Supplying the global pulp and paper industry with a wide range of Peroxides solutions
The pulp and paper industry faces a number of challenges brought on by our rapidly changing economy and the transformation of consumer habits. Solvay’s Peroxides portfolio equips our clients with the industry leading solutions they need to keep up.
Market snapshot
Two trends have been simultaneously balancing the scales in our industry. On one hand, the digital revolution has significantly lowered the demand for printing paper. At the same time, population growth and a general rise in the global standard of living generate a bump in the production of other hygienic paper goods such as diapers and tissue paper. We also see major growth in the demand for paper and board for packaging ౼ fueled largely by the soaring e-commerce industry and a change in food consumption habits.
Regional trends also impact the global pulp and paper landscape. Countries experiencing rapid growth, like China, now have a paper demand that exceeds its forest resources. As a result, they import pulp ౼ the raw material used to make paper ౼ from countries in Europe and South America ౼ effectively fragmenting the once highly integrated industry.
On top of keeping up with shifting demands, industry players are also tasked with employing environmentally friendly practices that reduce water consumption, reuse and recycle process water and valorize the by-products they produce. For example, companies today can turn hemicellulose into sugar. Not only does this kind of sidestream valorization reduce waste, but it also creates additional revenue.
Our promise
Solvay expertly provides hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and peracetic acid (PAA) solutions used in the processes that turn wood into the paper goods we use in our everyday lives ౼ from the magazines we read, to the take-out containers we dine out of, to the diapers that protect our children. Our global presence makes us a true end-to-end provider, ensuring safe operations through all steps of the supply chain ౼ from the gate of our plant, through transportation, to storage and final use of the product in bleaching plants around the world. Furthermore, given the large quantities of H2O2 needed in this industry, our myH2O2® solution ensures true supply chain excellence. With myH2O2® we install small, delocalized production plants directly on customer sites, which guarantee supply to even the most remote areas.
As a responsible supplier, we go beyond simply providing products to our clients. Our waste management laboratory ensures that we reduce our environmental footprint and achieve targets in terms of water recyclability, air emissions and soil remediation. Additionally, our Sustainable Portfolio Management tool, developed in cooperation with other chemical companies, allows research scientists to evaluate the environmental impact of new and existing processes and projects. We also help our clients analyze risk on new installations, advise on material choice for construction and design of new facilities and evaluate the efficiency of chemicals used in bleaching processes ౼ all yielding savings and overall higher brightness levels.
Our pulp and paper solutions
Mechanical pulp
This manual process begins by grinding wood into fibers, thus keeping all the wood components in the produced pulp. While this method produces the highest yield, it also requires more INTEROXⓇ Standard Grade, our hydrogen peroxide product, to achieve the desired pulp and paper brightness. The pulp from this process is later transformed into packaging products and newsprint.
Chemical pulp
In this process, chemicals are used to extract cellulose from the wood. The resulting pure cellulose pulp is considerably easier to bleach with INTEROXⓇ Standard Grade. This extraction process creates a lower yield, but can also lead to value creation. For example, when extracting cellulose, mills can also extract lignin (a by-product that was previously thrown out) and burn it to create energy to run the mill or eventually to sell as electricity to the grid.
While hydrogen peroxide is considered as an auxiliary bleaching agent in chemical pulp, for economic and environmental reasons it is essential to designing an optimised bleaching sequence. It can reduce chlorine dioxide usage, yielding a positive impact on AOX emissions. When used in the final bleaching stage, it can also lead to a better pulp brightness stability ౼ a key benefit when transporting pulp over long distances. And lastly, as an alternative to methanol based technology, H2O2 can generate chlorine dioxide from sodium chlorate, eliminating organics in the effluent.
Deinking pulp (to recycle paper)
This process transforms old newsprint into pulp and finally into new paper. First, the old paper is put into a bath and through a chemical process, the ink detaches from the cellulose fibers and rises to the surface for removal. INTEROXⓇ Standard Grade is then used to bleach the grey recycled fibers for optimal pulp and paper brightness.
