New Additive for Deinking Agent Formulations, 1997 Recycling Symposium Proceedings

Alcohol ethoxycarboxylates (AEC’s) are not new surfactants. Long available, their commercial utility has been limited by their process chemistry. An improved catalytic synthesis of AEC surfactants has been developed. The high product purity and improved economics provided by this synthesis have resulted in new opportunities for using AEC’s in a variety of end uses including deinking. The objective of this work was to evaluate AEC surfactant as office paper deinking agents.

Overall, laboratory and pilot plant results indicate that AEC’s are highly effective deinking agents. The strong AEC foaming properties mean they probably need to be formulated with other ingredients for use in commercial deinking mills. In laboratory pulping of 100% toner-printed paper, brightness and image analysis results suggested using an AEC surfactant during pulping promoted agglomeration of sub visible ink particles into the visible size range. The higher brightness suggests that using AEC surfactants could reduce bleaching requirements.

The results of pilot plant flotation deinking tests are reported. The mixed office wastepaper used in the pilot plant contained relatively high levels of toner-printed paper, ca. 60%. AEC 23-4 promoted more ink dispersion and formation of more visible ink particles than the other surfactants tested. AEC 23-4 also provided very efficient ink removal by flotation.