Laboratory extractor for studying the kinetics of impregnation processes of wood chips

Abstract

Laboratory extractor for studying the kinetics of impregnation processes of wood chips is designed in such a way that the extractor (2) itself is located on a static frame (1) using screws, the extractor (2) has a double shell - a duplicator, in which an inlet (3A) and an outlet (3B) of a heating / cooling medium are located, wherein there is a sleeve with a valve (4) at the bottom of an extractor container; a top lid (5) of the extractor is secured with a flanged joint, a clamp (6), which is designed for quick assembly and disassembly of the entire lid (5), wherein a sleeve for a thermometer (7), a pressure gauge (8), a safety valve (9) and a sleeve with a valve (10) are located on the top lid (5), wherein a basket (11) for the application of wood chips is located in the laboratory extractor, the basket (11) is removable after removal of the lid (5) of the extractor, wherein the laboratory extractor is used for the process of pre-steaming the chips when steam is introduced into the extractor compartment.

Description

[0001] Laboratory Extractor for Studying the Kinetics of Impregnation Processes of Wood Chips

[0002] Technical Field

[0003] The invention relates to an extractor for studying the kinetics of impregnation processes of wood chips usable in the paper industry. It can be applied wherever pulp needs to be produced and processed. The invention falls within the field of engineering.

[0004] Background Art

[0005] With the widespread expansion of the Internet, electronic media and paperless communication, demand for graphic paper, i.e., newsprint paper and printing and writing papers, has been declining since 2000. Despite this decline, the global pulp and paper market is growing steadily at a rate of more than 1 % per year. The cellulose and paper industry converts wood chips into a fibrous material called pulp, the raw material for various paper products. The production of pulp is commercially carried out by mechanical or chemical pulping or by a combination of both methods. Mechanical pulping uses abrasive refining or grinding wood into fibrous pulp. In chemical pulp, pulp is produced by chemical reactions. Sulphate pulp and sulphite pulp are two typical products of chemical pulp production. Currently, more than two-thirds of the pulp produced globally comes from sulphate pulp mill.

[0006] The dominant chemical process for pulping wood chips (kraft process) generally includes a delignification process, i.e., maceration - the leaching of the compact structure of the wood using a highly alkaline impregnating solution, in conjunction with the application of a high temperature. This treatment results in the production of individual fibres and organic residues called black liquor.

[0007] However, optimizing the performance of the pulping process to achieve better pulp properties and yields requires an examination of a virtually ignored step in the process - the impregnation stage. Impregnation of liquids (liquors), as one of the steps in the batch process, is one of the most important steps to achieve high pulp homogeneity and yield.

[0008] In the past, the impregnation stage was considered trivial, but it has recently been shown to be a critical step that significantly affects the uniformity of wood chip delignification and the amount of sulphate pulp yield. Therefore, the production of sulphate pulp has not only undergone an extensive study aimed at solving environmental problems, saving energy, but also improving the quality of the pulp, improving the yield and, as a result, reducing operating costs. The homogeneity of wood chip delignification and the quality of the pulp produced is one of the key factors to achieve significant operational improvement. An efficient and highly homogeneous chip impregnation phase will result in a more economically workable pulp product. Therefore, a better understanding of the conditions that control the flow of ions into the core of the chips is needed to improve product yields. As a result, these conditions must be sufficiently non-aggressive to avoid losses in product yield caused by the alkaline degradation of the polysaccharide components of the pulp.

[0009] Nature of Invention

[0010] The above shortcomings are eliminated by the experimental extractor, in which experiments will be carried out in order to describe the kinetics of the impregnation cycle of wood chips depending on the process parameters used, as well as the concentration, viscosity and composition of the impregnating agent (liquors). Precise specification of alkali consumption at given conditions will help to minimize the amount of unboils and thus to make the sulphate batch process more efficient. Currently, when the upward trend in timber prices does not subside, it is highly desirable to work as efficiently as possible with this heterogeneous material so that it is not wasted. For the future, research on different mixtures of wood species and their study of alkali consumption in the impregnation process is also being considered, as well as a study from the perspective of the processing of sawdust and dust.

[0011] Description of Figures

[0012] The laboratory extractor for studying the kinetics of impregnation processes of wood chips according to the invention will be elucidated in more detail in the drawings, wherein Fig. 1 shows a basic 3D model of the laboratory extractor. Fig. 2 and Fig. 3 show views of the laboratory extractor.

[0013] Examples of Embodiments of the Invention

[0014] It is understood that the various embodiments of the laboratory extractor for studying the kinetics of impregnation processes of wood chips according to the invention are presented for illustrative purposes and not as limitations of the technical solutions. Those skilled in the art will find or be able to find, using no more than routine experimentation, many equivalents to specific embodiments of the invention. Such equivalents will then also fall within the scope of the following claims. Example 1

[0015] In this example of a specific embodiment of the subject of the invention, the construction of the laboratory extractor is disclosed, as shown in Figs. 1 to 3. The basis of the laboratory extractor is a static frame 1, on which the extractor 2 itself is located using screws, a container, which has a double shell, a duplicator, in which an inlet 3A and an outlet 3B of a heating / cooling medium from an external source are located. At the bottom of the container is a sleeve with a valve 4 to allow draining and dosing of the extraction medium in the form of a mixture with different concentrations of alkalis, e.g., white and black liquor. Top lid 5 of the extractor is secured with a flanged joint, a clamp 6, which is designed for quick assembly and disassembly of the entire lid. A sleeve for a thermometer 7, a pressure gauge 8, a safety valve 9, which can control the pressure in the reactor, and a sleeve with a valve 10, which can pressurize the device using inert gas, are located on the top lid. In the extractor itself, a basket 11 for the application of wood chips is located, which is removable after removal of the lid of the reactor. The basket 11 is made of a sieve, the upper part of which is dismountable for dosing wood chips, and through this upper part, the thermometer is introduced through the sleeve for the thermometer 7 on the lid of the extractor. At the same time, it is also possible to carry out a process of presteaming in the extractor, in which the chips are placed in the basket, for which the steam introduced into the extractor compartment is used.

[0016] Industrial applicability

[0017] The laboratory extractor for studying the kinetics of impregnation processes of wood chips according to the invention finds application in the paper industry as well as in organizations dedicated to the production and processing of pulp.

Claims

Claims1. Laboratory extractor for studying the kinetics of impregnation processes of wood chips, characterized in that the extractor (2) itself is located on a static frame (1) using screws, the extractor (2) has a double shell - a duplicator, in which an inlet (3A) and an outlet (3B) of a heating / cooling medium are located, wherein there is a sleeve with a valve (4) at the bottom of an extractor container; a top lid (5) of the extractor is secured with a flanged joint, a clamp (6), which is designed for quick assembly and disassembly of the entire lid (5), wherein a sleeve for a thermometer (7), a pressure gauge (8), a safety valve (9) and a sleeve with a valve (10) are located on the top lid (5), wherein a basket (11) for the application of wood chips is located in the laboratory extractor, the basket (11) is removable after removal of the lid (5) of the extractor, wherein the laboratory extractor is used for the process of pre-steaming the chips when steam is introduced into the extractor compartment.

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