Flow characteristics of chemical pulp suspension as functions of pulp properties and process parameters

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This collaborative research project will be undertaken by the partnership of Dr. Yonghao Ni (applicant), Dr. Mark Martinez (co-applicant), and Domtar Inc. The overall objectives are: 1) to investigate the flow characteristics of kraft pulp suspensions at different conditions; and 2) to determine relation of the pulp suspension fundamentals to the occurrence of fiber plugging in pipelines, and furthermore, to develop cost-effective solutions for de-plugging at pulp mills. The Canadian pulp and paper industry is facing strong international competition. Decreasing the overall manufacturing cost will help Canadian pulp and paper companies to remain competitive at the international stage. The results from the project will be beneficial not only to the industrial partner, Domtar, but also to other Canadian pulp and paper companies. Therefore the proposed program is of direct relevance to Canada. The project details/ deliverables include: 1) To investigate the pulp properties such as degree of cooking (degree of delignification) on the occurrence of pipeline blockage of pulp flows; 2) To determine the fundamentals, including the yield stress, permeability of pulp fiber suspension, as a function of pulp properties; 3) To develop practical and cost-effective methods to minimize the occurrence of pipeline blockage at pulp mills; 4) To model the effect of operating parameters and pulp properties on the flow characteristics of pulp suspensions, and the potential plugging of pulp fibers. The practical importance of this project is to understand the fiber suspension plugging in the pulp manufacturing processes, and ultimately resolve this plugging, which will lead to decreased manufacturing costs of the chemical pulp production by minimizing the unplanned downtime of the process.