Evaluation of Sorghum Residues Valorization as an Alternative Non Wood Raw Material for Soda Pulp Production
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33736/jaspe.13204.2026Keywords:
Sorghum bicolor, Soda-Anthraquinone Pulping, Non-Wood Fiber, Agricultural Residues, Packaging PaperAbstract
This study investigated soda-anthraquinone (soda-AQ) pulping of Thai Sorghum bicolor residues in two forms: whole stalks with leaves and stalks only. Whole stalks with leaves were pulped at NaOH charges of 12–24%, whereas stalks only were evaluated at 8–18%, with NaOH charge expressed as Na₂O on an oven-dry raw-material basis and AQ maintained at 0.1%. Increasing NaOH charge reduced kappa number and screen rejects but also decreased screened pulp yield. At 12% NaOH, whole stalks with leaves gave a screened yield of 37.71% and a kappa number of 28.80. For stalks only, increasing NaOH to 18% reduced the reject to 0.30%, with a screened yield of 37.54% and a kappa number of 10.44. Ring crush values reached 431 N (vs. 296 N for reference eucalyptus handsheets), and corrugating medium strength reached 398 N (vs. 384 N). The whole-stalk-with-leaves pulp exhibited a tensile index of 91.1 N·m/g, approximately 41.9% higher than the 64.2 N·m/g of the eucalyptus reference pulp. These results support the technical potential of undepithed sorghum residues as an alternative non-wood fiber source for unbleached packaging-paper applications. Further studies are required to establish multi-response criteria for selecting pulping conditions and to evaluate industrial, economic, and environmental performance.
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