Lo-Level Feed System at The Gulf States Paper Mill in Demopolis, Alabama, 1996 Pulping Conference Proceedings

Wayne Chamblee, Erwin Funk, and

Bruno Marcoccia - Ahlstrom Machinery Inc.

J. Robert Prough - Retired

Geoffrey McClain - Gulf States Paper Company

A new and unique change to the continuous cooking process has started up successfully at the Gulf States Paper Mill in Demopolis, Alabama. The new system, called the Lo-Level™ Feed System, represents a significant simplification for the continuous pulping process. It utilizes atmospheric pre-steaming in a Diamondback™ chip bin, a metering screw for chip feed rate control, and a chip pump for transferring chips into the high pressure feeder. The inlet pressure required for high pressure feeder operation is supplied by the chip pump thus eliminating the need for a pressurized steaming vessel. Pumping the chip slurry into the high pressure feeder also results in increased feeder capacity. As a result, the new design requires less equipment and building space, and provides for simplified, more flexible layouts. Since the new system does not utilize a pressurized steaming vessel, it operates with lower feed line and lower impregnation zone temperatures. Consequential improvements in process performance have been demonstrated. These include decreased cooking temperatures and increased heat recovery efficiencies: that is, decreased overall energy requirements for the pulping process. Preliminary testing of pulp strength properties show improvements in quality.