Innovative Processing Techniques Practiced in India for Efficient Utilization of Non-Wood Fibers for Pulp & Paper Making, 1998 North America Nonwood Fiber Symposium Proceedings

Bamboo, has been one of the major non-wood fibrous raw materials for Indian Paper Industry since last 10 decades. The other non-wood fibres like cereal straws and bagasse supplemented bamboo, when a large number of small mills based on these agro residues were installed in early 70’s to augment the raw material supply. Unlike bamboo, the processing of these agro residues was not simple and over the years, Indian paper industry has been able to utilise these raw materials efficiently through improved processing tech-niques. With, the increased understanding of the morphological characteristics and chemical composition, the pulping and bleaching operations were optimised. The improved refining techniques and through understanding of the hydro-dynamic behaviour of the fibres, it was possible to optimise the papermaking parameters. Since installation of these mills, the environmental problems were severe and today with better understanding of the characteristics of spent pulping liquors, it has become possible to design and develop tailor made chemical recovery/treatment systems. This paper highlights the experiences of Indian paper industry in efficient utilisation of agro residue based fibrous raw materials through improved processing techniques.