Agricultural Biomass MFC Composition That Resists Hornification
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Solution Overview
Problem
The commercialization of microfibrillated cellulose (MFC) is hindered by its gel-like and hygroscopic properties, leading to energy-intensive dewatering and hornification issues, which degrade its performance as a paper strength additive.
Innovation Solution
A microfibrillated cellulose composition derived from agricultural biomass is developed, maintaining high solid content and preventing hornification, allowing for easy handling, transportation, and use as a paper strength agent without additives.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If dewatering and drying processes are applied to increase solid content of MFC, then transportability and storage efficiency are improved, but hornification occurs causing deterioration of MFC properties
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes harmful substances (lignin, hemicellulose, pectin) from the agricultural biomass through selective extraction processes before microfibrillation. This pre-extraction prevents hornification during subsequent dewatering and drying by eliminating the substances that cause fibril bonding and property deterioration, while allowing high solid content to be achieved.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary extraction of harmful constituents before the microfibrillation process. By removing lignin, hemicellulose, and pectin in advance, the MFC is prepared in a state that resists hornification during later dewatering and drying operations, enabling high solid content without property deterioration.
2Productivity
If additives are added to improve dewatering properties, then dewatering efficiency is improved, but MFC deterioration and hornification are promoted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the naturally occurring lignin, hemicellulose, and pectin in agricultural biomass from harmful substances that cause hornification into beneficial extraction targets. By selectively removing these constituents before microfibrillation, the process eliminates the root cause of hornification, allowing efficient dewatering without additives that would otherwise promote MFC deterioration.
3Quantity of substance
If conventional washing steps are applied before fibrillation, then purity is improved, but water and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the washing/extraction function with the fibrillation process itself. The microfibrillation step simultaneously achieves purification by separating cellulose microfibrils from lignin, hemicellulose, and pectin, and structural modification. This integration eliminates separate washing steps, reducing water and energy consumption while maintaining purity.
Solution Approach 2:
The microfibrillation process is designed to serve multiple functions simultaneously: it breaks down the biomass structure into microfibrils, separates and removes harmful constituents (lignin, hemicellulose, pectin), and prepares the MFC for subsequent processing. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate washing steps, reducing resource consumption.
4Adaptability or versatility
If agricultural biomass is used instead of wood-based cellulose, then resource efficiency is improved, but processing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the complex agricultural biomass into distinct components through selective extraction: cellulose microfibrils are separated from lignin, hemicellulose, and pectin. This segmentation approach simplifies the processing of diverse agricultural biomass by targeting specific constituents for removal, making the process adaptable to various feedstocks without requiring fundamentally different processing systems.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a microfibrillated cellulose composition comprising a microfibrillated cellulose originating from agricultural biomass, said microfibrillated cellulose composition comprising: ≥30 wt % cellulose, 1-15 wt % pectin, 8-25 wt % hemicellulose, 0-12 wt %, lignin, 0-15 wt % ash, and 0-8 wt % protein, based on dry solids content of said composition. The present invention further relates to its manufacture, and use in and manufacture of paper and paperboard products.