Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
University of New Brunswick
$40,000.00
Development of new technologies and their fundamentals for the pulp and paper industry
FY 2012-13
Summary
The Canadian pulp and paper industry is facing increasing competition from countries such as Brazil, Indonesia and China, which rely on inexpensive raw material and labour. To maintain a healthy and competitive industry, the industry needs innovations in the development of improved manufacturing processes and/or of new, value-added products. The proposed research program of Dr. Yonghao Ni addresses these needs. His work focuses on:
1) Adsorption behaviour of dissolved lignocellulosic material onto activated carbon,
2) Further understanding of the fundamentals of optical brightening agent (OBA) interactions with high-yield pulps.
The forest biorefinery concept has received much attention recently and the kraft-based dissolving pulp production process fits it very well. The project on the absorption behaviour of dissolved lignocellulosic material onto activated carbon and its modification will target the development of new technologies for the recovery of valuable lignocellulosic materials, such as hemicelluloses. The project will be carried out by: i) determining the adsorption isotherm and kinetics of the process, and ii) developing more effective adsorption technologies based on the fundamental adsorption results. The outcome of the research will be of direct interest to the chemical pulping sector of the Canadian Pulp and Paper industry.
Dr. Ni's work on the improvement of high-yield pulp (HYP) properties and their applications to high-quality paper products has already resulted in significant social and economic impact. In the next 5 years, Dr. Ni and his team are aiming to gain further understanding of the fundamentals of optical brightening agent interactions with HYP. The results will be expected to lead to the development of more effective methods of using optical brightening agent in the production of HYP and HYP-containing papers. Canada, rich in forest resources, is a global leader in the HYP sector, and most of the HYP produced in Canada is exported to other countries.
Program
Discovery Grants Program - Individual
Recipient
Location
New Brunswick, Canada
Recipient Type
Academia
Type
Grant
Source
NSERC's Awards Data
As published
Application id
138113-2011
Name nom
Ni, Yonghao
Department département
Chemical Engineering
Organization id
75
Institution établissement
University of New Brunswick
Province en
New Brunswick
Province fr
Nouveau-Brunswick
Country en
CANADA
Country fr
CANADA
Fiscal year exercice financier
2012
Competition year année de concours
2011
Award amount
40000
Program id
RGPIN
Program name en
Discovery Grants Program - Individual
Program name fr
Programme de subventions à la découverte - individuelles
Group en
Discovery grants programs
Group fr
Programmes de subventions à la découverte
Committee code
1511
Committee name en
Materials and Chemical Engineering
Committee name fr
Génie chimique et des matériaux
Area of application code
503
Area of application group en
Manufacturing processes and products
Area of application group fr
Procédés et produits industriels
Area of application en
Wood, wood products and paper
Area of application fr
Bois, produits du bois et papier
Research subject code
1604
Research subject group en
Industrial engineering
Research subject group fr
Génie industriel
Research subject en
Manufacturing
Research subject fr
Fabrication
Partie
2
Nb partie
5
Application title
Development of new technologies and their fundamentals for the pulp and paper industry
Keyword
NSERC
Application summary
The Canadian pulp and paper industry is facing increasing competition from countries such as Brazil, Indonesia and China, which rely on inexpensive raw material and labour. To maintain a healthy and competitive industry, the industry needs innovations in the development of improved manufacturing processes and/or of new, value-added products. The proposed research program of Dr. Yonghao Ni addresses these needs. His work focuses on:
1) Adsorption behaviour of dissolved lignocellulosic material onto activated carbon,
2) Further understanding of the fundamentals of optical brightening agent (OBA) interactions with high-yield pulps.
The forest biorefinery concept has received much attention recently and the kraft-based dissolving pulp production process fits it very well. The project on the absorption behaviour of dissolved lignocellulosic material onto activated carbon and its modification will target the development of new technologies for the recovery of valuable lignocellulosic materials, such as hemicelluloses. The project will be carried out by: i) determining the adsorption isotherm and kinetics of the process, and ii) developing more effective adsorption technologies based on the fundamental adsorption results. The outcome of the research will be of direct interest to the chemical pulping sector of the Canadian Pulp and Paper industry.
Dr. Ni's work on the improvement of high-yield pulp (HYP) properties and their applications to high-quality paper products has already resulted in significant social and economic impact. In the next 5 years, Dr. Ni and his team are aiming to gain further understanding of the fundamentals of optical brightening agent interactions with HYP. The results will be expected to lead to the development of more effective methods of using optical brightening agent in the production of HYP and HYP-containing papers. Canada, rich in forest resources, is a global leader in the HYP sector, and most of the HYP produced in Canada is exported to other countries.
