4% to 6%, although there seems to be a thus used in place of some of the mechanical energy.
trend toward higher-consistency (12% to 15%) defiber-
ing with the objective of saving chemicals, heat, and op- CAUSTIC SODA. Sodium hydroxide is one of the
erating manhours. most important deinking chemicals for woodfree secon-
Where high brightness is necessary, bleaching is re- dary fiber and may be used, with caution, for deinking
quired. When high groundwood wastepapers are being high groundwood content grades, such as newsprint and
deinked, bleaching can be accomplished with peroxides coated publication papers. High concentrations of alkali
and/or hydrosulfite added to the pulper, although a (pH 11.5 to 12.0) can saponify and/or hydrolyze some
more efficient utilization of chemicals will be realized if ink vehicles and will swell fibers to aid in breaking up
bleaching takes place following screening and wash- inks and coatings. The alkali also helps prevent the ag-
ing.” . Wood-free pulps are usually bleached in a single- gregation of small ink particles into larger ones that are
stage hypochlorite process, although some mills use an | difficult to wash out. The inks on woodfree ledger, com-
initial chlorination stage followed by hypochlorite. If puter printout, book, and lightly printed board grades
percentage of groundwood is less than 5%, brightness may be effectively removed and dispersed (with the use
values of around 80 GE can be achieved. of other chemicals) at pH values in the range of 10 to 11.
Heavily printed and/or varnish-overcoated grades may
CHEMISTRY OF DEINKING. The most important de- require a pH of 11.5 or higher.
terminant of the type and concentration of deinking It is unfortunate that dosages of caustic soda are ex-
chemicals is the raw material to be deinked. Next in im- pressed as a percentage of oven-dried fiber. It is the
portance is the design and efficiency of the system. For a amount of hydroxide ion that is critical for deinking per-
given deinking system, changes in furnish type will call formance, and the dosage required to achieve a given pH
for an adjustment in the chemistry of the system. For will vary. Sufficient caustic soda should be added to
this article, an efficient cleaning and screening system each batch to attain the desired pH. The efficiency of
will be assumed, and the chemistries will be differenti- many deinking plants could be increased substantially
ated for low and high groundwood content furnishes. by better control of sodium hydroxide.
Removal of ink from paper fibers is accomplished pri-
marily in the pulper and is basically a laundering oper- SODA ASH, SILICATES. Sodium carbonate is some-
ation. Water and a large amount of mechanical action times used in conjunction with sodium hydroxide. It is
are sufficient to remove and disperse most inks, but the said to cook less harshly and produce slightly brighter
level of mechanical energy that is necessary cannot be pulp than caustic soda alone. It is uncommon for soda

TABLE 1: Deinking processing aids.

Deinking Furnish Dosage

chemical Structure formula Function type (% of fiber)
Sodium NaOH Fiber swelling-ink breakup, Wood-free 3.0-5.0%
hydroxide saponification, grades
ink dispersion
Sodium NaoSi0g Wetting, peptization, ink Groundwood
silicates (hydrated) dispersion, alkalinity grades
and buffering, Lightly inked
peroxide stabilization ledger
Sodium NaoCO3 Alkalinity, buffering, water Groundwood
carbonate softening grades
Lightly inked
ledger

Sodium or (NaPO4) n,n = 15 Metal ion sequestrant All grades

potassium Hexametaphosphate Ink dispersion
phosphates NasP3010 Alkalinity
Tripolyphosphate Buffering
Tetrasodium pyrophosphate Detergency, peptization

Nonionic CH3 (CHe) »CH2- Ink removal, All grades

surfactants O (CHaCH20) xH ink dispersion
Ethoxylated linear alcohol Wetting, emulsification
Ethoxylated alkyl phenols Solubilizing
Solvents C4-C44 aliphatic saturated Ink softening, Wood-free
hydrocarbons solvation grades

Hydrophilic CH2CHC=OOH (Na) pn Ink dispersion All grades

polymers Polyacrylate Antiredeposition

Fatty acid CH3 (CHa) 4¢COOH Ink flotation aid All grades
Stearic acid
ash to be used alone due to slower cooking time, but it most inks and varnishes. Unfortunately, the cost of the
does provide required alkalinity and buffers at a slightly majority of these prohibits their use in most deinking
higher pH than sodium silicate. programs. Also, in order to function properly in the
Silicates have been used since the turn of the century pulper, a solvent must be insoluble in water at rather
for deinking wastepaper. Compared with soda ash or low concentrations (less than 1,000 ppm). Many good ink
caustic alone, silicates provide better ink removal and solvents are soluble in water at this concentration and,
brighter pulps with less fiber damage.’ Silicates are com- therefore, solvent-water emulsions cannot be formed.
plex solutions of polymeric silicate anions. These sur- This decreases the solvating power of the solvent. Envi-
face active (detergent) anions are responsible for many ronmental concerns also limit the use of many effective
of the silicate’s deinking functions, such as emulsifica- solvents, such as the chlorinated hydrocarbons. These
tion and suspension of dispersed ink. This allows deink- factors have resulted in aliphatic hydrocarbons being
ing to occur at a lower pH, which is effective in high the most common solvents used in deinking systems.
groundwood furnishes, tending to cause less yellowing Aromatic hydrocarbons are better solvents for most
of the pulp. Silicates seem to work better with small inks, but their higher water solubility negates their
amounts of nonionic surfactants to aid in wetting. The greater solvent action. Their use is also limited due to
sodium metasilicates are most commonly used. Sodium environmental concerns. A surfactant with good oil in
silicate is a good stabilizing agent in hydrogen peroxide water emulsifying properties should be included when
bleaching. Peroxides tend to decompose when they are using a solvent to ensure good emulsification of the sol-
in the presence of various metal ions. Silicates apparent- vent in the pulper.
ly deactivate these metal ion catalysts and thus control Although many binders used in inks and varnishes
peroxide decomposition. are not soluble in the solvents that are practical for
deinking, many of these binders are softened in the
POLYPHOSPHATES, SURFACTANTS, SOLVENTS. Sodi- presence of a solvent. This allows easier breakup and
um tripolyphosphate (Na;P;O,.) and sodium pyrophos- dispersion by the mechanical action of the pulper and
phate (Na,P,O,) are very effective at low concentrations surfactants and dispersing agents that are added with
in sequestering calcium and magnesium ions and form- the solvent.
ing uncolored complexes with cations such as iron.4
These polyphosphates are also fairly good buffering POLYMERS, SOAPS. Hydrophilic polymers are not
agents and ink dispersants, and they have detergent widely used in deinking programs. Proponents of hydro-
properties. philic polymers claim they assist other deinking chemi-
Nonionic surfactants contain an organic part that has cals in performing detergent functions. Hydrophilic
an affinity for oils (hydrophobe) and another part that polymers are water soluble, multifunctional organic
has an affinity for the water phase (hydrophile). The hy- polyelectrolytes that aid in the dispersion of ink parti-
drophobic group is usually a long-chained hydrocarbon cles and build up electrostatic cleaning forces between
residue, while the hydrophilic group is an ionic or high- ink particles and fiber surfaces. They function similarly
ly polar group. These surfactants function in deinking to antiredeposition aids in laundry formulation.
systems by lowering the surface tension of water to en- Laboratory studies should be performed prior to mill
able it to “wet” more effectively, absorb-
ing onto surfaces to aid in ink removal FIGURE 1: Washing deinking.
and dispersion, and by solubilization
and emulsification.5
Chemicals

Ht
Two of the most common nonionic
surfactants used for deinking are the
ethoxylated alkyl phenols and ethoxy-
lated linear alcohols. The hydrophilic |
Screens |
portion of these surfactants is formed by
a polyoxylethylene chain with the de- Cleaners
gree of hydrophilicity controlled by the
number of ethylene oxide units. There
appears to be little difference in deink-
|4side hill
; washers 3 to 5 drum \
ing performance between the two groups To
washers
of surfactants, although there is evi- paper i // e
dence that the ethoxylated alcohols per- machine or
form slightly better on newsprint.* Opti-
mum brightness of deinked ledger
occurs with nine ethylene oxide units.’

|
Solvents are available for dissolving

Sludge
156
 use of these costly materials. Optimum dosage depends EVALUATION OF DEINKING PERFORMANCE. Handsheet
on the chemical environment of the deinking system, or pulp pad brightness and an estimate of dirt or specks
and overdosing can have a negative effect on ink remov- are the methods most commonly used in evaluating
al and dispersion. Two common types of hydrophilic deinking performance. Other sheet properties that may
polymers are polyacrylates and carboxymethylcellulose. be important are color and ash content.
Fatty acid soaps function as collector chemicals in For proper evaluation of deinking performance, the
flotation deinking systems. Calcium soaps formed from objectives of the deinking program must be well speci-
these fatty acids and calcium ions are the most widely fied. It is important that the test methods used in the
used flotation collectors. Flotation collector chemicals evaluation adequately reflect the performance of the
destabilize the ink dispersion and extract the ink parti- deinking operation. Brightness and dirt measurements
cles from the ink-fiber suspension. These destabilized are relatively easy to make, but both require making
ink particles are attracted to air bubbles in the flotation handsheets or pulp pads. Handsheet making is, in effect,
cell and carried to the surface for removal. Calcium a high dilution washing stage. The loss of fines and ink
chloride is often added to provide sufficient calcium ion — during sheet preparation may obliterate any quantita-
to convert all the fatty acid to insoluble soap. tive analysis of the particular step being evaluated.
Newer, more effective flotation collector chemicals Cruea recommends making pulp after dilution to 1%
(modified polyester resins) have been developed. They consistency or vacuum draining the pulp—at testing
are more expensive but are effective at much lower dos- consistency without further dilution—on a 60-mesh
age levels. They tend to act as foaming collectors, give screen.® These procedures provide close approximations
more rapid flotation, and do not require hardness ions. of the condition of the pulp at a particular stage in the
The usual dosage is 0.1% to 0:3%. deinking operation. TAPPI Standard T213 os-77 (“dirt in
pulp’) is an adequate method for quantifying ink specks
WASHING AND FLOTATION CHEMISTRY. There are remaining in the pulp. The size (area) of a dirt speck on
some significant differences in the chemistry of washing a sample is determined by comparing it ‘with standard
and flotation systems. In the washing system, attempts reference specks on TAPPI’s dirt estimation chart. -Dirt
are made to reduce ink particle size to less than 5 mi- is reported as square millimeters of equivalent black
crons and to emulsify, dissolve, and disperse as much area per square meter of surface examined (ppm).
ink as possible. This results in optimum washing. In flo- Another method is to count the number of specks
tation systems, reduction of particle size to this level (ink particles) on both sides of the sample and divide by
and emulsification of ink are undesirable, as they lead the weight of the sample. Results are reported as specks
to poor separation in the cells. In combined washing and per gram of fiber. A measure of both TAPPI dirt and
flotation systems, dispersants should not be added to the specks per gram may be used as a measure of degree of
pulper but added before washing to aid in the removal ink dispersion.
of very finely dispersed ink not removed byflotation. The dispersion in a laboratory pulper may be mea-
In the flotation system, it is also essential that all col- sured by adding small pieces (1 X 0.5 in.) of polyethyl-
lector chemical (fatty acid or soap) be converted to in- ene to the pulp shortly before the end of the cook.? A
soluble calcium soap and that all of this chemical is re- clean and ink-free plastic sheet will indicate good ink
moved by flotation in secondary cells to avoid concen- dispersion, while an ink-coated plastic sheet will indi-
tration buildups in process water that would lead to cate poor ink dispersion.
lower efficiencies and machine performance problems.
RESIDUAL CHEMICAL EFFECTS. Deinking chemicals
have a number of potential negative effects, both within
FIGURE 2: Flotation deinking.
the deinking plant and as a result of carryover into the

Ee
paper machine.
Chemicals
Foaming may be a problem when surfactants are used
as deinking aids. In general, the most effective surfac-
Cleaners tants for deinking also have the greatest tendency to
foam. Proper blending of surfactants will minimize the
foam problem while maintaining deinking efficiency. In
Screens
most systems, this type of foam may be controlled with
small amounts of defoamer, and many mills currently
using defoamer exhibit no foam problem. Defoamer
Flotation
should not be added to the pulper aléng with deinking
chemicals.
These same surfactants, if carried over to the paper
machine, could have a negative effect on sizing, which
may cause problems with increased starch and/or coat-
Centrifuge
paper
machine
Rejects

Chemical Additives for Improved Deinking

ing penetration. This problem may be alleviated by iso- Excess chloride ion may increase corrosion, especially if
lation of the system or by adding size or increasing the there is also chloride carryover from bleaching. a
level of size addition.
Calcium ion—entering the system as water hardness,
as a flotation aid, or in the secondary fiber—may cause 1. J.P. Casey, ed., Pulp and Paper Chemistry and Chemical Tech-
deposition on side hill screens and auxiliary equipment. nology, 3rd ed. (New York: Wiley-Interscience), vol. 1, chap. 4.
Treatment for calcium carbonate deposition involves the 2.R.R. Kindron and J. DeCeuster, “Hydrogen Peroxide Use
addition of a suitable precipitation inhibitor. Benefits Washing-Deinking Systems,” Pulp and Paper 55, no. 7
(July 1981); 176-80.
Excess hydrosulfite from groundwood bleaching may 3. J.S. Falcone and R.W. Spencer, Silicates Expand Role in Waste
hydrolyze to form thiosulfates. Thiosulfates may cause Treatment, Bleaching, Deinking, Pulp and Paper 49, no. 14 (De-
severe corrosion problems. Careful control of hydrosul- cember 1975): 114-17.
fite levels or replacement of some hydrosulfite with per- 4. “Phosphates for Industry,”’ Monsanto Industrial Chemical Co.,
oxide should reduce the severity of the problem. technical bulletin.
5. M.J. Rosen, Surfactants and Interfacial Phenomena (New York:
Dispersants and flocculants must be chosen to mini- Wiley-Interscience, 1978).
mize negative interactions. Dispersant carryover to the 6. D.L. Wood, “Alcohol Ethoxylates and Other Anionics as Sur-
clarifiers may reduce their performance, and carryover factants in the Deinking of Waste Paper,’ TAPPI pulping con-
to the paper machine may cause problems in retention ference proceedings, Toronto (1982).
7. D.W. Suwala, “A Study of the Deinking Efficiency of Nonionic
and drainage. Likewise, flocculants in whitewater from Surfactants,’ TAPPI pulping conference proceedings, Houston
the clarifiers could interfere with ink dispersion if car- (1983).
ried over to the deinking pulper. 8. R.P. Cruea, “Deinking: Laboratory Evaluations and Total Sys-
Careful control of flotation collector chemistry is tem Concepts,” TAPPI 61, no. 6 (June 1978): 27-30.
critical; 30% to 60% of the fatty acids added will remain 9. T. Mah, ‘“‘Deinking of Waste Newspaper,” TAPPI 66, no. 10 (Oc-
tober 1983): 81-3.
in the pulp and may cause deposition problems down- 10. “The Continuing Development of Deinking,” Paper, (Aug. 4,
stream. Addition of calcium chloride to provide suffi- 1980).
cient calcium ion for formation of the insoluble soap 11. E.C. Korte, “Use of Chemicals in Deinking,’ TAPPI pulping
must be carefully controlled. Excess calcium ion may conference proceedings, New Orleans (1978).
12. “Hydrogen Peroxide for Deinking,” FMC Corp., Technical
lead to carbonate scaling or be carried downstream to Bulletin 133.
form insoluble calcium soaps with resin acids in pulp. 13. E. Sjostrom, Wood Chemistry—Fundamentals and Applica-
tions (New York, Academic Press, 1981).

158
Deinking Technology
 Cold Dispersion Unit Boosts Deinking
Efficiency at Japanese Tissue Mills
Flotation and washing, combined with dispersion units, reduces
number and size of ink particles and increases strength properties

imparting fiber-to-fiber contact for the treatment of non-

By M. GILKEY, H. SHINOHARA, and H. YOSHIDA
impact printed material. High-consistency pulping takes
place at approximately 15% to 18% consistency vs 6% to
tudies at several mills have shown that cold (non- 8% consistency for standard- or low-consistency pulp-
pressurized) dispersion of deink furnishes in con- ing. Based on recent laboratory studies treating two
junction with flotation and washing is an effective identical batches of 100% laser-printed material, high-
method of ink removal. Dispersion units have been suc- consistency pulping at approximately 18% consistency
cessfully installed in front of flotation and washing produced much better ink separation from the fibers
stages processing nonimpact-printed material as well as than did low-consistency pulping.
ultraviolet inks and xerographic CPO (computer print- The observation sheets used in these studies show
out) inks. These studies have shown a reduction in the ink removal is much improved by the reduction of ink
size and number of ink particles and an increase in particles in high-consistency observation sheets com-
strength properties. pared with low-consistency observation sheets. This re-
Flotation also appears to be very effective for laser- duction appears to result from the rubbing action of fi-
printed ink removal. Laboratory work on newsprint-to- bers with one another under high-consistency pulping
newsprint furnishes indicates dispersion is effective in conditions, separating the ink more completely from the
reducing ink particle size for a variety of newsprint fur- fibers so it can be removed more effectively by washing
nishes at different points in a mill’s system. and/or flotation.
To address the problem of using recycled deink stock Examining ink particles under 30X magnification
for the production of tissue, newsprint, and other fine shows both the number and size of the ink particles
paper grades, approaches to deinking applications are were reduced on the high-consistency pulping observa-
divided into two general categories. The first category tion sheets compared with the low-consistency pulping
is ledger-to-tissue applications, where an increasing observation sheets. Using a total area of 1 cm? examined
amount of nonimpact (laser)-printed material is being under 30x magnification on identical, 100% laser-print-
used in the starting furnish. The second category is ed starting material, the felt side of the low-consistency
newsprint-to-newsprint, specifically for offset-printed observation sheets had approximately four times the ink
newspapers. area compared with the felt side of the high-consistency
observation sheets. Similar results were observed for
LEDGER-TO-TISSUE DEINKING. The amount of laser- the wire side. Results are summarized in Table 1.
printed cpo is increasing rapidly in Japan and the U.S. In In addition, the high-consistency observation sheets
response to the growing challenges these new inks pre- had not only a smaller total area of ink but also a smaller
sent, both laboratory and mill test work have been per- average size of these particles than did low-consistency
formed to overcome deinking problems. The effective sheets. Test work in the laboratory showed ink particle
means of treating nonimpact-printed material are high- average diameter decreased from 41 microns for low-
consistency, fiber-to-fiber treatment to produce good consistency pulping to 23 microns for high-consistency
separation of ink from the fibers and flotation to remove pulping. These results indicate that the ink is being
the ink particles, which tend to remain large due to the
TABLE 1: Flotation results on 100% laser-printed material.
type of ink binders used.
High-consistency pulping is an effective method of
Total number of _ Total ink particle
ink particles/ area (mm?)/
Mr. Gilkey is with Black Clawson, Middletown, Ohio; Mr. 0.25 cm? area 0.25 cm?
Shinohara is with Mendori Paper Co., Kanawoe, Japan; and Flotation feed 735 0.132 mm?
Mr. Yoshida is with IIM Co. Ltd., Tokyo, Japan. Flotation—one stage 101 0.0032 mm?
Flotation—two stages 94 0.0029 mm?
Flotation—four stages 62 0.0019 mm?
Ink particles examined under 30x magnification.
Cold Dispersion Boosts Deinking
separated from the fiber and broken down to be re- One of these dispersion devices was installed, in con-
moved by washing more efficiently under high-consis- junction with flotation cells and washing equipment, at
tency treatment. Mendori Paper Co. in Japan. The mill makes toweling
and facial tissue from ledger, which includes a certain
U.S. MILL EXPERIENCE. A high-consistency pulper percentage of nonimpact CPO and Xerox cPo. The basic
was recently installed at a U.S. mill on a ledger-to-tissue system is shown in Figure 2, with the disperser located
system processing a certain percentage of nonimpact- ahead of flotation and washing. Various configurations
printed material. Significant improvement of sheet ap- were tried before settling on the final system.
pearance and reduction of ink particles were apparent The initial system did not involve dispersion or flota-
shortly after the startup of the high-consistency pulper. tion, instead only washing with a decker for ink remov-
Additional laboratory test work indicated that flota- al. The first modification added a dispersion unit after
tion is an effective method of removing ink particles soaking but before a vibrating screen. This was followed
from laser-printed material after treatment with high- by washing with a decker.
consistency pulping. To improve ink removal, a two-stage flotation cell
Due to the nature of laser inks and their binders, a was added near the front of the system after pulping,
significant number of ink particles created by defibering soaking, and screening with a vibrating screen. The dis-
tend to remain relatively large (about 30 microns or larg- persion was added near the end of the system for dis-
er in diameter) and do not wash out readily due to their persing any remaining ink particles. The problem with
size. Flotation is more effective in removing these large this approach was that high-power input was required
ink particles. The furnish for the trials was 100% laser- (4.5 kW-day/ton) to disperse the remaining ink parti-
printed material, which had been pulped under high- cles. Since no washing stage followed dispersion, the
consistency conditions. dispersed inks remained in the stock, lowering bright-
Examining flotation observation sheets under 30X ness and causing ink buildup in the paper machine
magnification for a 0.25 cm? area produced the results whitewater loop.
summarized in Table 1. It can be determined that the A third modification was implemented. It substituted
majority of ink particles were removed after one stage of
flotation and that subsequent stages reduced the num- FIGURE 1: Dispersion unit.
ber of ink particles but were not as effective as the first
stage. Also, the average size of particles remaining in the Inlet hopper
flotation accepts decreased compared with the feed, in-
dicating the larger particles were selectively removed.

JAPANESE MILL EXPERIENCE. Another method of

achieving a fiber-to-fiber rubbing/rolling action is to
use a continuous high-shear dispersion device (Figure
1). This device consists of a single, high-speed rotor with
a series of feeding and retarding bars, which impart a
high-shear mixing action to the fiber. A series of bars is
also on the stator, with a relatively large clearance be-
tween the rotor and stator. This clearance minimizes fi-
ber length degradation and freeness drop. By using a
high-speed rotor, the dispenser is able to strike the fibers
numerous times to knock ink loose.

FIGURE 2: Basic deinking system at Medori Paper Co., Japan.

Storage
Soaking chest Thickener
Mid-consistency pulper

Disperser
Decker Vibrating
Flotation cells
screen

160
Deinking Technology
 mid-consistency pulping for low-consistency pulping fiber-length degradation is minimal. In addition, in-
but kept the rest of the system the same. creases in breaking length and tear index of approxi-
The fourth configuration was tried by placing the dis- mately 5% from dispersion were noted at Mendori.
persion near the front of the system, after pulping and A dispersion unit was also installed at a second Japa-
soaking but before flotation, washing, and screening. nese mill, Goda Paper. This mill produces tissue from
This arrangement was the most effective. The disper- ledger. A typical starting furnish in the pulper is 80%
sion step efficiently separated the ink from the fiber at impact CPO and 20% nonimpact CPO. This mill’s disper-
20% consistency with approximately 3 kW-day/ton. sion system is also installed ahead of flotation and re-
Temperature conditions were about 28°C in and 34°C places a conventional refiner. The mill originally had a
out. The temperature increase resulted from the me- pulper followed by a conventional refiner to improve
chanical action of the disperser. After dispersion, the the sheet appearance.
stock goes through a two-stage flotation. A collector is To improve sheet quality, flotation cells were added
added in the disperser for thorough mixing with the fur- to remove ink particles. Although the sheet quality im-
nish prior to flotation. After flotation, the next step is proved, some ink particles remained in the observation
washing with a decker, followed by pressure screening sheets. As a final improvement, a dispersion unit was
and storage. installed to replace the refiner ahead of the flotation
To benefit from the high-shear method of dispersion, cells. The result was a sheet virtually free of ink parti-
a higher-consistency pulping system was needed. Low- cles and a large improvement in sheet appearance. This
consistency pulping was replaced by mid-consistency improvement was reached with the power consumption
pulping. The mid-consistency pulper defibers stock into remaining the same (approximately 3.5 kw-day /ton).
individual fibers with ink attached to the fiber as well as
being in suspension. Binders are softened by soaking for NEWSPRINT-TO-NEWSPRINT DEINKING. Cold disper-
periods of 6 to 12 hours. The next step is dispersion, sion application on recycled newsprint used for produc-
which separates the ink from the fiber. Flotation re- tion of newsprint has also been tested at the Mendori
moves the larger ink particles while washing removes and Goda mills. Several different furnishes were inves-
smaller particles. tigated in laboratory work. Cold dispersion proved to be
Since the dispersion action is more of a fiber-to-fiber an effective method of ink particle removal for news-
rubbing action than a cutting action, freeness drop and print-to-newsprint application.

FIGURE 3: Typical newsprint-to-newsprint deinking system used in Japan.

Continuous low- Coars

Coarse Soaking Flotation _ Fine
Si
nsistency / pulping
OL screening chest cells screening Decker

TABLE 2: Effect of dispersion at different points in newsprint-to-newsprint system.

Without dispersion With dispersion % reduction

Chemical ink particles ink particles due to
| Mil ~~~ addition ____ point Consistency (4%) (%) dispersion
rr—“—OOCC eC BS 182. 0.09 — 0.05 45
_ (low-consistency st” BS 20.7 0.08 0.04 50
| pubrg) AW 191 0.05 0.04 20
—r—‘“_.CUO—O—~—se sti‘ SC 136 0.07 0.06 14
— BS e32 0.08 0,05 29
AS 13.6 0.07 0.05 38
Cl _ AS. 19.5 0.08 0.05 38
-No2 4.5% NaOH ~ AW 19.8 0.07 0,06 14
_ (low-consistency 0.5% H,0, AW 22.1 0.06 0.05 17
pulping) -
_ No.3 LT NaOH ww ststi‘éééUls 0.09 0.06 33
(low-consistency 0.2% H,O, AW 19.1 0.10 0.06 40
pulping) —
BS = Before soaking
_ AW = After washing
AS = After soaking

161
Cold Dispersion Boosts Deinking
 The tests involved shipment of drums of stock from
different points in the mill’s system, thickening the
stock to the desired consistency, and feeding the stock to
a dispersion unit. The type of newsprint deink stock
tested was offset-printed. A typical system is shown in
Figure 3. Dispersion tests were done on stock sampled at newsprint, fine ‘paper, andothe
three points: production in the U.Ss.For exar ip
e Before the soaking chest | etihpelgge.ee e 98% pat
e After the soaking chest
e After washing (at the end of the system).
Tests were run at medium and high consistencies at
each point by thickening the stock in the laboratory to
the desired consistency. Mills 1 and 3 used low-consis-
tency pulping. Table 2 shows the percentage of ink parti-
cle area reduction by adding a dispersion unit at the
point sampled. Power consumption was generally 4 kW-
day/ton.
As can be seen from the data, reduction in the total
ink particle area was achieved by dispersion for differ-
ent newsprint furnishes under various conditions. Me-
dium-consistency dispersion vs high-consistency dis-
persion did not make a significant reduction in ink
particle area. Also, low-consistency pulped stock re-
sponded better to dispersion for ink particle removal
than did high-consistency pulped stock. a

162
Deinking Technology
 = Section 7
:
eee
: Wig
_ “a

Recycling Mill
Expansions and
Modernizations
This section is a comprehensive update on applied recycling technology in the North Ameri-
can paper industry. The 11 in-depth mill features not only reflect the latest trends in recycling,
but explore the whys and hows at the operating floor level, concentrating on problems and
setbacks as well as gains and advantages.
Each mill story focuses on process design, and details equipment types, sizes, and capacities
where possible. The emphasis in most cases is on the engineering and marketing strategies be-
hind each expansion or modernization project. The grades of recycled paper and paperboards
being produced at these mills represent an excellent cross section of recycled commodities cur-
rently being produced in North America.
 eh,
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 Chapter 39

Augusta Newsprint Brings Recycled

ONP/OMG Retrofit System Online
Goal of 250-metric tpd recycled fiber is about to be reached
as groundwood mill is replaced and TMP kraft use is reduced

able to run with 8% to 9% kraft. Jim Herrmann, recycled

By JIM YOUNG, Technical Editor newsprint plant manager, observes that production for
the new line has passed 220 metric tpd and is about to
LE:late 1990, less than a year after corporate approval, reach the goal of 250 metric tpd. The preliminary engi-
the first roll of recycled paper was shipped from Au- neering study was done by Simons-Eastern; procure-
gusta Newsprint Co. in Augusta, Ga. This is the first recy- ment and construction was handled by Fluor Daniel.
cled fiber retrofit of a newsprint mill in the eastern U.S.,
and according to general manager John Weaver, the key
to the fast-track startup was on-time delivery by equip- FIBER LINE. Water heated to 120°F to 140°F in a
ment suppliers. Delivery for the $27-million project was head tank is floated into a Black Clawson Hi-Con batch
so on time, in fact, that some equipment was being in- pulper where old newspapers (ONP) and old magazines
stalled before the engineering was 100% complete. (OMG) are repulped separately at a capacity close to 10
The new recycled fiber line replaces a stone ground- tons (Figure 1). From initial water fill-up to total extrac-
wood operation and shifts the newsprint furnish from tion, cycle time is about 26 min for ONP and 40 min for
the 75% thermomechanical pulp (TMP), 11% ground- omc. A Hydrapurge III detrashing sytem extracts the
wood pulp, and 14% purchased kraft pulp used before stock from the pulper, entrapping and concentrating
the conversion toward a planned 65% TMP, 25% secon- contaminants as the stock continues through Liquid Cy-
dary fiber, and 10% kraft. Currently, the mill has been clone centrifugal cleaners that remove additional high-
and medium-specific-gravity contaminants.
FIGURE 1: Augusta Newsprint’s recycled fiber line.
The ONP and OMG stocks are mixed in a blend chest
ahead of the coarse screens at approximately a 70:30 ra-
tio. This balance is critical because while the magazine
Wastepaper stock enhances brightness, it also generates additional
Magazines Pulping
Chemicals sludge.
The blended stock passes through the Ultra-V coarse
screens at a 2.5% consistency before entering a series of
four Beloit Jones PDM-6000 pressurized flotation deink-
Flotation ing modules. Deinked at 1% consistency, the next step is
deinking reverse cleaning through a bank of Uniflow cleaners to
remove lightweight contaminants. After thickening and
washing in an existing 12-ft Dorr-Oliver disc filter from
the groundwood mill, followed by passing through two
[ Thickening Water parallel Sprout-Bauer screw presses, the stock is at 25%
|| and washing clarification to 30% consistency. Effluent from the thickening process
moves through a spray-filter scalping device that re-
Forward claims fiber and returns it to the process from water that
cleaning is then recycled through a Krofta clarifier.
The fiber line continues past a water lock, where
clarified water from the following loop joins water from
the paper mill to bring stock consistency down to 0.07%.
Water Forward cleaning in Beloit Jones Posiflow cleaners re-
clarification moves small-size, heavyweight particles ahead of Black

[sie
Clawson Ultra-V fine screens. Two existing 9-ft disc fil-

165
 ters, also from the ground- with the automated pulper,
wood mill, bring the stock Weaver explains, “We add-
to a 4.5% consistency. ed soap early in the process
The bleaching is accom- and made a giant washing
plished in two stages, with machine with foam all over
hydrogen peroxide added in the place.”
the pulper and sodium hy-
drosulfite added in the suc- COLLECTION PROCESS.
tion side of the pump that ONP is primarily collected
sends stock to the storage from Georgia, the Carolinas,
chest. Final pulp brightness and northern Florida. Most
is between values of 59 and of it comes from stock deal-
60. Jim Herrmann (left) and John Weaver walk past a bank of ers affiliated with Sonoco or
pressurized flotation deinking modules in the new recycled
Reviewing the rapid pace from municipalities that are
fiber line.
of the installation and start- serviced by Browning-Fer-
up, Weaver and Hermann ris Industries. OMG has been
find little they would do differently. One consideration more difficult to collect, but it is being done through
would be having a larger selection of variously designed brokers and printing facilities. Some magazine suppliers
baskets for the coarse screen system on hand prior to may generate only one truckload a month, so numerous
startup to come up to desired capacity more quickly. locations extending farther north are used. Trucks are
Also, Weaver recommends allowing ample time for doing a lot of backhauling, while backhauling by rail is
reviewing the distributed control system (DCS) with the limited thus far. Market price runs around $40/short
vendor because paper mill people traditionally aren’t ton, with freight costs adding $10 to $20/ton, depending
used to thinking in computer logic. While the Measurex on the distance hauled. On the distribution end for the
DCS is working well, what was thought to be in sequence recycled newsprint, sales remain primarily within the
at startup sometimes wasn’t. Recalling an experience mill’s original customer base. a

166
Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizatio
ns
 Recycled Paperboard Inc. Restarts
Idled Mill With $14-Million Overhaul
Former Whippany paperboard mill in Clifton, N.J., producing chip
board after extensive refurbishment of equipment and facilities

“The cities of Clifton and Passaic played an instru-

By ANDY HARRISON, Technical Editor mental role in turning our plans into reality,” said Vin-
cent M. Ponte, president of Recycled Paperboard. “The
Reve Paperboard Inc., a recycling operation es- work of Senator Bill Bradley (D-N.J.) and his staff in
tablished by V. Ponte & Sons Inc., started up a refur- guiding us through UDAG financing was particularly
bished recycled paper mill on July 23, 1990, in Clifton, important. Without the UDAG, which triggered funding
N.J. The 106,000-ft* facility, located on an eight-acre site from the state economic agency, this project would not
that straddles the Clifton-Passaic borderline on the out- have moved forward.”
skirts of Newark, was formerly operated by Whippany After completion of the financing arrangements, the
Paperboard, which went bankrupt in 1980. Ponte, a New renovation of the mill began in late 1988. The project
York-based hauling and recycling firm, purchased the consisted of refurbishing the production equipment, in-
mill in 1987. stalling new heating and ventilation systems, installing
The mill will be capable of producing 300 tpd of chip ° a new electrical system, and rebuilding an adjacent of-
board used for packaging and cardboard. The raw mate- fice building.
rial for the operation will be wastepaper obtained from
local companies, municipal recycling operations, com- MILL BACKGROUND. “When Whippany Paperboard
mercial paper recycling operations, and individuals. was in operation, we were their main supplier,” said
The $14-million project was funded by $10 million in Ponte. ‘““When they went bankrupt, they owed us money.
low-interest financing provided through the New Jersey One thing led to another, and we began negotiating with
Economic Development Authority, a $700,000 Urban De- them and eventually purchased the mill.”
velopment Action Grant (UDAG) provided through the The Ponte family continues to operate its recycling
city of Passaic by the U.S. Department of Housing & Ur- and hauling firm. Wastepaper is collected and sorted for
ban Development, and the remainder provided by Recy- the Clifton mill and other nearby mills, including Gar-
cled Paperboard. den State Paper Co., Ft. Howard Corp., and Marcal Paper
Mills Inc. Ponte’s wastepaper facilities are located at Jer-
Robert Silvestri, sey City, N.J. Clifton and other surrounding towns are
general manager, the primary sources.
spearheaded the Wastepaper is trucked into the Jersey City operation,
design and
dumped on the floor, and sorted. Sorting is done by hand
installation of the
$14-million for the mills. Plastic bags and Styrofoam are removed
project. from the lower grades.

A REBUILT MACHINE. When the Whippany mill was

closed, it was almost completely intact. ‘Nothing had
been pirated from the mill,” according to Bill Brand,
plant manager at Recycled Paperboard. ‘There were
even some wool felts still on the machine when the ren-
ovation began.”
The beater room, the beginning of the recycling pro-
cess, is primarily a Black Clawson design. The Black
Clawson Hydrapurge II and Selectpurge II system re-
placed a bucket-style junker, making the system more
efficient, more maintenance-free, and easier to operate.

Recycled Paperperboard Restarts Mill 167

The 20-ft pulper was in nearly new con-
dition when the mill was shut down.
The mill, still in the process of bringing
the beater room up to date, has also add-
ed Black Clawson V-300 screens, cyclone
cleaners, and vibrating screens.
Four separate stock systems are capa-
ble of feeding the mill’s two machines.
Three stock systems are designated for
the cylinder machine, with one system
for the fourdrinier machine. Each of the
stock systems can be operated indepen-
dently, but they are all connected in
such a way that one can support another.
They are separate but interchangeable.
Two new 1,000-hp Beloit Jones double \

disc refiners have been installed in the if

Updated beater room equipment improves operator efficiency in the mill as

filler system and three smaller Sprout
well as quality of the finished sheet.
Waldron refiners for the liner system.
Those pipes are also interchangeable.
All of the spills of the rejects in the mill are collected system had not started up, leaving it virtually new. As a
and pumped to a Beloit Jones poly-disc filter. Fiber is re- result, the mill now has basis-weight control on the wet
moved and sent back into the filler systems, and the wa- end and dry end of the machine for a third of the cost
ter is reused. that a new system would have commanded.
The existing 136-in.-trim cylinder machine is from The winder, originally a Cameron, was rebuilt by
Beloit, consisting of 48-in.-dia counterflow vats with a A&F. The rebuilt winder is capable of making 76-in.-dia
conventional long top fabric arrangement. New Albany paper rolls. The winder also includes new slitters, a new
Engineered Systems showering equipment was installed Mount Hope roll, and a new drive system. The role
for the fabrics and the cylinders. A completely upgraded winder drums were turned and plasma coated.
vacuum system was installed, consisting of Nash 9004
vacuum pumps with accompanying separators and pip- TABLE 1: Suppliers for the Clifton recycling operation.
ing systems.
A &F Corp. Machine winders
The machine has three suction presses, a suction Albany Engineered Systems Purgable showers
drum, a plain primary, main, second, and third press. Allen Bradley PLCs
The press section is a reverse press with two smooth Beloit Jones Refiners
roles, each applied to the bottom and top of the sheet re- Bird Johnson Vibratory screens
spectively. This gives the mill more flexibility in allow- Black Clawson Trash removal system, cyclone
high-density cleaners, Hydra-
ing for smoothness on each side of the sheet. A conven- purge Il, Selectpurge II, V-300
tional headbox arrangement has typical chemical and high-consistency screen, two-
dye addition points so color can be added to any part of valve junker
any vat. Brookbridge Development construction
A new Liquiflow lubrication system with new bear- management
Cleaver Brooks Package boiler
ings was added to the 170 stacked dryer section. The ex- Cutler Hammer PLCs
isting dryers were tested and reused. DeZurik Consistency control system
The cylinder machine produces a full range of un- Eastern Energy Energy consultants
coated grades in calipers 0.02 through 0.075, single ply. Foxboro Smart controllers
Gould Pumps Fan pumps
The mill uses a slightly higher-grade paper in the out- Liquiflow Lubrication system
side plys. The filler plys for the most part are lower- Measurex Process control system
grade wastepaper. Variations to the wastepaper input Michaels Electric Electrical contractor
depend on the finished product produced. High volume Nash Vacuum system
Nissan Forklift trucks
commodities in white and colored stock will be pro- North Jersey Mechanical Mechanical contractors
duced along with the high-density, high-strength grades Contractors & Arlo
and some specialty grades. Passaic Rubber Press rolls
The startup of No. 1 machine, a fourdrinier with 114- Spinella & Spinella Architects
in. trim, is planned for mid-1991. This machine will pro- Sprout Bauer Hydrasieves
Sprout Waldron Refiners
duce a caliper range from 0.009 through 0.035. Stamm Dryer drainage system
A Measurex process control system was obtained Stowe-Woodward Dri-Press rolls
through a closed mill in Maine. The eight-month-old

168
Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations
 An antiquated electrical system was brought up to Code violations, including OSHA, steam, and electri-
date with full 5,000-kVA service. The 50-year-old elec- cal violations, had to be cleared before operation began.
trical distribution was replaced with a combination of Officials from Clifton and the state of New Jersey were
new and used equipment. A great deal of work has gone called to the mill to provide proposals for proper operat-
into the building renovation area, including roof repairs, ing procedures and guidelines. Proposals prepared by
replacements, and painting. government officials and the insurance company were
used in bid specs for equipment and construction.
FAST-TRACKED JOB. The ownership objective was “T hired a local mechanical engineer with paper expe-
to be operating as quickly as possible. A construction rience and picked his brain,” Silvestri said. ‘We know
management team was created and headed by Robert that this job did not receive the full engineering atten-
Silvestri, general manager of Recycled Paperboard. tion that such a job normally gets, but we are also oper-
“Tt would normally have taken four to six months to ating a year and a half early. It is much easier to correct
do proper engineering and two years to do the job,” said things out of cash flow.”
Silvestri. “Bearing that in mind, we basically did every- The largest void at the mill was electrical. Records
thing ourselves on the fly.” were not available. Nameplates of each piece of equip-
Expertise came from numerous sources, including ment were listed. Equipment was then graded as to
in-house experience, manufacturers, local and state offi- whether or not it was going to be reused, based on what
cials, and the power companies. Though much of the grades the mill was going to make.
equipment was already in place, antiquated equipment When construction began, only 200-amp service was
had to be replaced, the deteriorating building needed re- at the mill. When the Whippany mill shut down, the
pair, and code violations had to be addressed. public service company bypassed power to the mill. Por-
The in-house experience came from those who had table generators had to be brought in for construction
previously worked for the Whippany mill and Silvestri, until permanent power could be installed.
with background mostly from high-rise construction. “The power company offered to supply a temporary
Art Lockwood, an in-house paper expert with 30 years’ 2,000-amp service to the mill,” Silvestri explained. “But
experience, was originally with Whippany and was per- I did not want to get into the position where temporary
forming outside consulting after the mill shut down. He wiring was being installed, then removed, and then per-
went to work with Recycled Paperboard when the mill manent wiring installed. We would end up doing the
reopened. same work twice, and typically what happens when you
Many of the people hired for construction of the proj- put up temporary wiring is that the temporary becomes
ect were kept on as mill operators. This tactic, in part, permanent.”
deals with the difficulty of competing for personnel in a The electrical equipment, therefore, had a critical de-
metropolitan area because there are other paper mills in livery schedule. All the starters, distribution panels,
the area and other trades where people can find jobs. layouts, and drawings were coordinated and supplied by
Suppliers were given the Cutler Hammer and arrived
mill’s objectives and then bid on the mill site in five weeks.
competitively to supply the Used switchgear was located
equipment. In this process, with the power companies’
those vendors also supplied help. One 3,000-kVA switch-
valuable proposals and engi- gear unit was located in New
neering assistance to the mill. Jersey.
At construction meetings, “We went from 200 amps
held weekly with in-house to 5,000-amp service rating in
personnel, the objectives were a matter of months,” Silvestri
reviewed, with a set agenda explained. ‘‘Normal delivery
for the whole job. The mill time for most electrical items
also met every week with the is 20 to 30 weeks. Finding the
unions to discuss how the job switchgear at this electrical
would run. As many as 47 to supply company right in our
60 union electricians and 40 backyard was very fortunate.
union steamfitters were on We could not have made our
the job at one time. “We real- construction schedule with-
ly needed a good working re- out the availability of these
lationship with the union to electrical items.” Electricity
do the job this fast,” Silvestri to the mill allowed the start-
explained. ‘‘They wanted the up of the new package boiler,
Pictured are Vincent J. Ponte (left) and Vincent M. Ponte,
work, and so they worked secretary and president, respectively, of Recycled followed by steam power be-
very closely with us.” Paperboard Inc. ing supplied to the mill. m

Recycled Paperperboard Restarts Mill 169

 Wisconsin Tissue Expands Recycled
Capacity with $160-Million Upgrade
Menasha, Wis., mill project features expanded deinking plant and new
paper machine, wastewater treatment operation, and converting facilities

The Eagle Il expansion at Wisconsin Tissue will increase overall produ ction by 70%.

commercial “away from home” sector of the tissue busi-

By ANDY HARRISON, Technical Editor ness, producing more than 2,500 tissue products, includ-
ing napkins, facial tissue, toilet tissue, toweling, place
Te startup of the No. 4 paper machine on June 24, mats, tray covers, table covers, and wipers. The new No.
1990, six months ahead of schedule, was the crown- 4 machine will produce mainly high-quality natural and
ing achievement of a $160-million expansion project at white towels and napkin stock.
Wisconsin Tissue Mills’ Menasha, Wis., mill. Within 24 Currently, all these products are produced from 100%
hours of startup, paper from the machine was processed recoverable paperstock, following a tradition of recy-
through the converting operation and shipped. cling at Wisconsin Tissue that dates from 1927. The mill
The expansion, called Eagle II, included the new pa- recycles a broad range of recycled paper using more
per machine, an additional water plant, an expanded than 120 suppliers to secure wastepaper for the manu-
deinking facility, a wastewater treatment facility, an ad- facture of all its products.
ditional warehouse area, more converting machines, “We have had a very successful startup mainly be-
and expanded computerized storage and shipping facili- cause of our team approach to the project,” said Bill
ties to support the new tissue production capacity. Eagle New, executive vice president. “Wisconsin Tissue now
II adds 80,000 tpy of production, increasing capacity at has some of the finest equipment made for the produc-
the mill by 70%. tion and converting of tissue products from 100% recov-
Wisconsin Tissue has achieved a market niche in the erable paperstock. Moreover, our people were directly
170 Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations
involved in the design, installation, implementation, op- The 210-in.-trim Beloit paper machine is capable of speeds up to
eration, and maintenance of this equipment from the 6,000 fpm.
very beginning.”

MILL HISTORY. When the Asmuth family sold Wis-

consin Tissue to Philip Morris in 1977, the business be-
gan an aggressive expansion approach, introducing a
new product line with the backing of a new paper ma-
chine (No. 3), a new deinking facility, and a new auto-
mated storage and retrieval system (AS/RS). That product
line consisted of toilet tissue and towels, which were
made by Wisconsin Tissue in the 1940s and 1950s, but
the line was discontinued.
The success of the installation and marketing of new
products to an existing customer base prompted a pro-
posal in 1984 for an additional expansion, which became
known as the Eagle Project. However, Philip Morris had
other plans, and the project was put on hold when Wis-
consin Tissue was sold to Chesapeake Corp. in 1985.
Chesapeake bought Wisconsin Tissue because of the
modern facilities, the excellent customer relationship, gave Wisconsin Tissue a guidepost to plan for produc-
and the solid management team that had carried over tion and quality expectations. After only six months of
from the days when the mill was family owned. In 1988, operation, No. 4 machine is operating at 100% of project-
Eagle II was resurrected, and Wisconsin Tissue’s aggres- ed capacity. Because No. 4 produces many of the same
sive expansion continued. products as No. 3, both machines can run longer, with
less downtime due to changeovers. The productivity of
THE NEW NO. 4. The featured component and cul- No. 3 has improved significantly since No. 4 started up.
mination of Eagle II is a Beloit paper machine, consisting ‘“‘We are a year ahead of the projected ramp of where
of a C-wrap, twin-wire former with a Concept III head- Eagle II was expected to be at this point,” said Sal Cian-
box, yankee dryer, and afterdryers. The 210-in.-trim ma- ciola, president of Wisconsin Tissue and group vice
chine is capable of running at 6,000 fpm. president of Tissue Products for Chesapeake Corp. ‘““And
Experience with the startup of No. 3 machine in 1982 we are probably going to increase production by 90,000
tons rather than 80,000 tpy.”
The Beloit C-Wrap machine consists
of an 18-ft-dia yankee dryer, with a sin-
gle-felt, double pressure roll arrange-
ment. The main difference between the
new No. 4 and No. 3 lies in the after-
dryers on the new machine. The Beloit
afterdryer section consists of nine 6-ft-
dia dryers. When dry crepe paper is pro-
duced, the sheet is wound up at the reel.
However, to run wet crepe paper, the
sheet from the yankee dryer is trans-
ferred over a bridge to the afterdryers.
The transfer bridge, a collaboration
between Beloit and Wisconsin Tissue, al-
lows the machine to operate at maxi-
mum efficiency whether running dry or
wet crepe paper. Rather than slowing
down the machine to run wet crepe pa-
per, as is done on No. 3, the sheet on No.
4 is dried by the yankee dryer to a 15% to
20% moisture level before going on to
the afterdryers.
\ ‘
As part of air environmental require-
¢
ments on the machine, a carbon absorp-
The mill produces a broad range of tissue products, all from 100% ‘recoverable
paperstock. tion unit built by Amcec was installed to

Wisconsin Tissue Expands 171

 wil

Effluent from the mill goes through primary, secondary, and tertiary sta ges of water clarification before going out to the lake.

handle volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions on years, Wisconsin Tissue has committed more than $68
Nos. 3 and 4 machines. vOCs occur when solvents are million to its deinking facilities, including a $33-million
used to clean stickies that accumulate on machine wires expansion that was part of the Eagle II project. The new
and fabrics. investment has enabled the mill to increase its use of
Since solvents are used only on a periodic basis, the postconsumer wastepaper and other lower grades of
carbon absorption unit was designed to handle only one waste significantly.
paper machine at a time. Interlocks exclusively allow The basic design of the deinking plant involves pulp-
solvent to be applied to either No. 3 or No. 4 at any given ing, screening, cleaning, flotation, and bleaching se-
time. quences that remove contaminants from the various re-
The twin-wire former has an exhaust fan that blows coverable fibers used in the process. Major pieces of
air to the atmosphere. Vacuum pump exhaust from the equipment include pulpers from Black Clawson and
machine also goes to the atmosphere. When solvent is Lodding/ Aikawa, pressure screens from Bird and Black
required on the machine, the VOC system is manually Clawson, cleaners from Bird, Noss, and Beloit Jones Div.,
activated. Dampers change so that emissions are divert- and a flotation system from Krofta.
ed to the carbon absorption system. Solvents are applied Major pieces of equipment in the bleach plant in-
to the machine, and the air laden with VOCs passes clude a Dorr-Oliver chlorine washer, Kamyr medium-
through three large chambers filled with activated car- consistency pumps, an Aris Andritz press with a medi-
bon, before being blown out to the atmosphere by a large um-consistency headbox, SHW towers that are built
fan. with unique nonbridging devices, and Kajaani sensors
Air monitors keep the VOC system operating until voc that detect brightness, residual peroxide, and residual
levels drop below a minimum. Calculations are done to chlorine.
determine the efficiency of the carbon bed, which the
mill reports to the state regularly. WATER AND EFFLUENT TREATMENT. The mill can
Steam for the new paper mill operation is supplied by treat up to 6 million gal/day of water. The new waste-
a Babcock & Wilcox 60,000-lb gas-fired boiler. Electrical water treatment plant, a three-stage system, including
power is purchased from a power company at 34,500 v primary, secondary, and tertiary clarification, treats all
and stepped down by two 50-mVA GE transformers to water and effluent before the water is returned to the
4,160 v. Motors above 200 hp use 4,160 v, and smaller lake.
motors use 480 v from Westinghouse 1,500- and 2,000- “Water taken from Little Lake Butte des Morts is used
kVA substations. in the papermaking process, cleaned, and then sent back
out,” according to Bernie Kopp, project manager and
DEINKING PLANT EXPANSION. During the past 11 plant engineer. ‘The water is usually cleaner going out

172 Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations

of the effluent plant than when it is pumped into the their presentations to the design team as well as to the
mill,” he said. mill personnel that had a stake in the process.
The surface water treatment plant and effluent water Startup of the new paper mill required breaking
treatment plant are computerized on a Honeywell TDC down the project into smaller, manageable systems. Spe-
3000 system. The system is part of a large overall net- cific areas of the deinking plant, paper mill, or treatment
work that also controls the automation of No. 4 paper plant were designated and highlighted on P&ID draw-
machine and the deinking plant. Operators from the var- ings for the contractors. Meetings were held with main-
ious individual plants not only have control over their tenance and engineering personnel as well as contrac-
areas but also have access to displays throughout the tors to define which equipment, what instrumentation
control network. loops, and what motors were to be ready.
When the contractor finished a system, static and dy-
CONVERTING OPERATIONS. The first phase of Eagle namic tests were performed by the mill. Static tests in-
II began taking shape on Apr. 15, 1989, with the startup _ cluded visually inspecting the system, stroking valves,
of the automatic guided vehicles (AGVs) and the AS/RS turning motors, etc. Dynamic testing involved actually
expansion. Four more storage cranes, 15 automated operating a system with material.
guided vehicles, and 17 shipping doors were added to “We wanted to make sure each system was oper-
the existing AS/RS system. Since the AS/RS system ex- ational before we attempted to make paper,” said Kopp.
pansion startup, more than 40 converting machines, For example, the startup of the paper machine broke
(mostly Bretting and Perini) have been installed. system required filling the broke pulper, pumping water
The 115,000-ft? facility is controlled automatically by through piping, and working automatic valves.
an IBM AS/400 Model B60 computer. This computer- “We had to install some bypass piping in the system
ized distribution center handles customer service, order to keep the material from flowing into other areas,”
entry, shipping, sales, and administration. It also pilots Kopp said. ‘However, as it turns out, the bypass piping
the AGVs, cranes, and inventory control. Real-time in- comes in handy in certain situations in the operation of
ventory and up-to-the-minute production data allow for the paper machine.” a
speedy distribution.
The computer-controlled storage-retrieval cranes are TABLE 1: Suppliers for the Eagle Il Project.
able to handle 5.9 million ft®. Pallet loads of finished
goods are delivered and positioned in the warehouse, Aikawa Scavenger detrashing units
product location is recorded, and then the product is re- Albany International Showers
Allen Bradley MCCs, variable-speed a.c. drives
trieved for shipment at a future date. Many products are Allen Bradley Stromberg d.c. drives
untouched from the time they are produced until they Amcec Carbon absorption system
are loaded for shipment. A two-story distribution build- Babcock & Wilcox Boiler
ing, adjacent to the AS/RS, includes 24 docks and inside Beloit Paper machine
Beloit Jones Saveall, refiner, headbox screen,
facilities to load eight railroad cars.
cleaners
Bird Escher Wyss Pressure screens
TEAM DESIGN. “We set up a project team at the de- Black Clawson Deflaker, machine pulpers, vibrating
sign phase,” said Kopp. ‘““The team that was set up con- screen, repulper, Selectifier screens
sisted of a number of individuals that work for me (elec- Boldt Construction General contractor
CPR & Associates Civil, structural, and architectural
trical and mechanical engineers) and personnel from work
each department in the project,” he continued. Donohue & Associates Engineering, treatment plant
Dan Waselchuck, vice president-engineering/techno- Dorr-Oliver Washers
logy, served as overall project manager. Jim Haeffele, No. EIMCO Primary clarifiers and secondary
Clarifiers
4 paper machine manager, represented production on EM Vacuum pumps, motor, 2,000 hp
the paper mill end. Steve Smith from the deinking plant Falk Gearboxes
and Gene Koeppel from the water treatment plant also Flakt Ross Yankee hood
served. This group formed a team with engineers from General Electric Transformers, d.c. motors
Gould Pumps Centrifugal pumps, fan pump
Simons-Eastern, which handled the process and design Honeywell TDC 3000 DCS system, PLCs
of the paper mill and deinking plant. CPR & Associates Kamyr Medium-consistency pumps
oversaw civil, structural, and architectural work. Team Krofta Engineering Sandfloat clarifier, spray filter, Super
members met monthly with Simons-Eastern in Atlanta, Cell air flotation unit
Lodding High-consistency pulpers
Ga., to go over drawings, flow diagrams, water balances,
Marathon Motors, 200 hp and below
piping arrangements, and equipment layouts. Measurex Basis weight and moisture control
Reviews were also made weekly with top manage- Nash Vacuum pumps
ment. Throughout the entire project, Wisconsin Tissue Noss Cleaners
maintenance, production, engineering, and purchasing Siemens Switchgear, motors, 250 hp and
above
personnel were involved. When equipment selection Simons-Eastern
was considered, vendors came to the mill and made Consultants Engineering for deinking plant,
paper mill
Valmet Enerdry Afterdryers hood, trim system
Westinghouse Unit substations

Wisconsin Tissue Expands 173

 MacMillan Bloedel Pine Hill
Expansion is Quality Driven
Greater linerboard sheet strength and smoothness is the goal as
freight regulations shift emphasis, recycling concerns increase

the basesheet ahead of the secondary headbox, a re-

By JIM YOUNG, Technical Editor built press section with a Beloit Extended Nip Press,
and additional dryer cylinders replacing a breaker
Te expansion program at MacMillan Bloedel Inc.’s stack. ‘Compression strength is the name of the game in
(MBI) containerboard mill in Pine Hill, Ala., has a the ’90s, and we have to do something about it,” says
dual focus of quality enhancement and increased capac- Van McCamish, manager-operations and manufactur-
ity, with the former driving the latter. Installations im- ing. These modifications will allow the 1,250-tpd ma-
proving quality call for additional pulp, which in turn chine to produce a three-ply sheet, while at the same
opens the door to using more secondary fiber. time adding 200-tpd capacity.
In 1990, PM No. 1, the mill’s linerboard machine, re- McCamish notes that the pulp mill and the original
ceived a new Beloit dual-flow primary headbox and top- old corrugated container (OCC) plant are supplying all
wire forming unit, followed by a new Valmet winder. A of the pulp that they can produce, so, in lieu of adding
fractionation system, including Beloit’s Bel Bond wash- another pulp mill, recovery boiler, and lime kiln, MBI
ers and fractionation screens supplied by Bird Escher opted for an additional secondary fiber plant. The older
Wyss, was installed in the pulp mill to fractionate a OCC system produces 300 tpd of machine-ready secon-
short, clean fiber for the top liner furnish. dary fiber, and the recent startup of a new OCC system is
PM No. 1 will continue to improve sheet strength adding an additional 350-tpd capacity. The mill runs 24
and smoothness when it brings online a new secondary hours/day, seven days/week.
headbox, another top-wire forming unit installed on PM No. 1 had been running in the neighborhood of

From left, Brooks Donald, Van

| McCamish, and Trenton Agee
| observe the new OCC line.

174
Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations
 8% to 10% secondary fiber before last year’s upgrade ad- wax-coated boxes cause most recycling problems, fol-
vanced the range from 12% to 14%. When the revised lowed by plastics, such as those found in shrink-wrap
wet end and press section come online in June 1991, the packaging. Edward Harvey, corporate director-transpor-
target is 25%, all of which will go to the middle ply ina tation and recycled fiber, believes that it may be possi-
mixture with broke. The bottom ply will be virgin kraft ble to reduce these contaminants through the influence
pulp, and the top ply will be fractionated pulp. The re- that OCC collectors have with the recipients of packaged
maining fiber from the new OCC line will be added to goods, continuing back to their shippers. He cites an ex-
PM No. 2, the corrugated medium machine, to bring its ample where this was successfully done several years
secondary fiber content up to a 30% to 35% range from ago to solve OCC recycling problems caused by asphalt-
the current 18% to 20%. laminated tape.
Engineering for the $66-million upgrade was pro- To avoid short-term market whims in meeting the
vided by BE&K. Total optimization of both machines, in- Pine Hill mill’s doubled occ supply requirements, Har-
cluding a new drive to take PM No. 1 past 2,100 fpm, is vey has established long-term contracts in the Deep
estimated to carry to 1994. - South with grocery stores and packing house collectors
that gather occ from both large trash-hauling operations
OCC COLLECTION. Quality likewise is the overrid- and small bailers. He is pleased with the freight logistics
ing concern in OCC collection. Hotmelt adhesives and in southwest Alabama, where several mills ship paper,

FIGURE 1: OCC flow diagram.

Vibrating screens Tertiary Model ||

PSL Screen

Hydradenser
<-—_ —

Secondary Model III t

PSL Screen
Secondary Model ||
Ragger | No. 25 cyclone Ultra Screen Primary Model III
Selectpurge \ Hydraflaker PSL Screens

R a |
Pulper
. jens tea oO
\
No.10 cyclones
|
=<
Se O R

|Hydrapurge
Y
=O)
Dump Pump
Primary Model III
Ultra Screen R a=

<_< |

HD
tank

Whitewater
Krofta clarifier chest

MacMillan Bloedel Expansion 175

leaving an excess of both truck and rail backhauling ca-
pacity available.
Harvey lends his voice to the chorus of those who
believe that recycling should be driven by economics
rather than legislation. “If you can make it attractive
enough, you can do it,” he says, adding, “It’s an exciting
time for recycling, particularly in the southern kraft
mills.”

NEW OCC FIBER LINE. The new OCC line basically

mirrors the older line. It starts with a Black Clawson
Model 9D continuous Hydrapulper with a 500-hp motor
driving a 63-in. rotor at 200 rpm. It is currently pulping
at a consistency between 2.3% and 2.5% (Figure 1).
Accepts pass through %-in. holes to the cleaning and
screening line. Reject material that can be further re-
fined passes through a Hydrapurge II and Selectpurge
loop; other material is discharged to a trash well with a
clamshell hoist.
Stock leaves the pulper at a 439.7-tpd rate at about
2.7% consistency. This figures to be a flow rate of ap-
proximately 2,705 gpm. It continues through a single No.
25 Liquid Cyclone cleaner, where heavy contaminants
are removed before a Worthington pump advances it to a igen ! : li ust 2 2a
50,000-gal dump chest, from where it is pumped to a pri- Ralph Michaels (left) and Ed Harvey, responsible for MBI
mary Model III Ultra Screen. Brooks Donald, project en- containerboard marketing and OCC collection, respectively,
gineer, estimates about two-thirds of the stock coming agree that these are interesting times for the corrugated
into the primary screens will be accepted, and the one- container industry.
third reject stock circulates through a Hydraflaker refin-
er and a secondary Model II Ultra Screen. X-Clone cleaners. At the completion of the X-Clone
Accepts from the secondary screen, an estimated 99 cleaning stage, accepts move on to an Ingersoll-Rand
tpd of the 142 tpd being recycled in this loop, return to vacuum decker, where consistency is raised to approxi-
the primary screen. The remaining stock passes over a mately 12% to 14% before an Ahlstrom MC 22 pump
vibrating screen that removes heavy contaminants, and sends the stock to a 300-tpd storage tank. Rejects are
accepts return to the pulper to start over in the process. passed on to a Krofta feed tank supplying a clarifier of
No. 10 Liquid Cyclones and primary Model III PSL the same make. Clarifier rejects go to the Hydradenser,
screens, two each in parallel, constitute the next stage and whitewater is refiltered into a whitewater tank for
with rejects circulating through secondary and tertiary reuse in the process.
PSL screens. Final rejects from this loop, at a 1.65% con-
sistency, are sent to a Hydradenser, where they are MARKETING. The recent startup of the new OCC
trapped in a set of screens, compressed, and discharged line and the linerboard machine upgrade coming online
from the system. Returning accepts from the secondary this summer coincide with changes in the corrugated
and tertiary PSL screens join the initial accepts from the container regulations of the railroad’s Rule 41 and the
primary screen to yield a 386-tpd flow rate to the X- trucking industry’s Item 222. The changes shift priority
Clone feed tank. from bursting strength to compression strength. Ralph
The X-Clone feed tank supplies stock to six banks of Michaels, MBI vice president-marketing, echoes Ed Har-
primary X-Clone cleaners and two banks of secondary vey’s sentiments that these are interesting times for the
corrugated container industry. ‘We should have the ca-
pabilities of producing a higher ring-crush sheet that is
TABLE 1: Major suppliers of the MBI expansion. going to have a decent percentage of recycled material
in it,” he predicts, “‘so I think we are going to answer two
Beloit Wet end rebuild, press section questions at the same time.”
Valmet Winder These answers will be determined after the modified
Black Clawson Old corrugated container line
Worthington Pumps
stock has been on the market for a while, meeting the
Ahlstrom Pumps demands of the end user. Michaels believes the revi-
Ingersoll-Rand Decker sions at Pine Hill place his company in a position to an-
Krofta Clarifier swer a lot of questions that customers are asking. “We
all have a lot to learn in a short time,” he says. @

176 Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations

 Chapter 43

Mobile Paperboard’s Recycled Board

Cylinder Machine First in 15 Years
With a second “new” machine online, the Newark Group mill at Mobile, Ala.,
can now produce up to 400 tpd of various recycled boxboard grades

By KEN L. PATRICK, Editor in Chief When in operation at Scott, the machine won the
Army/Navy “E” award for exceptional performance on
the industrial front during World War II. The wet end
L early 1990, Mobile Paperboard Corp., a part of the (cylinder) section has been almost completely rebuilt,
Newark Group, started up a “resurrected” cylinder new presses have been installed along with additional
machine at its Mobile, Ala., facility, currently the oldest drying capacity, and the latest process controls are
operating paper mill in the state of Alabama. Including a being used.
new beater room to provide furnish for No. 2 machine, The Mobile mill began operations in 1918 as Gulf Pa-
the expansion cost approximately $10 million and dou- per Mills Corp., which was destroyed by fire in 1923. It
bled the mill’s capacity to more than 120,000 tpy of recy- was rebuilt as Mobile Paper Mills Inc. at the present site
cled grades. and operated under that name until 1952 when it was
Mobile Paperboard’s products are used in the manu- sold to Stone Container Corp. Stone subsequently sold
facture of a wide variety of converted and semiconvert- the mill to the Newark Group in 1984.
ed products. These include cereal boxes, detergent Currently, the mill employs about 200 people, with
boxes, shoe boxes, cones, cores, tubes, produce shipping some 60 being new employees brought on for the No. 2
boxes, board for book covers, three-ring binders, game machine expansion. In addition to receiving 24,000 tpy
boards, and furniture molding. of recyclable old newspapers, corrugated boxes, office
waste, and other mixed wastepaper onsite, Mobile Pa-
COMPANY BACKGROUND. The salvaged No. 2 ma- perboard also accepts 50,000 lb of aluminum cans and
chine was purchased from Scott Paper Co.’s mill in 40,000 lb of beverage glass/year, which are sent to spe-
Mobile and was heavily rebuilt by Mobile Paperboard. cialized recyclers of these materials in the area.
The Newark Group operates 11 recycled paper mills
nationwide, with a total of 16 paper machines producing
more than 875,000 tpy and consuming more than 1 mil-
lion tons of wastepaper annually. In addition, the com-
pany operates nine commercial wastepaper packing
plants and regional sales offices, handling about 2 mil-
lion tpy of wastepaper for sale in domestic and export
markets.
The Newark Group’s converting and semiconverting
operations include BCI (Book Covers Inc.), which manu-
factures (at four locations) a variety of laminated paper-
boards for use primarily in cover and binder applica-
tions; SFP (Southern Foam Products) in Dalton, Ga.,
which manufactures foam and board combinations for
the book, album, and protective packaging industries;
Growers Packaging Co. in Fresno Calif., which makes
grape and tree fruit packaging from Fiberwrap. a special
Cylinders on wet end of No. 2 machine are run on a closed laminated board developed by BCI; Cedartown/Misco,
pressure loop rather than a standard gravity headbox. which manufactures cores and tubes at six southeastern

Mobile Paperboard’s Recycled Board Machine 7,

 later), a
FIGURE 1: Mobile Paperboard’s new No. 2 recycled boxboard machine currently has seven cylinders (two more to be added
drum roll suction press, and a second press.

Primary press

Second press
Drum roll suction press

locations; and Freeport Paper Products Inc., which sup- No. 2 machine currently has only seven cylinders and
plies custom printed pizza boxes out of Freeport, Long does not yet apply top and bottom liners. In the near fu-
Island. ture, however, it will also be fitted with Nos. 1 and 9 cyl-
inders for applying higher-quality surface plies. In the
ALABAMA RECYCLING GOALS. Like most states in meantime, furnish for the new machine is comprised of
the U.S., Alabama has recently set some definitive old corrugated containers (OCC), core tube waste from
recycling goals. Several recycling programs have been the Cedartown/Misco operations, chip-box cuttings,
launched in state government, and private business and and mixed paper acquired through the Newark Group’s
industry are being urged to participate. State Law Act own wastepaper packing plants.
89-824, passed in 1989, calls on separate county govern- About 75% of the lighter-weight paperboard from No.
ments to develop immediately a comprehensive waste 2 machine, with caliper ranging between about 16 and
management plan and establishes a statewide recycling 40 points, is sold ‘“‘back” to the parent company’s core
target of 25%. and tube converting operations as well as other inde-
In dedicating the Mobile Paperboard expansion, Gov- pendent converters. However, these sales are not neces-
ernor Guy Hunt pointed out that “for every ton of waste- sarily ‘‘captive.” The company’s converting plants can
paper recycled at the mill, 3.3 yd? of landfill space is not buy board from any manufacturer; likewise, the com-
needed.” Based on the mill’s current capacity with No. 2
machine online, this represents approximately 400,000
yd? of landfill space each year.
Edward Mullen, chairman of the board for the New-
ark Group, was at the mill’s dedication, along with Fred
Von Zuben, president. According to Mullen, the com-
pany decided to expand the Mobile operation “because
of its proximity to an existing and growing customer
base and easy access to the deep water port of Mobile.”

WASTEPAPER FURNISH. Brian Canty, assistant mill

superintendent, explained that No. 1 machine has nine
cylinders. The first and last cylinders (Nos. 1 and 9) are
used for applying top and bottom liners of higher-qual-
ity fibers, e.g., from double lined kraft (DLK). The middle
filler sheet is made of a broad mix of wastepaper, in-
cluding all local ‘‘off the street” collections that come in tn amt Ne

loose. The community collections are “a pretty good

mix,” according to Canty. Daily collections vary from
about 80 to 120 to 130 tons, which is approaching 50% of
the furnish for No. 1 machine. The caliper of heavier
grades made on this machine ranges between 20 and 60 The press section has a rebuilt primary press and a completely
points. new second press with a nip loading up to 1,200 pli.

178
Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations
 BEATER ROOM. The stock preparation system for
No. 2 machine consists basically of a 20-ft-dia Black
Clawson Hydrapulper, followed by Black Clawson pri-
mary, secondary, and tertiary screening and six C-E
Bauer sidehill screens for thickening. A Voith Contam-
inex unit and a Black Clawson Selectpurge screen are
used on the junker for trash removal. No deinking is
done at this mill.
Stock from the pulper passes through a dilution tank
before being pumped to the Ultra Screen III primary
screen, which has 0.014-in. slots, as do the secondary
and tertiary screens. Primary accepts are sent to the
sidehill screens. Rejects pass through a primary rejects
tank to one of two secondary Selectifier screens. Secon-
dary screen accepts are sent to the sidehill screens along
with primary screen accepts, while rejects are collected
in a rejects tank and sent to the tertiary Selectifier
screen. Tertiary accepts can be sent to the primary re-
jects tank or to the sidehill screens. Final tertiary screen
rejects pass over a Black Clawson tailing screen prior to
disposal.
Dryer section has 68 4-ft-dia dryers in five drive sections, Stock from the sidehill screens is collected in a filler
foliowed by two calender stacks.
dump chest and sent to the refiners at 4% consistency.
Two of the three refiners are Black Clawson 34-in. dou-
ble disc units, each with 1,000-hp motors. The tickle re-
finer is a 26-in. Pilao triple disc unit with a 450-hp mo-
tor. Refined stock goes to a filler loop chest before being
sent to the machine at about 3.5% consistency.

NO. 2 CYLINDER MACHINE. No. 2 board machine cyl-

inders are rebuilt versions of those that were used on
the original Scott Paper machine, but the stainless
steel vats were fabricated locally. All seven cylinders
are 48 in. in dia with a 124-in. face. Canty pointed out
that operation of the cylinders is rather unique in that
they are run on a closed pressure loop rather than a
gravity headbox.
Currently, the seven cylinders are all counterflow
types. But plans are for the new Nos. 1 and 9 outside lin-
ing cylinders to be of uniflow design. Canty explained
that uniflow cylinders generally produce a smoother,
lighter ply than the counterflow units, which will be
After the calender stacks, the reel, with a dry end trim of 110 in., producing a filler ply after the lining cylinders are add-
is sent to a winder for slitting to customer sizes. ed, possibly later this year. Furnish for the lining plies
will be primarily from clean DLK clipping, according to
pany’s board mills can and do sell their products to oth- Canty.
er converters. The remaining production from No. 2 ma- The formed sheet goes through a rebuilt Escher Wyss
chine is mainly chipboard-type grades for manufacture drum roll suction press, loaded up to 150 pli, then
of industrial boxes and assorted containers. changes direction and goes back down the machine to
Very little old newsprint (ONP) is currently used on the rebuilt primary press, which contains a Beloit Com-
No. 2 machine, but No. 1 machine, which has a three- press unit and has consecutive nips of 250 pli, 400 pli,
stock system, does use considerable amounts of this fi- and 450 pli (Figure 1). The second press is a brand new
ber in its center filler sheet, Canty explained. When lin- Miami Machine unit with rubber-covered, blind-drilled
ing cylinders have been installed on No. 2 machine, its rolls and a nip loading up to 1,200 pli.
filler sheet furnish will also contain increased amounts The first section of 13 Moore & White dryers is from
of ONP and off-the-street mixed wastepaper. All of the the original Scott Paper machine, as is the rewinder. Al-
mill’s outside wastepaper bales are being shipped in by together, the machine has 68 48-in. dryers in five drive
truck. sections. The dryers in sections two through five—Black

Mobile Paperboard’s Recycled Board Machine 179

Clawson units followed by Lukenwelds—were acquired through this stage is then stored in the lower lagoon,
from various sources. from which it is pumped back into the mill for reuse in
Two calender stacks follow the dryers. The first is a the process.
wet stack where a moderate finish can be applied to Before being sent to the lagoons, water from No. 1
both sides, primarily water and starch—no calender machine goes through a Black Clawson flotation saveall
stain or color is being added at this time. The calendered unit. No. 2 machine has a more complicated system for
sheet is then wound on a horizontal pope reel before go- cleaning up its waste stream before it goes to the la-
ing to the completely renovated Cameron winder. Dry goons, including a clarifier unit. Canty pointed out that
end trim is 110 in. altogether, the mill uses very little makeup water, most
Slitters on the winder, which operates at speeds up to of the time recycling almost all that it uses. All fresh-
3,000 fpm, can be positioned from a minimum of 4 in. to water comes from deep water wells.
50, 60, or 70 in. wide. Finished rolls from the rewinder
go through an upender, are put on skids, and are then EMPLOYEE TRAINING. Many of the 60 new positions
“sent down” by towmotor to the warehouse. All fin- for No. 2 machine were filled by relatively inexperi-
ished shipments are by truck. enced employees previously assigned to No. 1 machine.
The machine’s new a.c. line shaft drive was supplied The vacated slots on No. 1 machine as well as some
by Louis Allis. Process control for the beater room (stock positions for the new machine were then filled from the
consistency, chest levels, etc.) and board machine is pro- outside.
vided by new Moore Products digital controllers. ‘“Help-wise, we basically started from scratch,” Canty
No. 2 machine speed, depending on specific grade, said. “We had very little experience to work with, par-
currently ranges from about 250 to 450 fpm. It produces ticularly as machine tenders, back tenders, etc.” Train-
7.5 to 8.5 ton/hour of board, or approximately 160 tpd. ing for the new machine startup was done in-house.
The near-future target for No. 2 machine is up to 200 “All used equipment was rebuilt here at the mill,”
tpd, Canty emphasized. No. 1 machine production aver- Canty added. ‘We used our own in-place maintenance
ages between 180 and 200 tpd. people and a temporary crew brought on just for this
purpose. We installed and aligned the cylinder vats and
WATER RECYCLING. The mill has two aerated la- some other equipment and did a little work in the beater
goons, into which anything not recycled is transferred. room, but almost everything else—the wet end setting,
The first acts as a “settling” pond. Water having passed press trains, press rolls, etc.—was contracted out.”

180 Recycling Mill Expansions and. Modernizations

 Chapter 44

Cascade’s Deinking Plant Producing

High-Grade Market Pulp from Waste
Sixteenth mill of the dynamic Canadian company is now in full
Operation at Breakeyville, Que., utilizing flotation technology

Cycle) thickener. This new CDC thickener gives eco-

By JOHN C.W. EVANS, Consulting Editor
nomical dewatering from a minimum inlet consistency
of 0.5% to a maximum discharge consistency of 12%.
he only market pulp mill in Canada that utilizes The design allows the amount of dewatering to be
deinked wastepaper is now in full and successful controlled to constant discharge consistency even as
operation at Breakeyville, Que. The mill, located near throughput, inlet consistency, freeness, and temperature
Quebec City, is operated as a subsidiary of Cascades vary. Pressure filtration is the principle behind the oper-
Inc., with the name Desencrage Cascades Inc. (‘‘Desen- ation of the CDC. The pulp is pumped to the interior of a
crage” translates as ‘‘deinking.’’) Nominal capacity is 100 cylindrical screen basket and conveyed through the bas-
tpd of a 56 to 60 brightness pulp produced from maga- ket, where a close-fitting screw wipes the screen clean.
zine and newspaper waste. A second grade is made from Back pressure is provided by the head of a discharge
printed kraft waste with a 75 to 83 brightness. chute. The effluent chamber of the CDC thickener is
The mill is located on the site of a former market maintained under pressure by throttling the effluent
groundwood pulp plant. Very little of the equipment valves on the outside of the chamber. Thus the pressure
from the groundwood mill has been utilized in the new differential and subsequent flow rate through the screen
operation. A major exception to this is in the sheet form- basket can be controlled. The fiber mat, which forms on
ing, cutting, and baling operation. the inside of the screen basket, is wiped by a rotating
Wastepaper is delivered by the trucks of Cascades’ double-flight screw. The clearance between the screw
wastepaper collection system. In the province of Que- flights and the screen is maintained at a minimum for
bec, six Cascades’ paper mills are based on wastepaper effective wiping.
furnish. The wastepaper is delivered to Breakeyville The controlled discharge consistency from the CDC
loose or baled from Cascades’ numerous collection sta- means a greater uniformity in removal of the ‘“‘free’’ ink
tions. A fork truck moves the wastepaper onto the first at this stage and controlled consistency in the feed to the
conveyor. Here the bales are opened. This conveyor ele- air flotation stage of ink removal.
vates the paper to a 40-ft-long horizontal conveyor from The pulp from the CDC stage is diluted to a 3.2% con-
which corrugated waste is removed by hand for ship- sistency, then passed through a deflaker and screened in
ment to a Cascades mill using this grade of waste. Large a Beloit-Jones S-series high-consistency screen. The
contaminants are dropped to a bin below for disposal.
When the conveyor holds the approximate weight of pa-
per desired, it is weighed and delivered to a pulper. The
pulper is a Beloit-Jones Shark batch unit equipped with
a standard rotor.
Chemicals used are sodium hydroxide, hydrogen
peroxide, chelating agents, surfactants, and sodium sili-
cate. The required quantity of chemicals for the weight
of paper is determined by the control system and is
automatically added to the pulper. Pulping is carried out
at 4% to 6% consistency.

FIRST INK REMOVAL. The first step in ink removal

involves dilution of the screened stock from the pulper
and then dewatering of this stock up to a consistency of Headers and air injectors for Lineacell flotation units aid the
8% to 10% in a Beloit-Jones CDC (Controlled Drainage process of ink removal.

Cascade’s Deinking Plant 181

 rotor/profiled screen combination creates a fluidized recontamination due to flow reversal, leakage, or short-
boundary layer that extends well ahead of the rotor. circuiting.
This means that the screening operation continues at Following the removal of lightweight contaminants
consistencies as high as 3%. The screen at Breakeyville by the Uniflow cleaners, heavy material is removed
is equipped with 0.010-in. slotted plates. Rejects at pres- through use of the Bauer standard Centricleaners re-
ent are purged on a time basis, and accepts are delivered maining from the groundwood operation.
to the feed chest of the flotation system.
HIGHLY AUTOMATED OPERATION. The wastepaper
FLOTATION STAGE. The flotation cells used in ink processing system at Breakeyville is completely con-
removal are the new Beloit-Jones flotation units named trolled by a Honeywell computer system. All phases of
Lineacell. The system uses a series of stages, usually one the process are monitored and controlled by a Honey-
mounted above the other. At the Breakeyville mill, five well TDC distributed control system located in the cen-
stages are stacked vertically, with 5 ft between units for ter of the operation. For example, the process begins
maintenance. with the conveyor delivering a weighed amount of
The Lineacell has separate aeration, mixing, and wastepaper to the pulper. The amount of required
foam-separation chambers. Air is fed into the stock and chemicals is determined automatically and added along
dispersed in the aeration chamber. The stock then with a predetermined volume of water. Two operator
moves to a separation cell where carefully controlled consoles serve as windows into the heart of the various
patterns of stock and minute air bubbles maintain the fi- stages in the processes.
bers in suspension while the ink containing foam forms Use of graphics and integrated real-time data displays
at the surface and is drawn off by vacuum. Fiber loss is provide the operators with constantly updated process
slight here. status data. The entire process, beginning with the batch
The Lineacellis unusual in that it has no moving pulping operation, is logically broken down into multi-
parts and therefore requires minimal maintenance. ple graphic displays that allow the operators to examine
the operating conditions in a specific area of the mill.
FINAL CLEANING. The deinked stock from the Line- Process overviews are provided, which allow moni-
acells is pumped to a Beloit-Jones two-stage Uniflow toring of the entire process with rapid access to specific
centrifugal cleaner system. These cleaners are a new de-
sign for improved removal of lightweight contaminants.
Stock enters tangentially at the top of the unit, creating a
fast spinning motion. As the flow continues to spin in
the cleaner body, it passes through an area of maximum
centrifugal force near the bottom of the cone, ensuring
separation of the slower-moving, lighter-weight material
from the bulk of the stock. Both rejects and accepts are
removed (separately) at the bottom of the cone.
The lightweight particles move inward in a spiral
flow toward a single, central rejects outlet at the base of
the cleaner. Air is removed at the same time with the
contaminants. The accepted stock is discharged from
the cleaner through a tangential outlet located at the
Ink containing foam floating on top of stock in a Lineacell is
base of the unit, thus eliminating the possibility of stock drawn off by vacuum.

FIGURE 1: Flow sheet showing the basic

components of the Desencrage deinking system.
Bale Sorting
breaking conveyor Pulper Cyclo-
screen

CDC Deflaker Beloit-Jones ae

thickener cabs | Lineacells ff

Uni-flow Conventional Wet lap Sheet

cleaners } cleaners sheet former cutter and

baler

182
Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations
 areas when necessary. The control room also has a data
logger for recording alarm conditions.

SHEETING AND BALING. An existing wet machine

from the groundwood pulp operation is used to form
sheets of pulp from the deinked stock, which has been
thickened to 4% consistency on gravity deckers. The
wet machine sheets at 55% to 60% air-dried consistency
are cut, stacked, and baled for shipment. A pulp flash-
drying system is also available at the mill.

WATER RECYCLING AND EFFLUENT TREATMENT. Efflu-

ent from the CDC thickener goes to an existing Krofta
dissolved air flotation clarifier. Clarified water is used
back at the pulper, thus reusing residual chemical and
heat. The water for the pulper is raised to the desired ee "et | al id ’
temperature by a gas heater. Rejects from the scavenger Uniflow centrifugal cleaners have improv designs for removal
at the pulper, the coarse screen following the pulper, of lightweight contaminants.
and the vibrating screen are sent to local landfill. Sludge
from the Krofta clarifier, inky foam from the Lineacell Clarifier water not used in the mill processes goes to two
units, and rejects from the third stage Bauer centrifugal settling ponds and then to an aerated lagoon before re-
cleaners following the Lineacell units are collected in a lease to the Chaudiére River. Filtrate from the gravity
sludge tank. This sludge goes to a reconditioned belt deckers and excess water from the machine that forms
press for thickening and then to the landfill. Effluent the wet pulp laps is used where dilution is required in
from the belt press goes back to the Krofta clarifier. the process following the CDC. a

Cascade’s Deinking Plant 183

 Chapter 45

Seminole Kraft Advances Recycling of

Newspapers with “Good News” Bag
Grocery bags containing a minimum of 20% ONP are claimed equal
to 100% virgin kraft bags in tear, burst, and tensile strength

Seminole Kraft began production of grocery bag paper

By JIM YOUNG, Technical Editor
incorporating old newspapers (ONP) in May 1990. The
Good News bag has a minimum of 20% recycled fiber
Aris grocery chain recently filmed a television and according to Ken Johnson, Seminole’s operations
commercial at Stone Container Corp.’s Retail Bag manager, it meets the tear, burst, and tensile strength
Div. plant in Yulee, Fla., promoting the chain’s use of the specifications of a 100% virgin fiber bag. The recycled fi-
“Good News” grocery bag that incorporates recycled ber gives it a somewhat softer texture and a slightly
newspaper fiber. lighter shade that enhances printability.
Larry Stanley, general manager of Stone’s Seminole
Kraft mill in nearby Jacksonville, where the bag paper is RECYCLING CHEMISTRY. Testing of the mixed stock
made, notes that in the past 12 to 14 months the public began in February with a reapplication of existing
has responded to the need to recycle in a way that hasn’t equipment and a revised approach to recycling chemis-
been seen since World War II. try. The mill worked closely with Jacksonville-based
Ivey Crump, production manager at the Yulee plant, Betz PaperChem in developing the chemistry for addi-
adds that many of his customers are ordering only bags tives. Mark Manning, Betz process specialist, says the
containing recycled fiber, and most of the rest are asking first concern addressed was the strength of the bags,
about them. which was aided by adding starch and cationic polymers
for fiber retention (Figure 1).
A second concern was newsprint ink getting into
the whitewater and contaminating machine wires and
clothing. Detackification additives keep the inks from
e
® conglomerating, and ink particles, smaller than the eye
can see, are locked in the sheet.
Drainage and retention aids successfully maintain
the running speed of the machine, but machine deposi-
tion has increased. These deposits can be cleaned dur-
ing the machine’s normal 30-day production schedule
and have not limited production. Doctor blades are be-
ing considered to remove buildup on the first section of
dryers.
“We're still in a quality partnership mode here,”
Manning says. “We’ve come a long way, but we’re still in
a learning curve, especially with deposit problems.”

MINIMAL EQUIPMENT MODIFICATION. Depending on

the grade produced, 80 to 100 tpd of ONP are repulped in
a 20-ft-dia Black Clawson Hydrapulper driven by a 400-
seri
hp motor. The mill has been adding 2 to 3 tpd of tele-
AN

. Larry Stanley, Seminole Kraft general manager (left), and Ivey

Crump, production manager of Stone Container’s Yulee bag phone books to the ONP with no ill effect from the adhe-
plant, discuss the next paper shipment for the Good News bag. sives. Much of the Onp arrives stuffed in kraft grocery

184 Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizatio

ns
bags that also join the repulping process. The pulper al-
ternates ONP with 95 to 100 tpd of double-lined kraft
(DLK) clippings pulped for Seminole’s linerboard ma-
chine every 4 hours, with each stock sent to its respec-
tive high-density storage chest. The total system has a
combined capacity of approximately 260 tpd.
No adjustment is made at the Hydrapulper as the
stock alternates from ONP to DLK and back, but as it
leaves the pulper at 4% consistency, the ONP is not as
free-draining as DLK and requires three sidehill screens
as compared with two for DLK pulp. The screens running
ONP also require more cleaning.
The stock is pumped from the storage chest to a blend
chest to a beater chest, where it joins virgin kraft fiber °
coming from a decker at 6% to 7% consistency. The
combined pulp is reduced to about 3.5% consistency be-
fore it passes through a 54-in. Beloit Jones refiner. Stock
flow continues through a machine chest, stuffbox, fan
pump, screen, and into the PM No. 1 headbox.
The fourdrinier bag machine receives approximately
17 tons/hour of pulp slurry—4 tons originating as ONP
and 13 tons of virgin kraft fiber—and runs at 1,400 fpm
for 70-lb grade production. No major modification was
required to convert to a mixed virgin-kraft/ONP stock.
Adjusting foil blades to create activity on the table for
improved sheet formation was about all that was re- Seminole’s Hydrapulper alternates between pulping ONP for
quired. The previously mentioned chemical changes inclusion in the Good News bag and double-lined kraft clippings
for linerboard production.

FIGURE 1: PM No. 1 “Good News” stock flow.

Dry end
ulper
ge Detackifier oe ea
: 2

Decker ies aaa

Stuffbox Broke

Defoamer chest Beater} Blend

L ope
Machine chest | chest
ifi
Detackifier —— < fees
Virgin fiber
high-density
chests Aium
Pune
storage

Starch

storage

ONP/DLK
Fan pump
storage

ONP/ Polyplus 695

DLK
retention
Hydrapulper polymer

ONP = Old newspaper

DLK = Double-lined
kraft clippings
Defoamer Acid pH control
 Andrew Puckett, PM No. 1 crew
leader (left), and Ken Johnson,
operations manager, observe a
1,400-fpm run that includes more
than 20% ONP.

maintain a stock consistency of 23% coming off of the changes in the three-nip tandem press section. These
couch roll, the same as virgin fiber. changes were incidental to the addition of 20%-plus
Seminole’s PM No. 1 has been refurbished since ONP, as was the upgrading of the stock prep area to add
Stone purchased the shut-down mill in 1986, most re- additional refining capacity, but they all contributed to
cently with upgrades in the wet end and felt-run the successful trials.
PM No. 1 was originally installed in 1952 with a size
press that hasn’t run in several years. The size press
rolls and drive were reconditioned, and the unit was
reinstalled to improve caliper without affecting sheet
properties the way calendering would. Caliper for a 70-
lb sheet is 7.0 mils. Depending on grade mix, machine
output is 325 to 350 tpd of paper for the Good News bag.
The mill gets quick feedback on product quality from
the bag plant in Yulee 15 miles to the west. Purchased
by Stone Container in 1988, the 400,000-ft? plant aver-
ages 250 tpd production from 25 machines, three to nine
of them running the Good News bag. The plant pur-
chases paper from at least five suppliers, producing
small 30-lb to 40-lb bags and grocery checkout bags from
50 lb to 80 lb. The 70-lb bag is currently in greatest de-
mand. Seminole Kraft supplies at least 30% of the paper
stock, and Crump figures that percentage will go higher
as demand increases for the Good News bag.
Stone Container is sharing knowledge gained from
this startup with other paper bag producers in the belief
that information that can help solve America’s growing
eee solid waste problem is too important to remain propri-
Many grocery chains are ordering and promoting exclusively etary. Stanley reports that several representatives from
bags containing recycled newspapers. other firms have already toured the mill. a

186
Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations
 Chapter 46

Miami Paper Uses Washing, Flotation

at Recycled Fine Paper Mill in Ohio
Company combines latest technology with unique operating approach
to produce a quality recycled sheet that competes head-on with virgin fiber

By ANDY HARRISON, Technical Editor operation and effectively tied both processes together.
Now we have the best of both worlds.

J Morrison, president of Miami Paper Corp., talks P&P: Don’t the washing and flotation technologies have
with Pulp & Paper about deinking technology and opposing chemistries that can cause problems in the
contaminant removal, legislation, and definitions that overall operation of the deinking plant?
will effect printing and writing grades in the near fu- Morrison: We had problems at first but were soon able to
ture. He also discusses the basic philosophy behind Mi- make the two systems work together. By supplementing
ami Paper’s success in making quality paper products our existing system with new technology, we were
from recycled fiber. locked into certain designs that we would not have used
Miami Paper is a subsidiary of Cross Pointe Paper if we were to build a brand new system from scratch.
Corp., which is part of the Pentair Organization. Over Just about any piece of equipment currently on the
the years, the company has diligently explored new de- market will get the job done to some degree. The trick is
velopments in recycling technology, incorporating many to put it together in sequence and manage that process.
of them into its own papermaking process at the Miami, This determines how successful an operation is going to
Ohio, mill. A combination of washing and flotation tech- be. For us, that expertise has come from in-house more
nology is currently used in the 150-tpd deinking process, than anywhere else. However, our project team has re-
which provides paperstock for such grades as book pa- cently been examining new German technology.
per, commercial printing, technical specialties, and text Even though technology is changing fast, it takes
and cover. three years for a project to take shape—involving first
the decision to do it, then designing a system, buying the
P&P: Miami Paper has been recycling for many years. equipment, installing the equipment, and, finally, start-
How has your company adapted to the changing needs of ing up the operation. Three years from now we are going
the recycling business during this period?
Morrison: We have been recycling since 1915. In the old Jobe Morrison,
days deinking was not a very complicated process. The president of Miami
inks and binders were simple since very few synthetic Paper Corp.
latexes and coatings were used. From 1915 to 1975, we
used the same recycling technology to successfully
manufacture book paper. As the graphic arts world
changed—using more heatset inks and ultraviolet set
inks—that 1915 technology became less effective in
handling the wastepaper stream.
In 1975 we put in a new plant, which included dis-
placement washing, cleaning, and bleaching. That tech-
nology lasted until about 1985. As the graphic arts world
continued to change relative to xerography, laser print-
ing, etc., processing the wastepaper coming through the
system became progressively more difficult. In 1985 we
added European-type flotation capability to our washing

Miami Paper Recycled Fine Paper Mill 187

 to be in the same position we were in back in 1975 and of the printed substrate from the fiber substrate—simple
1985, i.e., calling for new technology to handle the to define but difficult to do. We disperse in the pulper,
changing wastepaper stream. and everything afterwards is a separation process. To get
In addition to the recycling facility, you need to learn that separation process to work properly, the ink particle
how to make paper out of secondary fiber. Part of the must be dispersed to a size that the separation units can
learning curve is changing the machine’s wet end handle. In displacement washing, that size is 35 mi-
around. crons, which is right at the threshold of visibility. Any-
thing less than that can be taken out in the washing op-
P&P: What is your basic philosophy on deinking and con- eration. Flotation technology can handle particle sizes
taminant removal technology? in the 35 to 125 micron range.
Morrison: Deinking is the dispersion and the separation A problem with xerography and laser printing is try-

Miami Paper Corp.’s advanced recycling operation

The Miami Paper deinking facility was rebuilt in 1975 with contaminants remaining in larger pieces, and reduced
the addition of displacement washing, cleaning, and pulping time.
bleaching systems. Since then, the mill has been ina The HC pulper with %4-in. extraction-plate holes will
continuous mode of upgrading with improvements to the defiber normal waste very efficiently but leave certain dirt in
bleach plant, new stock contaminant removal equipment, larger particle sizes. The wastepaper slurry is defibered for
and the latest technology in flotation deinking cells. The 20 min, then diluted to 7% to 8% consistency before being
following is a description of the mill’s deinking operation. pumped out to the dump chest. Pulping longer than the set
At the beginning of the process, a conveyor is loaded pulping time results in unnecessary energy consumption
with 10,000 Ib of recycled paper for the furnish charge into and reduction of contaminant size. Continued defibering
the pulper. The mill can run through inventory of raw and dirt separation will take place in the SEW Fibersorter.
material in a day and a half. SCREENING AND CLEANING. From the dump chest, the
PULPING. The SEW pulper is a high-consistency (HC) slurry goes to an intermediate chest where the stock is
tub-type pulper with a large screw or helical center rotor. diluted. From here the stock goes through the Fibersorter.
The defibering zone is from the tip of the screw to the The Fibersorter is a combination high-density pressure
bottom of the tub. This design will vortex a 15% screen working at 3% to 5% consistencies and a deflaker,
consistency stock slurry. At high consistencies, the with respect to the action at the rotor and screen plate. It is
defibering is accomplished by intense fiber-to-fiber contact like a small conical-shaped pulper on its side, with the
and less by mechanical rotor action. This principle has screen plate and rotor at one end and a cover with a hole in
several advantages: reduced energy consumption, less the center for overflow rejects at the other end.
thermal energy needed, reduced chemicals usage, Because of the rotor and conical shape of the unit,
heavy contraries follow along the inside wall and are
removed at an outlet near the largest dia of the unit
housing. Lighter contraries or rejects that will not travel
through the screen plate flow to the middle of the unit end
cover and through the center outlet. Stock lumps and fiber
chips that concentrate on the screen plate will be deflaked
by the impact blocks at the circumference along with the
rotor action. Accepted stock will pass through the screen
plate’s 0.093-in. perforations.
Since the Fibersorter operates continuously, it is
controlled by the relationship between concentration of
materials around the screen plate and rotor with respect to
the motor load. Motor load control regulates the unit by
automatically adjusting the accept valve. Stock going to
the Fibersorter must be regulated to a uniform 4.2 %
consistency. Changes in consistency will affect the motor
load control on the unit, resulting in poor performance. Two
additional units tail the Fibersorter reject system—the SEW
high-density cleaner for heavy rejects and the SEW
Rejectsorter for the light paper chips and contaminants.
The large vertical-cone-shaped high-density cleaner
“In 1985 we instituted a project using the European flotation works by having heavy impurities thrown against the
technology, which added the flotation to our washing outside wall, where the gravity effect and the downward
operation and tied both processes together,” Morrison said. spiral path of the stock result in heavy material settling into
a tank below the stock reversal zone. The stock fibers are

188
Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations
ing to break their ink binders down. Xerography print-
vide a matrix to obtain optimum performance. Excess
ing is really a piece of plastic. Consequently, it takes a
chemical usage wastes caustic and increases problems
great deal of energy to break that particle size down. For in the separation process due to excess alkalinity. There
the particles bigger than 125 microns, if the specific are, however, some adjunct chemicals, such as disper-
gravity is greater than one, then centrifugal cleaners can sants to help wet the ink particles for the dispersion pro-
take out the particles. The particle sizes between 125 cess. There are limits on thermal energy because of syn-
and 200 microns are tough to handle, which are where thetic binders. We try to stay down below 140°F in our
the xerographic contaminants fall. pulpers. Above 140°F, synthetic binders found in the
The basic deinking principle for grades we produce is waste stream start solubalizing. Problems never show
the application of energy. There are three forms of ener- up in the deinking operation but will show up in the pa-
gy—mechanical, chemical, and thermal—which pro- per machine. When stickies start accumulating in the

prevented from entering the collecting tank by adding seal

water. The clean fiber rises in the middle to the top of the
unit, passing through the rotor and back to the dump chest
standpipe.
The Rejectsorter is a trough-shaped screen with 0.093-
in. perforations. A rotor is located above the screen that
provides action to separate and move impurities down
along the screen trough toward the outlet. Above the rotor
is a turbulence zone, which provides for a continuous
loosening of contaminates. Accepted fibers pass through
the screen and are combined with the Fibersorter accepts
in the intermediate chest ahead of the screen extractors
and bleach tower.
BLEACHING. The basic units in the bleach plant are the
9-in. water extractors or the Morden Model 9 inclined screw
presses. Each machine has an internal screw with 0.062-in.
perforations that thicken 4% brownstock from the
intermediate chest up to 11% to 12%. Before the thick-
ened stock is dropped into the mixing screws, bleach or
sodium hypochlorate is added. The bleach fibers are mixed
in the mixing screw just prior to the bleach tower. The
bleach reaction takes place in the plug-flow retention tower Stock diluted down to 0.8% consistency is pumped through
(95% of the reaction takes place in the first 5 min) . A di- the Bauer forward cleaners and Beloit Uniflow cleaners.
lution zone at the bottom of the tower dilutes the stock to a
pumpable consistency. The stock, now at 4% consistency, is part of the stock preparation system, and then forward to
is then pumped from the bleach tower to the dilution tank. the paper machine.
Hot water leaving the extractor flows by gravity to a level In the displacement washing section of the deinking
control tank. This tank is pumped to an SEW flotation cel]to process, foaming agents cannot be used because of the
clean light contaminants and ink from the water. The water low consistency of the sidehills. Dispersing agents are used
is bled from this water line to a settling tank, where some of to enhance the sidehill efficiency. The flotation chemicals
the ash is removed at the bottom. Water from the settling used to enhance foam production in the flotation cells are
tank flows to the hot water tank and is then returned to the injected into the flotation conditioning chest just after the
pulper. This process saves both heat and chemicals. sidehills. Restrictions exist as to how much foam can be
FLOTATION, WASHING. Stock leaving the bleach tower created in the flotation cells because too much foam can
is diluted to 1.5% and pumped through Black Clawson 24 cause pressure drops in the cleaners. Defoamer is added in
PH Selectifier screens. The slotted pressure screens have the cleaner dilution tank after the flotation cells and before
0.008-in. cuts. From the pressure screens, the stock goes the Bauer cleaners. Here again, careful amounts of
over the first-stage sidehill screen, where the stock is di- defoamer must be added because that water comes back
luted again before going through the second-stage sidehill to the flotation cells after going through the Vario-Split
screen. Accepts are pumped over to the flotation condi- thickener and washer.
tioning chest, then through four SEW flotation cells. PROCESS CONTROL. All of the hydraulic process
The stock is diluted to 0.8% consistency in the cleaner parameters in the deinking plant are monitored and
dilution tank before being pumped through the Bauer controlled by a Rosemount System 3 process control
forward cleaners. Accepts then go through the Beloit system. Automation of the process is a critical part of the
Uniflow cleaners. Accepts from the cleaners are thickened system due to the varying consistencies and chemistries
to a 4% consistency in the SEW Vario-Split thickener and required of the different pieces of equipment in the deinking
washer. From here the stock goes to a blend system, which plant.

Miami Paper Recycled Fine Paper Mill 189

paper machine, it is usually because the pulpers have sult in mills offering a lower-quality product. Because of
been cooking too long or too hot. the limitations and types of processing being used, it is
So, in reality, the only variable left is the mechanical going to be dirtier, have lower brightness, and some col-
method. This is why we have gone with the high-consis- ors may vary. What will happen is that a mill will offer
tency pulper from a dispersion standpoint. Because we the customer a lower-quality recycled paper, and, if the
are putting more of the horsepower into the dispersion customer does not like it, then the mill will offer their
process and less of it into moving the water around, we better-quality virgin product. The graphic arts world
are running 15% consistency on our big pulper. will not accept lower quality just to have recycled.
Contaminant removal is difficult and an ever chang- We have been competing against the virgin mills for a
ing technology. Obviously, the first step is to minimize long time. We don’t believe it is in our best interest to
the amount of contaminants introduced through the have recycled paper classified as an inferior product.
waste material stream. We do this by inspecting every Looking at it from a printability standpoint, there should
bale of wastepaper received during the unloading pro- not be any difference between a recycled sheet and a
cess and again when the bales are broken at the pulper virgin fiber sheet. If a customer has a graphic arts prob-
belt. Our rejection rate at the door is running only 1%, lem and the printer blames it on recycled fiber content,
but this didn’t just happen. We have done a considerable the customer should not accept that. Problems occur for
amount of work with our suppliers in defining what is customers when paper is not made properly on the pa-
acceptable and what isn’t. Our relationship with our per machine. Our goal is to make recycled paper compa-
suppliers is a key factor in this program. rable to a virgin paper. The customer should not see any
Also, we recognize that all the various unit processes problems or defects associated with the product just be-
associated with the separation system have efficiency cause it has been recycled.
factors—nothing is 100%. We use this efficiency factor,
plus our quality standards for finished stock, to deter- P&P: How are you able to achieve the high quality stan-
mine what is acceptable from the pulpers. If the pulper dards that must be obtained to match that of virgin fiber?
stock doesn’t meet our standards, then we either process Morrison: We stress quality continuously since we are
it longer or divert it to a bad batch system for further working with an unknown raw material. We run some
processing. It is this type of operating philosophy, plus postconsumer furnish called laser printed and nonlaser
the skills of our team members, that produces the con- printed (green bar CPO). Every once in a while some of
sistent quality stock required for printing and writing the laser-printed CPO will get mixed in with the green
products. bar. When laser-printed CPO gets into the deinking op-
eration, it starts showing up as little specs. Our finished
P&P: In addition to all the changing technology, what are deinked stock, then, does not meet our paper mill] qual-
some of the other problems Miami Paper faces in the re- ity standards. We grade from 1 to 3 for dirt specs. If there
cycling business? are one or two visible dirt specs, then it is rated a 2. If
Morrison: One of the problems from our end of the busi- there are too many dirt specs, the pulp is recirculated
ness is that people still think recycling might be a mar- through the operation, where the efficiencies of the var-
keting fad. Companies might do things to satisfy a spe- ious process units can take out the contaminants. Recir-
cific marketing demand but not make the commitment culation is a fact of life and an important operating pa-
to build a secondary fiber facility. A 200-tpd deinking rameter in this business.
plant can cost up to $40 million. We have done lab work in Europe and in the U.S. Al-
One of the biggest problems we are running into now though the U.S. is starting to catch up to European tech-
is definitions. What is postconsumer and what is pre- nology, part of the problem in Europe is that their fin-.
consumer? I think that issue is going to separate itself ished paper quality requirements are a lot different from
out. One of the most active groups that will define what ours. They accept more dirt, more specs, and lower
our industry has to do to meet the various demands is brightness in their finished product for printing and
the National Assn. of State Purchasing Officials. They writing grades than we do.
have formed an advisory committee, which I serve on,
under the auspices of ASTM. Also, The National Recy- P&P: With America’s present environmental awareness,
cling Coalition is a group concerned with how the feder- how are your customers reacting to Miami Paper’s recy-
al government will handle definitions and legislation. cling efforts?
So there will be some legitimate, and, hopefully, mean- Morrison: McDonald’s Corp. came to one of our mer-
ingful definitions developed in the near future. chants and requested that their annual reports and other
promotional material be manufactured out of 100% re-
P&P: How are the various definitions going to effect your cycled fiber collected from their printing operation. The
business? merchant came to us with this project. This is what our
Morrison: What we are afraid of, and are trying to resist, people call Fun Projects.
is the attempt to develop another grade of fine paper We also make the paper for the Esprit De Corp Spring
called recycled. By de facto, this classification will re- Catalog, which features young people dressed in cloth-

190 Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations

ing apparel in environmental scenes but no prices. Why
then, I asked, put out a catalog? What they are trying to
do is create an image and market that image to a culture
that is very concerned about our environment. The
clothing might be at an Esprit store, or it might not. That
is why in the first few pages there is an article about the
magazine being on recycled paper and the impact that
this is having on the environment.
Another interesting publication that we are currently
working on is Step by Step, a how-to book on the graph-
ics arts world. The publisher of the magazine wants to
include a recycled paper pullout section of the new fall
Esprit Catalogue and then talk to the various printers
and graphics arts people involved and show them that a
quality job can be printed on recycled paper.
We did provide Esprit with extra paper because it is a
promotional campaign for us. We are trying to make
sure the industry understands that quality graphic arts
can be attained with secondary fiber. It has to be ap- “We inspect every bale of wastepaper received during the
proached that way. unloading process and again when the bales are broken at the
pulper belt.” Morrison said.

P&P: Your mill must be getting quite a few calls from cus-
tomers asking for recycled paper. equally, except for the amount of overtime worked. Peo-
Morrison: Our business is very good at this time. Howev- ple who work more overtime get a bigger share of the
er, our marketing position is not that we are selling recy- pie. The person sweeping the floor and the highest asso-
cled paper but that we are marketing a premium print- ciates in the mill all share equally.
ing and writing grade that is made from secondary fiber. The second thing to do is find a niche in the market-
We are meeting a demand, a demand not generated by place. Although Miami was successful primarily as a
us but from the end of the marketplace—the consumers, book publishing mill, it is a cyclical business. We need-
who are requesting that their printers use recycled pa- ed to balance out our product line and move more into
per. The printer doesn’t know what to do because of his commercial printing, technical specialties, and text and
stereotype image that recycled paper is off-quality. cover grades.
Historically, text and cover have always been manu-
P&P: Recycling has not always been a national concern factured from virgin fiber. We discovered that, using
like it has been for the past few years. How has a recycled secondary fiber, we can very effectively manufacture
papermill, like Miami Paper, been able to compete with quality text and cover grades equal to, or better than,
virgin fiber mills in the printing and writing grades over the virgin fiber. That gave us a significant margin and a sig-
long term? nificant market. We were able to go into the market, sell
Morrison: What do you do with a 130-year-old mill? at a good value, increase our share of the market, and
First, you change your culture. We did just that in 1985 still make money.
in regards to our people. Basically, we are a team con- The third thing you have to do is add margins to the
cept mill—very involved in participative management. operation. We did this with our deinking operation. By
And it has paid off for us from the standpoint of our pro- adding 50 tons in our deinking capacity, we need 50 tons
ductivity, quality, and all of the aspects that go along less of virgin fiber, which is a great payback for us. Since
with involvement of the people. If you take care of your we are a Class II semi-integrated operation, we still pur-
people, they will take of you. We’ve eliminated our mid- chase some virgin fiber but much less than we used to
dle management group and are now nonunion. We now buy.
have a very flat organization, which has replaced our The forth thing you do is run the mill efficiently.
old functional organization consisting of the president, Even though we are a specialty mill, we run our oper-
the vice president, and production superintendents. We ation like a commodities mill. This involves a lot of
have four teams with a team leader each, except for our planning, including how we run orders and how we take
research and support groups, which still have some our maintenance downs.
functional organization. We have a director of manu- Miami has been very successful in putting these
facturing, and I still have responsibilities for the staff’s four concepts together. In addition, our Chicago dis-
functions. tribution and converting operation has really helped
The most important thing in involving your people in us in the text and cover business. Now, with the abil-
your business is to reward them. We have a very suc- ity to sell one or two cartons instead of truckloads
cessful gain-sharing program where everyone shares only, we have added a high-value business that keeps

Miami Paper Recycled Fine Paper Mill 191

 namic system of recycling and do not look at individual
fibers. We recognize that the separation process associat-
ed with deinking involves separating out the unusable
portion of the fibers. Surprisingly, there is a very uni-
form and consistent fiber supply going to the paper ma-
chine as a result of this separation process. If the fiber is
really degraded, our shrinkage might increase. We aver-
age about 21% to 22% loss; of this loss, half is filler and
half is fiber. Looking at the fiber morphology of virgin fi-
ber and recycled fiber strictly from a commercial stand-
point, the only difference is the degree of development.
The trick in the papermaking end of the process is to un-
derstand that degree of development and know how to
adjust your machines to compensate for it.
The recycled fiber may have similar strength charac-
teristics to a virgin fiber at comparable development lev-
els. It is a mixture of hardwoods and softwoods. Usually
The ink particle must be dispersed to a size that the separation about 65% hardwood and 35% softwood is the average
units can handle. Anything less than 35 microns can be taken out from the waste material we buy. You can’t look at secon-
in the washing operation. dary fiber and a virgin fiber and say one is virgin and
one is secondary, other than the degree of development.
an older facility like ours competitive. The fact that people say recycling can only be done one
or two times is not quite true because it is a dynamic,
P&P: Aren't there only a certain amount of times that pa- complex system that corrects itself.
per fibers can be effectively recycled? We also recognize that because some fiber will al-
Morrison: One of the myths associated with recycling is ways go into landfill, there is always going to be a need
that a fiber can only be recycled one or two times before to bring in a fresh supply of virgin fiber. That is why I
it is degraded to the point that it can’t, be used. That is believe a 50% range will be the overall limit of our na-
not quite true because we look at the complex and dy- tion’s recycling rate. |

192 Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations

 Chapter 47

Atlas Starts Second Tissue Machine

That Runs on Recycled Wastepaper
Hialeah, Fla., mill to double production with machine rebuild,
second machine, expanded deinking line, and added converting line

By JIM YOUNG, Technical Editor down for upgrading. The deinking line is being expand-
ed, and a second converting line is being added to ac-
commodate the running of both machines in 1991. PM
A tlas Paper Mills is a privately owned tissue mill No. 2 will produce bathroom tissue exclusively, while
where internal engineering and innovation substi- No. 1 will produce towels and additional tissue. Towels
tute for a large corporate budget. The Hialeah, Fla., fa- will be produced on the older machine because it has an
cility is doubling its 25-tpd production and adding tow- afterdryer following the yankee dryer. Bathroom tissue,
els to its bathroom tissue line in a $6-million expansion. the mainline product, will take advantage of PM No. 2’s
The added 25- to 30-tpd capacity will be provided by faster speed of 3,000 fpm.
a 1956-model 120-in. trim Beloit fourdrinier and yankee Seventy-five percent of the bathroom tissue is pur-
dryer unit purchased from the Cascades Inc. mill (for- chased by the commercial /industrial market and the re-
merly Nitec) in Niagara Falls, N.Y. Remberto Bastanzuri, mainder by the retail market. The industrial market is
Atlas president, observes that while the machine need- in the continental U.S.; the retail market serves the Ca-
ed reconditioning, its potential and that of the dryer in ribbean, primarily from Puerto Rico. Towels will be
particular were evident. manufactured for the retail market.
With PM No. 2 now running, PM No. 1 will be shut
PULPING, DEINKING, CLEANING. White ledger paper
is supplied by Flores Recycling in Florida and Ponte &
Sons in New York and New Jersey. The current pulper
is Black Clawson’s first Hi-Con model, 10 ft in dia, and
the new unit joining it is similar but 12 ft in dia. Both
will be pulping at 16% consistency. Bastanzuri says the
installed equipment, including flotation devices and re-
verse-flow cleaners, is the best available for removing
laser, UV radiation-cured, and heat-set inks.
Beloit cleaners running at 3.0% to 3.5% consistency
are followed by Black Clawson’s slotted Ultra Screens.
Atlas is again building its own two-stage belt washer, an
updated version to add to its current patented washer.
The new washer will include an option for a third stage.
New Dorr-Oliver disc filters will be installed along with
Beloit centrifugal cleaners, and a new bank of Albia
cleaners has been added ahead of the second machine.
Since much of the water is recycled, freshwater
makeup from the city of Hialeah for the current produc-
tion line never exceeds 100 gpm. Sludge is reduced in a
dewatering press to a 40% solids content, continues to
compactors, and then goes to a landfill. In keeping with
Remberto Bastanzuri, Atlas president, exhibits new case- its in-house engineering approach. Atlas is designing its
packing equipment ready for installation. own dryer for drying sludge.

Atlas Tissue Machine 193

 The Hurricane | tissue machine,
newly decked out in Univ. of Miami
colors, will be running bathroom
tissue at 3,000 fpm.

OPERATION/INSTALLATION EXPERIENCE. The expan- converting plant with new equipment from the U.S,
sion features a cross-fertilization of a decade’s operating Canada, and Italy. The added line at Atlas will include
experience with PM No. 1 applied to the installation of a second Perini rewinder, three additional Valley Tis-
PM No. 2 and the installation experience of the newer sue wrappers, a second Edson case packer and Bemis
machine utilized in the rebuild of the 1929-model PM case sealer, as well as Valley Tissue diverters and
No. 1. Both machines bear the nicknames of area sports conveyors. What is new to the converting area is a
teams: PM No. 1 is designated Dolphin I after Miami’s polybonder machine from Cassoli that will augment
N.F.L. Dolphins, and PM No. 2 is designated Hurricane I the corrrugated container shipments with polyethylene-
after the Univ. of Miami Hurricanes. wrapped shipments. B
Pulp enters the headbox of Hurricane | at a consisten-
cy between 0.25% and 0.35%. As the sheet passes the
blind-drilled roll against the 12-ft-dia yankee dryer, it
has a 39.5% dryness. The yankee dryer was cleaned by
grinding and metalized with stainless steel and molyb-
denum. Originally designed for 125-psig steam pressure
when new, it is now operating at 85 to 90 psig. The ma-
chine is running with clothing that was supplied by
Huyck, Albany International, and Niagara Lockport. Its
d.c. drives are from Banshaw, and the d.c. motors are
from General Electric. Jumbo rolls are sent to the con-
verting plant where the rewinder and the unwind
stands are located.
No major rebuilding is scheduled for the upgrade of
Dolphin I. A cantilever adjustment in the fourdrinier
will match the new Hurricane I machine, and some met-
al parts will be replaced and the felt run changed in the
press section. The electrical system will remain basical-
ly the same, with a few parts replaced by later-model
components. Machine speed is expected to increase
from 1,500 fpm to an 1,800 to 1,900+ fpm range.

ADDING A SECOND CONVERTING LINE. The interna- Eversoft tissue is one of the 100% -recycled products in the
tional nature of papermaking is demonstrated in the Hialeah mill’s current 25-tpd production.

194 Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizatio

ns
 Ponderosa Fibres Expands to Meet
Demands for Recycled Market Pulp
Growing market interest prompts addition of pulp dryer at Augusta, Ga.,
mill and consideration of expansion at its other mills

By KELLY H. FERGUSON, Project Editor tomers, especially overseas buyers. However, the recent
addition of a pulp dryer at the Augusta mill has enabled
the mill to cut shipping costs by about 40%, with pulp
A: the major player in secondary fiber market pulp, that will be shipped at about 80% to 90% air dry.
Ponderosa Fibres of America Inc. is experiencing Three grades make up the inajority of secondary fiber
increasing demand for its product, leaving the company at all of Ponderosa’s mills: colored ledger, white ledger,
only one enviable alternative—improve and expand. and poly-coated board. Ponderosa deinked market pulp
Ponderosa’s four market pulp mills—Santa Ana, Calif.; is recycled from 100% bleached chemical pulp fibers,
Oshkosh, Wis.; Memphis, Tenn.; and Augusta, Ga.— with no groundwood, mechanical, or unbleached fiber
have a combined production of about 700 tpd. But with included.
current corporate and public demand for products made Fiber is purchased from wastepaper dealers, major
with recycled fiber, the 27-year-old company is spend- manufacturers, and end users and shipped—baled and
ing much of its time modernizing and expanding (see loose—to the mills by train and truck. The mills also
sidebox). have back hauling arrangements with many of their ma-
Until recently, Ponderosa’s mills were shipping 100% jor carriers.
wet lap pulp, which, because of shipping costs, limited
the amount and distance that could be shipped to cus- AUGUSTA’S OPERATION. The Augusta mill produces
about 150 tpd currently, with 45 employees, but expects
to increase production within 18 months, according to
Jerome Goodman, executive vice president of Ponder-
osa. Once the dryer operation is optimized, output
should reach about 220 tpd, and the mill is considering
other process improvements to increase production and
quality.
The mill has about 80,000 ft? of warehouse space,
from which wastepaper is metered and dumped into two
high-consistency Black Clawson Hydrapulpers. Caustic
and other chemicals are added in the pulper, which op-
erates at 100°F to 150°F and 10.5 pH for approximately 60
min. The fiber is pulped at about 12% consistency.
From the pulper, the slurry is screened and sent
through high-consistency cleaners. The pulp is then
deinked (washing) and thickened using sidehill screens.
“We are investigating flotation. However, at this time,
we don’t know whether flotation is the best way for us
to go,” Goodman said.
Although pulp brightness ranges from 76 to 78 GE,
Goodman says very little actual bleaching occurs. “We
Pon erosa as about 80,000 ft? of warehouse space hold
shipments of its colored ledger, white ledger, and poly-coated don’t really bleach, as such, which would be delignify-
board wastepaper. ing the fiber. We use no chlorine. Sodium hypochlorite

Ponderosa Fibre Expands 195

 is added near the end of the process to strip dyes and “The dryer is, again, our own design. We basically
other color materials out of the pulp. Currently, we are took old dryer cans and designed our own conventional
investigating different methods of bleaching with no dryer.” Out of the dryer, the sheet is cut, baled, and load-
chlorine compounds at all. Our tissue customers, espe- ed onto truck or rail.
cially in Europe, are requesting a product with no chlo- The mill currently landfills its solid waste. “We’re
rine compounds, so depending on the success of our tri- doing some trials at a couple of our mills on drying the
als, we’ll be implementing new bleaching technology solid waste. We might be able to make a product with it
fairly rapidly.” after it’s dried—maybe as cattle bedding or for use in
The mill is also experimenting with a prototype concrete,” Goodman explained. Effluent is sent through
thickener/washer developed by Fields & Boyd of Lake- primary clarification and then into lagoons, where the
wood, Colo. According to Neil Clarke, vice president of water is discharged into the city’s sewer system.
Ponderosa, “This is a belt type washer, where a moving
sheet is washed between two wires, exiting at about
12% to 13% consistency. The unit operates at fairly high
speeds—2,000 to 3,000 fpm. We expect to send the sheet
in at about 0.9% consistency and exit at about 12%.
Although small, the washer should handle about 300
tpd.”
After the sidehill screens, the pulp is screened once
more and sent to the pulp press. This press has a pres-
surized headbox and a twin-wire forming section. The
mill still has the option of making wet lap, or it can send
the sheet through the new dryer section.
The press section was custom built by Fields & Boyd.
“Three of our mills use this type of press, and we just
bought two more,” Goodman said. “We plan to change
two out and use the two older machines to build a third
machine that will be installed at the another mill, in-
stead of taking machines down for extensive rebuilds.

Ponderosa’s Hydrapulper has a helical-type rotor for pulping

ledger grades and poly-coated board at about 12% consistency.

Conveyors are used to dump wastepaper into Ponderosa’s two The sheet leaves the dryer at about 80% to 90% air dry,
high-consistency Hydrapulpers. where it
is then cut, baled, and loaded onto truck or rail.

196
Recycling Mill Expansions and Moder
nizations
 SATISFYING THE CUSTOMER. Because Ponderosa’s even if they plan to install their own operation—to de-
product is used in a number of grades, quality and run- velop knowledge of how secondary fiber pulp is going to
ability have always been major factors. These factors operate on their machine and allow their employees to
have become even more important now that more mills become familiar with the difference in the operation
are considering using secondary fiber in their products. and the finished sheet. Also, some mills don’t want to
Goodman said the company is considering various bother with the cost, environmental problems, and tech-
technological options at all its mills. “We’re looking at nical problems associated with adding a deink line.
drum pulping, dispersion, and flotation deinking. We “Because of the variation in systems at mills we sell
have excellent control over stickies and have had no to, we try to use the least amount of chemicals possible.
problems running our materials on conventional flat pa- Therefore, most of our process is mechanical, rather
per fourdrinier machines. We certainly have no prob- than relying on chemicals to clean the pulp. This avoids
lems running on tissue machines. problems when the material is put into a mill’s system.
“There’s nothing a mill has to do to use our pulp— Some mills we sell to run an alkaline furnish, some run
just take it out of the truck and put it in the pulper. A acid—and they all use different types of polymers. It’s
mill can also start with very low inclusion rates—2.5% possible we could use a polymer in our system that
or 5%—and raise the level slowly to see how the pulp would work against a polymer in a customer’s system,
acts on their machine. For some, its an opportunity— which might cause problems. a

Meeting a growing demand

In only five or six years, Ponderosa Fibres’ status in the comes from two mills in North America and a few small mills
paper industry has changed dramatically. Executive vice in Europe, but at 700 tod from four mills, Ponderosa
president Jerome Goodman said mills no longer ‘“‘hide’’ the remains the largest. “‘We pretty much dominate this market
fact that they use secondary fiber in their products. for now because it’s almost prohibitively expensive to put
Ponderosa began operation in 1963 as B.J. Fibres up a deinking market pulp mill. We estimate the price to be
(Santa Ana, Calif.) to supply secondary fiber market pulp about $50 million for a 200-tpd mill.”
to a major tissue manufacturer. The original mill, still in DEALING WITH DECLINING QUALITY. Besides
operation, produced approximately 10 to 20 tod and was increasing production and quality at its mills, Ponderosa is
started with the idea of taking materials away from the working to increase its use of postconsumer waste. “Our
landfills, mostly poly-coated board. next big push will have to be in the office waste area,”
At the request of this customer, another mill was Goodman said. ‘“‘We think there’s probably about 6 million
constructed in Augusta, Ga., then two others were tons of office waste that can be used.”
added—Oshkosh, Wis., and Memphis, Tenn. Business Vice president Neil Clarke said, “You don’t really need a
grew rapidly with the customer, but eventually Ponderosa crystal ball to know that as more and more printing and
began to branch out to other customers. ‘We were writing and specialty grade manufacturers begin using
shipping primarily to tissue manufacturers because they more secondary fiber, they’re going to demand quality
were the big users of secondary fiber,” Goodman said. pulp. But as you dig deeper and deeper into the pile of
“And in fact, currently tissue makers use anywhere from recycled waste, quality will decline. Therefore, we have to
53% to 54% recycled fiber. However, a major part of that produce a better product, but we must do it with lower-
is going into commercial products rather than consumer.”’ quality material. That involves a great deal of research and
Ponderosa’s main customer base has changed, though, evaluation of new equipment and technologies.”’
in the last few years, mirroring a change in the industry. “It Goodman added, “‘We use a certain amount of
once was a rarity for us to supply printing and writing grade postconsumer waste, as much as the system can tolerate,
manufacturers with pulp,’’ Goodman said. ‘Until two years and we would like to use more. That means we have to
ago, there were mills that used high-grade, direct-entry upgrade our system. Customers don’t want to give up
materials but no postconsumer materials. Those mills quality with the inclusion of secondary fiber.’’
would never buy from us.”’ MARKETS OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA. Prior to 1987,
Now, printing and writing mills make up about 50% of Ponderosa shipped no pulp to Europe. And Goodman said
Ponderosa’s business, and that percentage continues to that even though demand for hardwood market pulp is
grow. The reason, Goodman said, is that those companies weaker than it was a year ago, demand for secondary fiber
are trying to comply with various state and federal market pulp is higher than ever and continues to grow
guidelines in using secondary fiber. worldwide.
The other 50% of Ponderosa’s business is divided ‘We have found great interest in our product in Europe.
among such grades as tissue, mottled white corrugated, Of course, until we added the dryer, we were shipping
and other specialty products. In the tissue market, most of about 50% wet lap, which meant high shipping costs.
Ponderosa’s market pulp is used to make consumer tissue However, much of the current demand is coming from the
products. northeast U.S. and eastern Canada. While we’ll continue to
Ponderosa bills itself as the largest supplier of ship to Europe, | don’t know how much we'll be able to ship
secondary fiber market pulp in the world. Competition to Europe because of heavy demand here.”

Ponderosa Fibre Expands 197

 Chapter 49

Stone-Snowflake Boosts Newsprint

Quality with Deink System Upgrade
Old newspaper, magazines provide more than half of stock requirements,
aid mill in reducing dependence on virgin fiber sources

and small trimmed logs from local forests.

By TIM DOWNS, Technical Editor
In 1972, as a result of this study, the mill started up a
conventional washing system, using 200 tpd of old
Se Container Corp.’s Snowflake, Ariz., mill, one of newspapers (ONP). Further progress was made in 1981,
the most remote paper mills in the U.S., has turned when the mill purchased a new 400-tpd conventional
its geographic disadvantage into an opportunity to help wash deinking system. Then in late 1988, the mill began
in reducing the looming landfill problems in the U.S. Lo- its third stage of recycled fiber use by upgrading No. 1
cated some 450 miles from the nearest cluster of paper deinking system to include new screening, cleaning, and
mills in Los Angeles, Calif., and in the sparsely forested pressurized flotation deinking technology. This upgrade
desert Southwest, the mill has also lessened its depen- increased capacity by 300 tpd, bringing Snowflake’s total
dence on virgin fiber by using recycled newspapers and deinking capacity to 700 tpd.
magazines as a viable fiber source. The new No. 1 deinking system, in operation since
Not a newcomer to the recycling scene, the Snow- May 1989, includes a continuous pulper, coarse (0.050-
flake mill was actually ahead of its time in realizing the in. perforations) and fine (0.010-in. slots with special bell
potential of recycled fiber. G. Merlin Hancock, general wave baskets) primary screens, secondary screens on
pulping manager at Snowflake, explained that almost both coarse and fine screens, Beloit pressurized flotation
two decades ago the mill began a study that would re- deinking modules (see sidebar) and a series of forward
duce its dependence on virgin raw materials, primarily and reverse cleaners.
the residual chips and trimmings from local sawmills
EXPEDIENT PROJECT. Once the mill decided to up-
grade the No. 1 deinking system, it quickly moved to in-
vestigate available technology and to get the project
completed. The pressurized flotation deinking technol-
ogy was initially tested in No. 2 deinking system with a
trial unit. Based on results from that study, the mill then
cetaw
purchased four additional units (which are run in a se-
ries) for the No. 1 system upgrade.
“This project moved quickly, I’d say six to eight
months from the inception of the idea to project approv-
al,” Hancock said. Then, within nine months from the
time the equipment was ordered, the revamped No. 1
deinking system was installed and started up in May
1989—on time and on budget.
Once started, it took the mill only one week to reach
full capacity. “We did some optimization later to get the
brightness levels we wanted, but for the most part, start-
up was extremely efficient,’ Hancock added. He credits
others as key to turning the project over quickly and ef-
The new cleaner system has helped greatly to improve deinked ficiently. Errol Larson, deink superintendent, and Bob
pulp quality. Ferry, mill engineer and project leader, were the two key

198 Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations

people. Larry Stanley, coproject leader with Ferry (until capacity and producing a cleaner, higher-quality fiber,
being named mill manager of the Jacksonville, Fla., mill the new system has also allowed the mill to expand its
in mid-project) was also cited. recycled fiber use to include old magazines (OMG),
which currently comprise 20% to 30% of No. 1 deinking
INCREASED FLEXIBILITY. In addition to increasing system capacity. Although somewhat more difficult to

PDM improves ink removal

Flotation deinking is a process by which ink (and other removal. A key to the efficiency of PDM technology is that
contaminants) is separated from recoverable fiber by the the three zones—aeration, mixing, and separation—have
introduction of air into the pulp slurry, attachment of ink each been designed to operate separately and may be
particles to the air bubbles, and subsequent removal of the optimized independently.
ink/air agglomerations after they have floated to the In the aeration zone, controlled, pressurized air injection
surface of the pulp slurry. The ink removal process is has replaced venturi-type devices found in conventional
characterized by three distinct actions: collision (of the air systems. With a venturi device, air intake is generally
bubbles and contaminants) , attachment (of contaminants controlled and limited by the flow velocity of the pulp
to the bubbles) , and separation (of air/contaminant foam stream and may exhibit plugging tendencies. The
from the air/water interface) . pressurized air system allows independent adjustments to
Conventional flotation deinking cells operate under meet the requirements of a variety of pulp characteristics.
atmospheric conditions and achieve ink removal by The mixing zone is designed to create high turbulent flow
gravitational and mechanical forces as the pulp slurry to increase the number of air/ink particle collisions. The
overflows a weir at the air/water interface. Beloit’s design also produces a large spectrum of air bubble sizes to
Pressurized Deinking Module (PDM) is a flotation deinking match the wide range of ink particle sizes typically found in
cell that operates under controlled pressure. Unlike its ink-laden pulp slurries. Studies by Beloit have shown that
conventional predecessor, PDM uses pressure in an ink removal efficiency with the flotation process is
enclosed cell (module) with a reject pipe (or port) , instead dependent on this correlation.
of a weir design, to enhance the deinking process by In the separation zone, the cell widens (slows pulp flow)
minimizing the limitations inherent in open-air flotation cells, to allow the air/ink agglomerations to rise to the surface.
namely fiber loss and ink removal efficiency. The air cushion found in this area is controlled much like
FIBER LOSS REDUCTION. PDM allows control of the that of an air-padded (pressurized) headbox. This design
stock level in the flotation cell just below the reject port. allows improved control of the pulp level within the cell,
Thus, it can significantly reduce the amount of usable fiber which in turn controls both fiber loss and ink removal as
that enters the reject stream. Instead of using overflow described previously.
design principles, ink removal is achieved by the controlled First introduced in 1987, PDM technology is currently in
and continuous movement of the pulp within the cell past use or under construction in 12 paper mills located
the opening (port) above the air/water interface. throughout the world, producing newsprint, tissue, and fine
INK REMOVAL EFFICIENCY. PDM has three distinct paper.
operation zones, which coincide with the three steps of ink

a |

Ny
. “oa it

The PDM is one of four installed on No. 1 deinking line at Snowflake.

Stone-Snowflake Deink System Upgrade 199

 inants or low-quality ONP, “we generally are able to run
No. 1 and No. 2 news consistently.”

CONSUMPTION AND SUPPLY. The mill currently

uses approximately 665 tpd of ONP (245 tons in No. 1
deinking system and 420 tons in No. 2 deinking system)
and about 105 tpd of OMG. The recycled fiber comprises
about 65% of the total furnish for the mill’s newsprint
production. Semibleached kraft (from the chips) and
stone groundwood (from the logs) constitute the other
35% of the mills total furnish.
To handle the demand of both deinking systems, the
mill keeps about a 16-day supply in inventory, of which
about 40% comes in by truck and 60% by rail. The fiber
supply to support this use comes from as far north as
Minneapolis and as far east as the Dallas/Ft. Worth area.
However, most of the ONP comes from western cities
such as Denver, Albuquerque, Tucson, and Phoenix.
Some paper is bought in California when available, but
much of the paper collected on the West Coast goes to
Old magazines are hand sorted to keep contaminants out of the
deinking system. export markets on the Pacific Rim.
Hancock said that the mill also gets ‘quite a bit of
process, the use of OMG has increased the mill’s flexibil- loose newsprint” collected from Sun City, Ariz., a retire-
ity in procuring supply. The downside to using OMG is ment community. In an effort to secure fiber supplies on
that the quality of the raw material varies greatly and a more consistent and permanent basis, Stone Container
sometimes contains contaminants, which can cause se- recently announced a new partnership with Waste Man-
vere operating restrictions. agement of North America. Stone will purchase all of its
Hancock explained, “The variability of the raw mate- recycled fiber from the newly formed company, an
rials is a big factor. The raw material changes so much equally held joint venture.
that the deinking system needs to be designed to handle The mill’s newsprint is sold to many major US.
the worst situation. With ONP, high alum content or low newspapers (including companies in Phoenix, Denver,
freeness fiber (high short-fiber content) generally are a Albuquerque, and Los Angeles) and to some foreign
lot tougher to handle. With OMG, there are special coat- markets, including Rep. Korea. &
ings (on covers and inserts) and glues in the binding that
can turn a system upside-down. And in our system, we
don’t have separate pulpers for ONP and OMG, so we real-
ly rely on the screening and cleaning operations.”
To help dilute the impact. of OMG contaminants, the
OMG stock is fed at a constant and controlled rate (inter-
spersed with the ONP) into the continuous pulper in No.
1 system. In addition and to further reduce upsets, the
mill has implemented a hand-sorting quality control op-
eration to identify the amount of outthrows (unusable
contaminants found in purchased bales of fiber).
Hancock points out that while this is a time-consum-
ing process, it is relatively inexpensive compared with
machine downtime or downgraded paper. He also be-
lieves that recyclers must continue to maintain quality,
particularly in the face of mandated recycling. “The
contamination problems could get worse,” he added,
“because the average person is not geared to thinking
about how their recycling methods are going to affect
the reuse of the recycled material. A lot of education
needs to be done.”
The precautionary measures taken, along with a
greatly improved cleaner system, have allowed the mill 2 te SRN \i e Wiles
to produce high-quality finished products. Hancock said
ait

G. Merlin Hancock inspects a bale of O NP prior to the continous

that other than the occasional upset due to OMG contam- pulper.

200 Recycling Mill Expansions and Modernizations

Index
Numbers in italics refer to tables or figures

Age, of newspapers, and recyling, 87, 88, 104 efficiency of, 144, 145 chemistry of, 157
Agriculture, deinking sludge for, 90-91, 123 environmentalism and, 121-25 deinking. See Deinking
Air quality, and deinking processes, 124-25 equipment for, 135-38, 199 froth, 139
Alkali soaking, of OCC, 98-99 evaluating, 157 separation by, 102-103
Aluminum, collected, with wastepaper, 86 flotation, 68, 69, 87,.88, 146-49, 157 split, 135
Analysis, chemical and furnish, 116 installations (list), 136-37 Fourdrinier, arrangement of, on recycled liner-
Atlas Paper Mills, 192-94 of market pulp, 181-83, 182 board machines, 74, 75
Augusta Newsprint Co., 165-66 of ONP and OMG, 198-200 Furnish components, 35
process, 128-29, 130, 154-55
Backhauling, of wastepaper, 82 program, 130 Glass, collected, with wastepaper, 86
Baling, 85-86, 183 projects, 21-24 Grocery bags, from recycled paper, 184-86
Beloit, deinking equipment from, 138, 146, 146-47, pulper for, 142-43 Groundwood, grade of, recycling, 150, 150
171, 199 of secondary fiber, 126-30
Bird Escher Wyss, deinking equipment from, 146, as separation process, 100 Hydrogen peroxide, 101, 129, 131, 147
149 in split pulping, 101
Black Clawson International, deinking equipment systems of, 129-30, 131-34, 144-46 160 Incentives, for using recycled paper, 49
from, 135, 137, 148-49 technology, 15, 127-28 Ink
Bleaching, 64, 151, 155, 189 washing, 156 flexographic, 88, 134
Board mill, improving productivity of, 116 Demand nonimpact, 131, 139
Boxboard for deinking grades, 53 printing, classification of, 154
coated, 143 for recycled fiber, 53 removal of. See Deinking
recycled, 177-80 for recycled market pulp, 197
Brightness, 150-53, 151, 152, 155 Desencrage Cascades Inc., 181-83 Japan
deinking and, 141, 141 Diethylene diamine pentamethylene phosphonic deinking in, 159-62
in market pulp, 195-96 acid (DTPMPA), 101 recycled paper use in, 162
Business, as a market for recycled paper, 29 Dispersion, 104, 145-46, 160
Disperson, cold, 159-62 Kneading, 100, 101-102
Calcium salt, 147 Displectors, 134, 140-41
Canada, wastepaper projects in, 5, 8-10, 22, 89-91, Drainage, chemically induced, 116-18 Legislation
181-83 DTPMPA. See Diethylene diamine pentamethylene municipal solid waste and, 37
Capacity phosphonic acid and paper recycling, 65
increase in, and supply for, 81-83 on procurement of recycled paper, 27
for recycling fine paper, 90, 91 Economics, of recycled paper, 70. See also Costs on recycled newsprint, 38, 63
Cascades Inc., 181 Effluent on recycling, 6-18, 9-10, 44-45, 46
Caustic soda. See Sodium hydroxide deinking, 123-24 and use of secondary fiber, 127
Chelant, 101, 131 treating, 172-73, 183 and wastepaper sorting, 83
Chemicals Employees, training, 180 Linerboard
deinking, 69-70, 101, 129, 131-35, 154-58 Environmentalism, and recycling, 7-8, 17, 54, 63, cost competitiveness of, 58, 58, 59
residual effects of, 157-58 121-25, 190-91 production, 71, 72
used in flotation, 147 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Los Angles, wastepaper from, for China, 47
Chemistry procurement guidelines, 11, 28
of deinking, 139-41 standards of, for paper, 11 MacMillan Bloedel Inc., 174-76
flotation and washing, 187-88 EPA. See Environmental Protection Agency Magazines. See Old magazines
for ONP recycling, 184 Equipment Market, for recycled paper, 27-30, 91, 200. See also
China, People’s Republic of, exports of wastepaper deinking, 129, 135-38, 171-72 Demand
to, 47 for making recycled market pulp, 195-96 Mendori Paper Co., 160-62
Clarification, 104, 134 for making tissue, 194 Miami Paper Corp., 187-92
Cleaning, 101, 103, 113-14, 127-28, 145, 182, 183, recycling, 167-69, 184-86 Mills
188-89, 192 Ethic, recycling and, 41, 42 producing recycled newspaper, 16, 33
Collection, of wastepaper, 82-83, 89 Exports producing recycled printing/writing paper, 32
Compounds, volatile organic (VOCs), as a pollu- of OCC, 71 production costs at new, 15
tant, 105-106, 124-25, 172 of recycled market pulp, 197 use of deinked paper by (list), 128
Conservatree Inc., 27-30, 47 of wastepaper, 11, 12, 47, 86 VOCs from, 105-106
Containerboard Extraction, high-density, 102 Mobile Paperboard Corp., 177-80
mill expansion, 174-76 MSW. See Solid waste, municipal
recycled, quality of, 72-73 Fiber Municipalities :
Contaminants, 66-68 consumption of, 35, 53 recyling by, 43
image analysis of, 149 costs of, 56, 64, 71-72 as a source of wastepaper, 85
in OCC, 72 demand for recycled, 53
removing, 64, 73-74, 87-88, 97, 128, 190 economics of using secondary, 126-27 Newspaper. See Old newspapers
screening and, 113-18 high-grade, for recycling, 79-80 Newsprint (see also Old newspapers), cost competi-
Corrugating medium, 59, 59, 72 recyclability of, 45, 192 tiveness of, 15, 55, 55-56, 59
Costs secondary New York State, recycling and, 29, 42
of backhauling wastepaper, 82 deinking, 126-30 Noranda Forest Recycled Papers, 89-91
capital, 69 quality of, 72
competitiveness of, 55-59, 191-92 removal system for, 73-74, 74 OCC. See Old corrugated containers
deinking, 127, 143 use of, 65-70, 66, 67 Odor, and deinking processes, 125
utilization of recycled, 63 Offices, wastepaper from, 83, 85, 89-90, 197
of ONP, 38-39
production, for new newsprint, 55 virgin, 56, 71-72 Old corrugated containers (OCC), 6, 60
CPO. See Paper, computer printout Fiber content, recycled, 8 alkali soaking of, 98-99
Cylinder, contour-surface, in screening, 109-12 New York state targets for, 29 collection of, 175-76
Cylinder machine, recycled, 177-80 Fiber line consumption, 71, 71-75
at Augusta Newsprint, 165, 165-66 European, 72, 74
for OCC, 175, 175 recycling, 38, 38, 73, 174-76
Defibering, 64, 95
Deinking, 6, 64, 68-69, 87, 192 Fiberprep, deinking equipment from, 148, 148 shortages of, 20
capacity, 12, 13, 39, 41-42, 170-73 Flores Paper Recycling, 79-80, 192 Old magazines (OMG)
chemicals used in, 101, 154-58 Florida, wastepaper market in, 80, 85 contaminants in, 88
Flotation, 128, 132-33, 145, 159, 160, 182, 187-89, deinking, 198-200
chemistry of, 131-35, 155-57
189 pulping, 101
considerations and, 104
recycling, 21, 39, 165
described, 188

201
Old newspapers (ONP), 6 new designs of, 96-97 Storage, of ONP, 104
Pulping, 127, 131-32, 188, 192 Suppliers, of equipment, 168, 173, 176
bleaching pulped, 151-52
capacity for, 61-62 Surfactants, 131, 133, 133, 139, 155, 156
collection of, 166
consumption of, 60 split, 100-104, 102-103
traditional, 95-96 Technology, recycling, 15-17
costs, and recycling, 55, 55-56, 59, 60-62
crisis in, 41-42
Tissue
Quality cost competitiveness of, 57, 57-58, 59
decontaminating, 87-88
deinking, 22, 138, 161, 161-62, 198-200 of recycled containerboard, 72-73 deinking and, 22, 24, 143, 159-62
of recycled paper, 190 from recycled market pulp, 197
demand for, 62, 200
Quality control from recycled paper, 192-94
pulping, 100
recycling, 12-13, 20, 21-22, 33, 38-39, 39, 61, 63, in recycled paper, 70 Toweling. See Tissue
165, 179, 184-86, 200 in wastepaper collection, 80, 86 Tri-Dyne continuous pulper, 96, 97
supply of, 60, 61, 61, 84-86
OMG. See Old magazines Recycled Paperboard Inc., 167-69 Up-cycling, 15
ONP. See Old newspapers Recycling
capacity increase in, 3-18 VOC. See Compounds, volatile organic
Paper economics of, 54, 59 Voith, deinking equipment from, 135, 138, 147-48
computer printout (CPO), deinking, 159 goal for, 19
fine, recycling, 90. See also Offices problems in, 190 Washing, 103-104, 133-34, 145, 189
mixed, 6 process of, 63-64 chemistry of, 157
as a percentage of MSW, 37-38 rate of, 150, 192 Waste
recycled technology for, 44, 54 definition of hazardous, 124
demand for, 42-43 Repulping solid
quality of, 46 continuous-drum, 107-108 from deinking processes, 121, 196
usage of, 35 equipment for, 138 municipal, 37-40
Paper industry, and recycling legislation, 46 Research, into recycling technology, 91 Wastepaper
Paper machines, 74, 75 bleaching coated, 153
Permits, for deinking effluents, 124 Screen collection, 14-15, 15, 178
Pollution, from VOCs, 105-106 pressure, 113, 114-15 as a commodity, 36
Polymers, 117, 155, 157-58 slotted plate, 113, 114 community as a supplier, 79
Polyphosphates, 155, 156 Screening, 101, 103, 127, 144-45, 188 consumption of, 6-7, 7, 12, 34, 34-36, 53, 54
Ponderosa Fibres of America Inc., 195-97 contaminants and, 113-18 dealers in, 45
Prescreening, 142-43 contour-surface cylinders for, 109-12 for deinking, 21
Pressing, of recycled containerboard, 75 Seminole Kraft (mill), 184-86 demand for, 6, 10-11, 19-20, 45-46
Prices (see also Costs) Separation, technology for, 88 exports of, 11, 12, 47, 86
of OCC, 71, 72 Sequestrant, 101, 147 grades of, 6, 66, 66, 67, 128, 128
for office wastepaper, 90 Sheeting, 183 mixed, recycling, 45
of recycled paper, 31 Silicates, 155, 156 municipal recycling of, 41-43
for wastepaper, 13-14, 17-18, 20 Size press, for recycled containerboard, 75 postconsumer, 20, 28, 29-30, 41, 43, 88, 89, 197
Printing/writing paper Sludge, deinking preconsumer, 28, 40
cost competitiveness of, 56, 56-57, 59 disposal of, 122-23, 125 prices for, 13-14, 14, 20, 41, 65
deinking, 22, 24, 138 uses for, 90-91, 123 processing, 4-5, 68, 68-70
demand for recycled, 31-33 Soak tower, 102 production of, 34-36
from recycled market pulp, 197 Soap, fatty acid, 132-33, 133, 147, 155, 157 quality of, 150-51
recycling, 39-40, 47-49 Sodium carbonate (soda ash), 155, 155-56 recovery of, 54, 65
Process control, 182-83, 189 Sodium hydroxide (caustic soda), 101, 131, 147, recycling, 3-18
Procurement, government, and recycled paper, 48 155, 155 repulping, 95-97
Pulp Sodium silicate, 101, 129, 131, 147, 155, 155 supply of, 34, 64, 81-82
bleaching deinked, 151 Solid waste, municipal (MSW), and paper recy- utilization of, 54, 66, 126
costs of, and ONP, 62, 63 cling, 37-40 Water, recycling, 180, 183
deinked, 7, 23-24, 181-83 Solid Waste Action Network, 32-33 Water treatment, 172-73
market, from recycled paper, 181-83, 195-97 Solvents, 155, 156 Whitewater, clarifying, 104
substitutes for, 6 Sorting, of recycled paper, 88, 200 Wisconsin Tissue Mills, 170-73
Pulper, 144 Southeast Recycling Corp., 84-86
deinking, 142-43 Stickies, removing, 105-106, 113, 138 Xerography, ink used in, 188-89
efficiency in, 95-97 Stone Container Corp., 198-200

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