Production of pulp from pineapple wastes/leave

Abstract

Wood contributes majorly as raw material in conventional pulp and paper production worldwide, whereas the depleting forest resources to obtain wood had made a significant impact on the environment and human. This has made the search for alternative fiber in non-wood materials imperative in pulp and paper production. Ethiopia has abundance of agro waste materials like pineapple leaves that have not been fully utilized. Therefore, this study aims at investigating the suitability of pineapple wastes (leaves) in pulp and papermaking. The chemical composition of pineapple leaves are lignin content (11.5%), cellulose content (65%) and ash content(1.2%). The factors which affect the production of pulp were cooking time, temperature and concentration of NaOH and Na2S. Pulping of pineapple leaf was achieved through chemical pulping method (Soda and Kraft pulping) and the pulp obtained were tested from pineapple waste (leaf) of the pulp yield was (30%, 41.6%) for soda and Kraft pulping respectively. The overall results showed that pineapple wastes have a promising potential as alternatives fibers for pulp making industry