An additive suitable for use in the production of packaging paper and similar papers

Abstract

The invention relates to a bacterial cellulose-containing additive that enables improvements in the air permeability, water absorption, and mechanical properties of the final product, particularly suitable for use in the production of packaging boxes in the paper industry.

Description

[0001] AN ADDITIVE SUITABLE FOR USE IN THE PRODUCTION OF PACKAGING PAPER AND SIMILAR PAPERS

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The invention relates to an additive that allows the production of biodegradable papers with low air permeability, resistance to water absorption, and increased strength values, in response to the use of renewable resources as raw materials instead of primary fiber usage in paper production, due to the increasing environmental awareness worldwide. This invention also concerns the use of this additive in the paper industry.

[0004] PRIOR ART

[0005] As known in the art, the raw material of paper is cellulose derived from plant sources. In the relevant technical field, trees are used as a source of cellulose in the production of papers, and generally, the steps of cutting the trees, separating the barks, peeling, splitting into logs, reducing into pieces, pulping, and separating the cellulose contained therein are carried out.

[0006] The increase in the world's population and the use of a high amount of trees as raw materials to meet the ongoing needs in the paper industry both cause environmental harm and lead to an increase in the costs of meeting these needs. It has been determined that the use of such a high amount of trees as raw materials is not sustainable for the paper industry in the future. Therefore, the increasing environmental consciousness worldwide, like in many other sectors, is causing an increase in the demand for renewable resources in the paper industry.

[0007] The Horizon 2020 Green Deal Call aims to design a series of deeply transformative policies with its general goal of making the European continent climate-neutral by 2050, and to contribute to these goals through R&D and innovation projects. Corporate companies prefer to use recyclable paper instead of primary fiber in the packaging they use, but at the same time, they do not want to compromise on the strength of the product. Especially the loss of humidity of the papers used in box packaging production under dry air conditions causes fiber fractures which lead to deformations and breakages in the box lids. Experts in the related technical field are carrying out research and development activities to eliminate these negative consequences of these renewable resources, which will be used as raw materials in the paper industry and have the mentioned strength values.

[0008] In conclusion, in the paper industry, particularly in the production of packaging boxes, it has become mandatory to conduct studies on the research and development of renewable

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[0010] SUBSTITUTE SHEET (RULE 26) resources for environmental consciousness, cost increase, and obtaining sustainable production raw materials.

[0011] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] The invention is related to an additive that can be used as raw material in the paper industry, particularly in the production of packaging boxes.

[0013] The aim of the invention is to present a sustainable, biodegradable, and renewable additive suitable for use as a raw material source in the paper industry.

[0014] The aim of the invention is to provide an additive suitable for use as a raw material source for paper production with at least the same strength values.

[0015] Another aim of the invention is to provide an additive suitable for use in particularly packaging boxes, where 100% recycled papers are used as raw materials, in improving strength values and eliminating technical adversities.

[0016] To achieve all these, the invention relates to a bacterial cellulose-containing additive that allows improvements particularly in the air permeability, water absorbency, and mechanical properties of the final product and is suitable for use in the paper industry, particularly in the production of packaging boxes.

[0017] A possible embodiment of the invention is characterized by the additive being present in an amount ranging from 5% to 40% by weight, particularly in the structure of packaging boxes in the paper industry.

[0018] A possible embodiment of the invention is characterized by the additive being present in an amount ranging from 10% to 20% in the structure of packaging boxes in the paper industry.

[0019] Another aspect of the invention relates to a bacterial cellulose-containing additive that is characterized by being present in an amount ranging from 5% to 40% by weight in the production of packaging boxes in the paper industry, particularly where 100% recycled papers are used as raw materials, and that allows improvements particularly in air permeability, water absorbency, and mechanical properties.

[0020] A possible embodiment of the invention is characterized by the additive being present in an amount ranging from 10% to 20% by weight in the production of packaging boxes in the paper industry, particularly where 100% recycled papers are used as raw materials.

[0021] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] This detailed description relates to an additive suitable for use as a sustainable, renewable, and biodegradable raw material source in the paper industry and particularly in the production

[0023] 2

[0024] SUBSTITUTE SHEET (RULE 26) of packaging boxes. It is explained with examples that will not have any limiting effect but only contribute to a better understanding of the subject.

[0025] Cellulose is used as a raw material source in the paper industry. The main source of cellulose is trees. Every plant, especially trees, contains cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin in their trunks. The cellulose, separated from these other compounds, is passed through various process steps in paper production. The additive subject to the invention is also essentially a source of cellulose. Accordingly, in the invention, bacteria are used as a source of cellulose. The term "bacterial cellulose" will be used for the cellulose obtained from bacteria in the invention.

[0026] The "cellulose" mentioned in the invention is a carbohydrate with the closed formula (C6H10O5)n. Accordingly, a carbon source is needed to produce cellulose. Glucose is generally used as a carbon source. Molasses, fructose, mannitol, glycerol, and sucrose can also be used as carbon sources.

[0027] In the invention, bacteria that use glucose, molasses, fructose, mannitol, glycerol, sucrose as carbon sources can be used as bacterial strains. Preferably, bacteria such as Komagataeibacter, Gluconacetobacter, Acetobacter, Agro bacterium, Aerobacter, Achromobacter, Alcaligenes, Azotobacter, Pseudomonas, Rhizobium, Sarcina, Salmonella, and Escherichia can be used in the invention.

[0028] The preferred bacterial strain in the invention is kombucha culture. This kombucha culture is a symbiotic system where yeast and acetobacter bacteria work together. Accordingly, the bacterial strain is a static environment; its cultures are carried out at temperatures between 23 and 25°C, under constant conditions of 50%-60% relative humidity.

[0029] The subject of the invention relates to an additive that includes bacterial cellulose as a component, which is a cellulose raw material source particularly in the production of packaging boxes in the paper industry.

[0030] As known in the art, the strength values of especially packaging papers, which use fully recycled papers as raw material, are not at the desired efficiency. This situation poses a barrier to the use of recycled papers as raw material in the paper industry. To overcome this, it is possible to use recycled papers at certain weight ratios as raw material in the paper industry, which is a barrier to high amounts of renewable resources or all of the final products being derived from renewable resources. Some of these drawbacks include a decrease in fiber lengths as the number of times fibers are recycled increases, and consequently cracking at the edges of the boxes when they are turned into boxes, a decrease in bursting index values, a decrease in SCT-CD values, and therefore a decrease in box strengths. Especially the new

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[0032] SUBSTITUTE SHEET (RULE 26) generation of papers produced on new type, high-speed GAP former type paper machines - these are known as high-density papers - are produced as thinner paper at similar strengths. Despite having a better structure than old type papers in terms of homogeneity, their resistance to bending is lower than thick papers due to their thinness. The main innovation that the invention wants to provide to the related technical field is to make it possible to use 100% recycled papers as raw material in the paper industry. Accordingly, the current inventors, through their research and development activities, have determined that bacterial cellulose obtained from the mentioned bacterial strains can be used as an additive at certain weight ratios, allowing 100% recycled papers to be used as raw material at the remaining weight ratios. Accordingly, in the invention, when 100% recycled papers are used as raw material in the production of especially packaging boxes, it is possible to use an additive containing bacterial cellulose at least 5% by weight and at most 40% by weight. The mentioned value ranges have been determined as a result of the research and developments carried out by the current inventors. It has been observed that values below or above the mentioned values prevent the use of 100% recycled papers, especially as raw material in the production of packaging boxes. The aim of using bacterial cellulose as an additive in packaging paper production is to use the changes that will occur in the properties of the paper with a biodegradable, renewable, environmentally friendly additive in suitable areas. These features; improvement in bending property to benefit the cracking problem; gaining water resistance by providing a barrier against water absorption naturally, without gluing; and if the usage areas where low air permeability is desired are to be used in these areas.

[0033] The subject of the invention is related to enabling the use of 100% recycled papers as raw material in the production of packaging boxes in the paper industry, in particular; It is related to the inclusion of an additive containing bacterial cellulose at a value between 5% and 40% by weight in order to obtain final products at the desired strength values. Preferably, this value is a value in the range of 10% to 30% by weight. The most preferred value is that the mentioned additive is in a range of 10% to 20% by weight, especially in packaging boxes in the paper industry. The results of the tests performed by the inventors regarding the production of packaging boxes with at least the desired strength values are shared in Table 1 .

[0034] The samples in Table 1 are final product papers where 100% recycled papers are used as raw materials. With the inclusion of the additive subject to the invention at a rate of 5% by weight, it is clear that improvements are seen in all mechanical properties of the papers subjected to the test. The improvement of these mechanical properties continues until the samples containing up to 40% by weight bacterial cellulose. Samples with the desired mechanical properties cannot be obtained over these values. In the studies conducted, it was determined

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[0036] SUBSTITUTE SHEET (RULE 26) that the optimum properties were seen in papers containing the additive at 10% and 20% by weight.

[0037] As known in the art, the biggest problems in using 100% recycled papers as raw material in paper production are their low air permeability and fragility values. Due to these problems, there are also decreases in the water absorption and burst strength values of the final product papers obtained. The additive subject to the present invention, when used at the specified weight ratios and thanks to the functionality it provides, removes the obstacles to the use of 100% recycled papers as raw material in the paper industry. With the inclusion of the additive subject to the invention at the specified weight ratios, the resistance of the packaging cardboard obtained from 100% recycled papers to water absorption increased up to 300 times, and the breaking values increased up to 5 times.

[0038] The use of the additive subject to the invention at the specified weight ratios has made it possible to obtain products with the desired strength values from 100% recycled papers in the paper industry, and in this way, it has been made possible to use sustainable, renewable, and also biodegradable raw materials.

[0039] Table 1 : Representation of the strength values of packaging boxes containing 100% recycled papers as raw materials, which contain the additives subject to the invention at 5%, 10%, and 20% by weight, and reference packaging boxes containing 100% recycled papers as raw materials, which do not contain additives.

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[0041] SUBSTITUTE SHEET (RULE 26)

Claims

CLAIMS The invention relates to a bacterial cellulose-containing additive that enables improvements in the air permeability, water absorption, and mechanical properties of the final product, particularly in the production of packaging boxes in the paper industry. The additive according to claim 1 , characterized by its presence in a range of 5% to 40% by weight, particularly in the structure of packaging boxes in the paper industry. An additive according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by its presence in a range of 10% to 20% by weight, particularly in the structure of packaging boxes in the paper industry. The invention relates to a bacterial cellulose-containing additive that enables improvements in the air permeability, water absorption, and mechanical properties of the final product, characterized by its presence in a range of 5% to 40% by weight, particularly in the production of packaging boxes in the paper industry, where 100% recycled papers are used as raw material. An additive according to claim 4, characterized by its presence in a range of 10% to 20% by weight, particularly in the production of packaging boxes in the paper industry, where 100% recycled papers are used as raw material.SUBSTITUTE SHEET (RULE 26)

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