title: Effect of steam explosion and enzymatic pre-treatments on pulping and bleaching of Hesperaloe funifera.
abstract: A non-wood raw material with high potential for pulp and paper applications (Hesperaloe funifera) was subjected to a steam explosion pre-treatment, and the subsequent effect of this pretreatment on biopulping and biobleaching was studied. An increase in the delignification rate, bigger than that reported for autohydrolysis and acid hydrolysis pre-treatments, and a reduction in chemical consumption were found during kraft pulping of the exploded samples. However, biopulping with the laccase-mediator system (LMS) did not lead to a reduction in the kappa number in either non-exploded or exploded unbleached pulps. On the other hand, the steam explosion pretreatment boosted the advantages of the LMS pre-treatment (decrease in kappa number and increase in brightness) favored biobleaching, with a 53.1% delignification rate and a final brightness of 67% ISO. Finally, the steam explosion pre-treatment also improved the color properties of the bleached pulp and reduced the hydrogen peroxide consumption by 24.6%.
authors.affiliation: Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria INIA, Carretera de la Coruña, km 7.5, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Martín-Sampedro
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Eugenio
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Villar
mesh_terms: D000070357:Asparagaceae / Q000737:chemistry*; D004798:Enzymes / Q000737:chemistry*; D006868:Hydrolysis
chemical_list: D004798:Enzymes