The book provides the most up-to-date information available on various biotechnological processes useful in the pulp and paper industry. The first edition was published in 2011, covering a specific biotechnological process or technique, discussing the advantages, limitations, and prospects of the most important and popular processes used in the industry. Many new developments have taken place in the last five years, warranting a second edition on this topic. The new edition contains about 35% new material covering topics in Laccase application in fibreboard; biotechnology in forestry; pectinases in papermaking; stickies control with pectinase; products from hemicelluloses; value added products from biorefinery lignin; use of enzymes in mechanical pulping.

This book comprehensively summarizes important aspects of research in the active field of lignocellulosic (polymer) composites, including polymer materials from or containing cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. It describes how these materials can be produced from forest products and natural fibers from sources such as jute, flax, sisal, and many more, and even from agricultural residues (like wheat straw, corn stover, or sugarcane bagasse). In times of high demand for renewable green materials, lignocellulosic materials from organic matter produced by trees, shrubs and agricultural crops present a highly attractive feedstock. The international authors explain different treatment and fabrication methods for the production of lignocellulosic materials. Other chapters address the properties of these green materials or illustrate specific applications, ranging from food packaging and household products to adsorbents and even conductive polymer composites. In this way, this book offers a broad and comprehensive overview over the entire field of lignocellulosic composite materials.

Face to the current global energy crisis, there is an urgent necessity of searching for alternatives to fossil fuels, and this book shows how timber is a promising resource for sustainable energy production. Northeast Mexico represents an important forest resource to satisfy the needs of the population in these areas. In order to harness these forest resources, technology for exploring these valuable resources must be developed. These technologies (with special reference to biology and wood technologies) are available in scattered form in a few books but there is no central, comprehensive source for practical forest scientists for adopting efficient forest management, practice, and exploration. This book deals with the characterization of the vegetation, morphology, phenological development, biomass production (leaf, litter, wood), and bioenergy of some timber-yielding species of Northeast Mexico, which will serve as a guide to study timber-yielding plants in the native vegetation of Tamaulipan thornscrub and experimental plantations. This includes morphology, vegetation cover, biomass production in terms of volume leaf biomass, litter, and volume of fire wood and timber. Special emphasis is given to the estimation of bioenergy products and chemical composition (Ph, extractable lignin, and inorganic elements). Large variations exist in vegetation cover, morphology, phenological development, biomass production of leaf and litter, volume of wood and various variable of bioenergy products among the selected species. The maximum production was found in summer and the volume of the harvestable timber was obtained in experimental plantations. This book, therefore, will serve as a practical handbook to characterize timber-yielding plants, which will help to efficiently manage forestry resources.

This monograph presents a state-of-the-art analysis of eco-friendly and aesthetic structures in wooden dome construction. The author demonstrates that the further development of wooden structures depends on both supplementing the testing of wood as a heterogeneous material, as well as on further improvement of fibrous structures with visco-elastic properties. The target audience primarily comprises research experts and practitioners in the field of building materials who are interested in innovative architecture.

Hand Hewn is a fascinating and inspiring tribute to traditional timber framing by one of today's foremost expert architects and practitioners of the craft. In this highly visual book, internationally renowned builder Jack A. Sobon weaves his personal history of learning about the craft with its 2,000-year-long history. Sobon begins with the story of how he fell in love with what was then a little-known building technique and how he eventually became the "Sherlock Holmes" of timber framing. Through evocative text, stunning photography, and hand drawings, Sobon highlights the intimacy of timber framing: its connection to place and to the trees and forest, as well as the honesty and artfulness of the craft, the satisfaction of working with hand tools, and the thoughtful - even spiritual - nature of design. Ultimately, the book reveals how contemporary timber framing offers links to the past, to the natural world, and to the homes and structures that shape our lives.

This book provides basic information on the design of structures with tropical woods. It is intended primarily for teaching university- and college-level courses in structural design. It is also suitable as a reference material for practitioners. Although parts of the background material relate specifically to West and East Africa, the design principles apply to the whole of tropical Africa, Latin America and South Asia. The book is laced with ample illustrations including photographs of real life wood structures and structural elements across Africa that make for interesting reading. It has numerous manual and Excel spread sheet worked examples and review questions that can properly guide a first-time designer of wooden structural elements. A number of design problems are also solved using the FORTRAN programming language. Topics covered in the thirteen chapters of the book include a brief introduction to the book, the anatomy and physical properties of tropical woods; a bri ef review of the mechanical properties of wood, timber seasoning and preservation, uses of wood and wood products in construction; basic theory of structures, and structural load computations; design of wooden beams, solid and built-up wooden columns, wood connections and wooden trusses; as well as a brief introduction to the design of wooden bridges.

This book shows how chemical modifications influence some properties of wood nanocomposites. It describes suitable and effective chemical modifications that strengthen the physico-mechanical, thermal and morphological properties of wood. The authors provide intuitive explanation of the various types of chemical modifications applied to polymer cell walls in wood. They emphasize the reaction changes in wood cell walls due to the chemical modifications. Increased mechanical strength, improved thermal stability as well as the efficient retardancy against fungi attack are described. This book concludes summarizing the potential applications of wood-based nanocomposites taking into account sustainability and economic aspects.

This book presents detailed information on the production and properties of carbon fibers derived from lignin precursors. Focusing on future directions in the carbon fiber industry, it also introduces a novel process for obtaining high-purity lignin, a key aspect in the manufacture of high-quality carbon fiber. Carbon fiber is currently the most preferred lightweight manufacturing material and is rapidly becoming the material of choice for manufacturers around the world. Although more than 80% of commercial carbon fiber is estimated to use PAN (polyacrylonitrile) as a precursor, carbon fiber manufactured from PAN is expensive and therefore its application is limited to high-performance structural materials. Lignin is the second most abundant biopolymer in nature after cellulose and offers a carbon-rich, renewable resource. As a byproduct of the pulp and paper industry and the production of cellulosic ethanol, lignin is also available at low cost, making it an economically attractive alternative to PAN for the production of carbon fibers, as highlighted in this book. The information presented will be of interest to all those involved in the investigation of carbon fiber materials, carbon fiber manufacturers and carbon fiber users.

This book is a compilation of selected papers presented in the International Conference on the theme 'Wood is Good: Current Trends and Future Prospects in Wood'. The contents of the book deal with recent innovations, trends and challenges in wood science and are grouped in five distinct sections. They cover a wide range of topics like wood variability, processing and utilization, wood protection, wood-based composites, wood energy and the role of wood in mitigating climate change. With the ever increasing human population and growing demand for wood, this book offers valuable insights for better understanding and efficient utilization of this wonderful gift of nature. This book will be useful to researchers, professionals, and policy makers involved in forestry and wood related areas.

Agricultural biomass is abundant worldwide and it can be considered as alternative source of renewable and sustainable materials which can be used as potential materials for different applications. Despite this enormous production of agricultural biomass, only a small fraction of the total biomass is utilized for different applications. Industry must be prepared to take advantage of the situation and utilize the available biomass in the best possible manner. Agricultural biomass such as natural fibres has been successfully investigated as a great potential to be used as a renewable and sustainable materials for the production of composite materials. Natural fibres offer excellent specific properties and have potential as outstanding reinforcing fillers in the matrix and can be used as an alternative material for biocomposites, hybrid composites, pulp, and paper industries. Natural fibre based polymer composites made of jute, oil palm, flex, hemp, kenaf have a low market cost, attractive with respect to global sustainability and find increasing commercial use in different applications. Agricultural biomass based composites find applications in a number of fields viz., automotive industry and construction industry. Future research on agricultural biomass-natural fibre based composites should not only be limited to its automotive applications but can be explored for its application in aircraft components, construction industry, rural housing and biomedical applications. In this book we will cover the chemical, physical, thermal, electrical, and biodegradability properties of agricultural biomass based composite materials and its different potential applications. The main goal of this volume is to familiarize researchers, scientists and engineers with the unique research opportunities and potentials of agricultural biomass based materials. Up-to-date information on alternative biomass utilization Academic and industry leaders discuss unique properties of biomass based composite materials Direct application of agricultural biomass materials as sustainable and renewable alternatives

This book covers the different aspects of tropical natural fibre composites in areas such as properties, design and analysis, manufacturing techniques, material selection of kenaf, oil palm, sugar palm, pineapple leaf, coconut, sugarcane and banana based fibre composites. Important properties such as mechanical and thermal of natural fibres as well their composites are presented. A study on the composite fibre-matrix interface is highlighted together with the design process and analysis of products from natural fibre composites. An overview on the manufacturing techniques (conventionally used to produce fibre glass fibre composites) such as pultrusion and filament winding is described to produce natural fibre composites. The importance of material selection system to obtain the most optimum materials for application in engineering components from natural fibre composites is covered with a strong focus on the concurrent engineering for natural fibre composites.

Pulp and Paper Industry: Chemical Recovery examines the scientific and technical advances that have been made in chemical recovery, including the very latest developments. It looks at general aspects of the chemical recovery process and its significance, black liquor evaporation, black liquor combustion, white liquor preparation, and lime reburning. The book also describes the technologies for chemical recovery of nonwood black liquor, as well as direct alkali regeneration systems in small pulp mills. In addition, it includes a discussion of alternative chemical recovery processes, i.e. alternative causticization and gasification processes, and the progress being made in the recovery of filler, coating color, and pigments. Furthermore, it discusses the utilization of new value streams (fuels and chemicals) from residuals and spent pulping liquor, including related environmental challenges.

The application of ionic liquids to biomass for producing biofuels and chemicals will be one of the hot research areas during the next decade due to the fascinating properties of these versatile group of solvents that allow them to dissolve lignocellulosic materials. The present text provides up-to-date fundamentals, state-of-the-art reviews, current assessments and prospects in this area, including aspects of pretreatment, fermentation, biomass dissolution, cellulose transformation, reaction kinetics and physical properties, as well as the subsequent production of biofuels and platform chemicals such as sugars, aldehydes and acids. Auxiliary methods such as catalysis, microwave and enzymatic techniques used in the transformations are covered. Both researchers and practitioners are certain to find a wealth of information in the individual chapters, which were written by experts in the field to provide an essential basis for assessing possible pretreatment and transformation routes of biomass using ionic liquids, and for developing new methods and chemical processes. Dr. Zhen Fang is Professor of Bioenergy, head of the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Biomass Group, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden and is also an Adjunct Professor of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China. Dr. Richard L Smith, Jr. is Professor of Chemical Engineering at the Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Research Center of Supercritical Fluid Technology, Tohoku University, Japan. Dr. Xinhua Qi is Professor of Environmental Science at Nankai University, China.

This volume describes fire behavior and fire protection of timbers in outdoors and indoors application mainly in construction industry. The Authors' novel approach considers the relationship between various species and age of timbers and its fire behavior at different thermal and fire loads. Quantitative data of ignition speed and flame propagation as well as generation of heat, smoke and toxic products are discussed. Analysis of fire resistance of various types of building materials based on timber of different species as well as the novel data on the effect of natural and accelerated aging of timbers on its fire behavior are discussed. The main practical methods of fire protection of new and ancient timber buildings and structures to increase its fire resistance are considered. The book should be useful for a wide range of readers: chemists, physicists, material scientists, architects, engineers, constructors and restorers.

The book provides fundamental chemistry and properties of near-critical water (NCW) and supercritical water (SCW), criteria and challenges/solutions in reactor design for NCW and SCW processes, and up-to-date reviews and practice of a wide range of their applications in bio refineries including: production of hydrochars from biomass, SCW oxidation (SCWO) for waste treatment, SCW gasification (SCWG) of biomass and waste for hydrogen and methane production, hydrothermal liquefaction of biomass, production of chemicals and SCWO of biofuels for energy. It also presents techno-economic analysis of hydrogen production via SCWG of biomass. The book will be highly essential for both academic researchers and industrial practitioners for developing novel bio refinery technologies and processes employing NCW or SCW for treatment of various organic waste streams and production of bio-energy and bio-based chemicals from bio-renewable resources. Prof. Dr. Zhen Fang is leader and founder of biomass group, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China. Dr. Chunbao (Charles) Xu is currently an Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering and NSERC/FP Innovations Industrial Research Chair in Forest Bio refinery at Western University, Canada.

This work, published in two volumes, contains descriptions of the wood and bark anatomies of 3000 dicotyledonous plants of 120 families, highlighting the anatomical and phylogenetic diversity of dicotyledonous plants of the Northern Hemisphere. The first volume principally treats families of the Early Angiosperms, Eudicots, Core Eudicots and Rosids, while the second concentrates on the Asterids. Presented in Volume 1 are microsections of the xylem and phloem of herbs, shrubs and trees of 1200 species and 85 families of various life forms of the temperate zone along altitudinal gradients from the lowland at the Mediterranean coast to the alpine zone in Western Europe. The global perspective of the findings is underlined by the analysis of 500 species from the Caucasus, the Rocky Mountains and Andes, the subtropical zone on the Canary Islands, the arid zones in the Sahara, in Eurasia, Arabia and Southwest North America, and the boreal and arctic zones in Eurasia and Canada. The presence of annual rings in all life forms demonstrates that herbs and dwarf shrubs are an excellent tool for the reconstruction of annual biomass production and the interannual dynamic of plant associations. The common principle of the anatomical expression of secondary growth is a key factor in understanding evolution and adaptation processes in all life forms, from the 2 cm tall whitlow grass (Draba arctica) in the arctic to the 40 m tall beech (Fagus sylvatica) in Central European managed forests. The study opens vast fields of research for dendrochronology, wood anatomy, taxonomy and ecology.

This unique book provides the first comprehensive overview of wood based bioenergy in the northern hardwood forests of the Eastern United States. This includes a holistic look at the topic of wood based bioenergy, as well as focused analyses of key topics. This book is relevant to engineers, project developers, foresters, economists, sociologists, environmental scientists and natural resource managers. Most chapters also provide practical hands-on advice for the practitioner, and provide a valuable resource for anyone who is considering developing a woody bioenergy project.

This book describes the scientific principles that are used throughout the world to ensure the rapid, healthy growth of forest plantations. As the population of the world increases so does the amount of wood people use. Large areas of natural forests are being cleared every year and converted to other uses. Almost as large an area of plantation forests is being established annually to replace those lost natural forests. Eventually, plantations will produce a large proportion of the wood used around the world for firewood, building, the manufacture of paper and bioenergy. Forest plantations can also provide various environmental benefits including carbon storage, rehabilitation of degraded land, serving as disposal sites for various forms of industrial or agricultural waste and enhancing biodiversity in regions that have been largely cleared for agriculture. Whatever their motivation, plantation forest growers want their plantations to be healthy and grow rapidly to achieve their purpose as soon as possible. This book discusses how this is done. It is written for a worldwide audience, from forestry professionals and scientists through to small plantation growers, and describes how plantations may be grown responsibly and profitably.

The book is a fundamental reference source on reaction wood for wood scientists and technologists, plant biologists, silviculturists, forest ecologists, and anyone involved in the growing of trees and the processing of wood. It brings together our current understanding of all aspects of reaction wood, and is the first book to discuss both compression wood and tension wood. Trees produce reaction wood to maintain the vertical orientation of their stems and the optimum angle of each branch. They achieve this by laying down fibre cell walls in which differences in physical and chemical structure from those of normal fibres are expressed as differential stresses across the stem or branch. This process, while of obvious value for the survival of the tree, causes serious problems for the utilisation of timber. Timber derived from trees containing significant amounts of reaction wood is subject to dimensional instability on drying, causing twisting, bending and splitting. It is also difficult to work as timber, and for the pulp and paper industry the cost of removing the increased amount of lignin in compression wood is substantial. This has both practical and economic consequences for industry. Understanding the factors controlling reaction wood formation and its effect on wood structure is therefore fundamental to our understanding of the adaptation of trees to their environment and to the sustainable use of wood. The topics covered include: -Morphology, anatomy and ultrastructure of reaction wood -Cell-wall polymers in reaction wood and their biosynthesis -Changes in tree proteomes during reaction wood formation -The biomechanical action and biological functions of reaction wood - Physical and mechanical properties of reaction wood from the scale of cell walls to planks -The detection and characterisation of compression wood -Effects of reaction wood on the performance of wood and wood-based products - Commercial implications of reaction wood and the influence of forest management on its formation

Pulp and paper mill industries are always associated with the disposal problem of highly contaminated sludge or bio-solids. The development of innovative systems to maximize recovery of useful materials and/or energy in a sustainable way has become necessary. The management of wastes, in particular of industrial waste, in an economically and environmentally acceptable manner is one of the most critical issues facing modern industry, mainly due to the increased difficulties in properly locating disposal works and complying with even more stringent environmental quality requirements imposed by legislation. This book presents a general Introduction on waste management in the pulp and paper industry and contains topics on the generation of waste in pulp and paper mills, waste composition, methods of sludge pre-treatment, processes and technologies for conversion of pulp and paper mill waste into valuable products, waste reduction techniques employed in the pulp and paper Industry worldwide and future trends.

This volume presents a history of heavy timber construction (HTC) in the United States, chronicling nearly two centuries of building history, from inception to a detailed evaluation of one of the best surviving examples of the type, with an emphasis on fire resistance. The book does not limit itself in scope to serving only as a common history. Rather, it provides critical analysis of HTC in terms of construction methods, design, technical specifications, and historical performance under fire conditions. As such, this book provides readers with a truly comprehensive understanding and exploration of heavy timber construction in the United States and its performance under fire conditions.

This four volume set covers the entire spectrum of pulp and paper chemistry and technology from starting material to processes and products including market demands. This work is essential for all students of wood science and a useful reference for those working in the pulp and paper industry or on the chemistry of renewable resources. Volume 2 focuses on creating an understanding of the chemical and technical processes involved in the production of pulp. The work treats wood handling, i.e. barking, chipping , storage and screening processes, chemistry and technology during mechanical and chemical pulp production, including pulping and bleaching chemistry and technology, production of bleaching chemicals at the mill, recovery processes, including the treatment and burning of black liquor and the white liquor preparation plant, paper recycling processes, changes in structure and properties of wood polymers and pulps in the pulping process line, description of the equipment and processes involved in the manufacturing of pulp, pulp characterization, including methods available to evaluate pulp properties, end-product requirements.

This four volume set covers the entire spectrum of pulp and paper chemistry and technology from starting material to processes and products including market demands. This work is essential for all students of wood science and a useful reference for those working in the pulp and paper industry or on the chemistry of renewable resources. Volume 1 provides a survey of the biological and chemical structure of wood as well as an introduction to the chemical reactions used during pulp production processes. The work presents the different raw materials used for pulp production, the macroscopic and morphological construction of wood and related characterization methods, the chemical structure and arrangement of the wood polymers and extractives, biosynthesis of wood polymers, carbohydrate and lignin analysis, reactions of wood polymers in mechanical and chemical pulping and bleaching processes, biotechnical processes of relevance for the pulp and paper industry, different types of microorganisms and their modes of interaction with wood, the impact of chemical and microbiological processes on the hierarchical structure of wood and pulp.

This four volume set covers the entire spectrum of pulp and paper chemistry and technology from starting material to processes and products including market demands. This work is essential for all students of wood science and a useful reference for those working in the pulp and paper industry or on the chemistry of renewable resources. This volume examines the physical properties of paper and modern demands on this versatile material. The book presents fundamental definitions of fibre networks and their structure, physical properties of the paper and their development during pressing and drying, interactions with moisture and its affect on mechanical properties, interactions between light and fibrous materials and the determination of optical properties of the paper, physical action of dry-strength and wet-strength chemicals, physical properties of the paper surface with special emphasis on printing and print quality, overview of packaging materials and the demands on paper from a packaging materials perspective, laminate theories for papermakers and theoretical models of paper for converting and end-uses.

This book provides a comprehensive description of traditional and innovative forest-based bioproducts, from pulp and paper, wood-based composites and wood fuels to chemicals and fiber-based composites. The descriptions of different types of forest-based bioproducts are supplemented by the environmental impacts involved in their processing, use, and end-of-life phase. Further, the possibility of reusing, recycling and upgrading bioproducts at the end of their projected life cycle is discussed. As the intensity of demand for forest biomass is currently changing, forest-based industries need to respond with innovative products, business models, marketing and management. As such, the book concludes with a chapter on the bioproducts business and these products' role in bioeconomies.