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An analysis of the water soluble components of Sappi Saiccor's effluent streams


F Ismail
DA Mulholland
JJ Marsh

Abstract

Sappi Saiccor is a pulp mill that produces high-grade chemical cellulose (dissolving pulp) from predominantly hardwood timber and is currently the world's largest manufacturer of this type of pulp. Attempts to isolate pure lignosulphonates were unsuccessful; however, an acid hydrolysis of the aqueous portion of the calcium effluent stream yielded a range of organic compounds. These included lignans, lignin-type precursors as well as small quantities of vanillin and syringaldehyde. The structures of these compounds were determined using NMR spectroscopic and mass spectrometric techniques.

Keywords: effluent, acid hydrolysis, lignan, lignosulphonates, dissolving pulp

Water SA Vol. 31(4) 2005: 569-574

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eISSN: 1816-7950
print ISSN: 0378-4738