The Trend of Papermaking Technology in the 21st Century

At the end of 2000, the Japan Fiber Research Institute Pulp Research Committee held the 35th Pulp Symposium at the University of Tokyo. The seminar aims to explore the development direction and potential possibilities of papermaking technology in the 21st century. The conference covers a wide range of media, raw materials, pulp, bleaching, surrounding environment and markets. The main points are as follows:

In the 21st century, people, society, paper, and a variety of electronic media are playing an active part in the current society. Whether or not they can eventually replace the traditional “paper” medium, an important decisive factor is to look at it and people. How affinity is.
Electronic media can be divided into two major categories of information retrieval and reading, depending on its use. The electronic display provided for reading is not simple to see. The key is to see if the visual information such as the text or image can leave a memory in the human brain. In the future, as the means of digital information representation, the development of digital paper will continue to progress. However, how to give people appropriate incentives to help them form memory is a must pay attention to in design and development.

Second, raw material issues For the pulp production industry, resources are the most critical issues. The wood grown in Japan is usually cut for 50 to 60 years (such as firs, eucalyptus, and larch), and it will take 30 years at the earliest. In view of the current situation of wood shortage, the Japanese industry has adopted the method of foreign production of timber (tree planting) with better meteorological conditions, in particular by planting short tree species such as eucalyptus and artichoke, and introducing short-term production methods, successfully Reduced to 5-12 years.

In addition, to improve production efficiency, we must also pay attention to the material of pulp raw materials. Now experts are studying molecular breeding through genetic transformation. In the future, the application of this technology will change the quantity and quality of wood, the main component of wood, in order to reduce the cost of the steaming and drying process and reduce the amount of chemical liquid used, thus reducing the discharge of sewage. Environmental protection contributes. In addition, the effect of cellulose on pulp can also be improved.

3. Pulping and Bleaching Technology In the 1980s, Japan's pulp industry has made considerable progress. At the same time, it has introduced a medium-density deoxygenated wood processing system to deal with waste water discharge problems.

In the early 1990s, fiber production in Northern Europe turned to non-chlorinated ECF bleaching and TCF bleaching without the use of chlorine agents. Later, ozone bleaching occurred, and a high-performance ozone-specific AMZ stirrer was developed for this purpose. Compared with ECF bleaching, ozone bleaching is more effective in reducing costs, improving pulp quality, and improving the environment.

Many TCF bleaching devices are now used as "ozone-ECF" devices.

4. Challenges faced by papermaking machines So far, the consumption of printing paper, packaging paper, and paper towels has continued to increase, but the market space for printing paper along with the emergence of electronic media and packaging materials accompanied by polymeric materials has been increasing. Faced with some changes. In order to ensure market share, the paper industry must do more to reduce costs and improve quality. New technologies must also be introduced to reduce the use of various raw materials, such as fibers, microfibers, fillers, and chemicals.

Over the past few decades, advances in the speed of papermaking machines have made a great contribution to improving work efficiency. Now we must pay attention to the balanced development of paper and paper technology, as well as energy-saving and water-saving.

V. Global Market

1) Pulp demand in the world The annual growth rate of paper and board consumption reached 3.1%, especially in Asia and South America. On the one hand, the demand for pulp has been in a downturn. On the other hand, recycled paper is widely used worldwide. From a variety point of view, printing paper, packaging paper and board paper account for a relatively high percentage of paper consumption.

2) Trade of Pulp Pulp is mainly traded in areas with superior geographic location and close economic links. In recent years, the volume of pulp exports has increased in South Korea and Indonesia.

3) Constantly intensified competition among enterprises Many industry players have engaged in corporate acquisitions and mergers in the dark. To improve its market competitiveness, companies must increase their supply capacity through expansion or mergers and acquisitions. In contrast, the latter is less invested than the former, and increasing the market share through mergers and acquisitions will not cause the expansion of the industry-wide production scale, thereby avoiding vicious price competition.

4) The impact of the IT revolution and the pulp industry market on paper demand is directly reflected in the pulp. At present, computers and mobile phones are rapidly becoming popular, and the large number of related advertisements, usage instructions, etc. have greatly promoted the growth of paper consumption in the information industry. But at the same time, it also brought some unfavorable influence to the press, DM, and catalogues.