Review of the Economics, Technologies and Products in the Non-wood Sector

By Dr. Karthik Raghavan, PhD, Sim Agro Inc, Ohio

Non-wood fibers like sugarcane bagasse, wheat straw, bamboo have long been used as raw materials for pulp
making in Asian, African and S. American countries where farming is a major industry that produces a lot of
agricultural waste and wood is an expensive commodity. In recent years, non-wood fibers usage has expanded -
from making pulp for paper and paper board to making molding products like eco-friendly tableware and cups as
well as producing cellulosic ethanol and by-products like lignin. However, one of the major hurdles for non-wood
fibers is the reliability of supply chain for collecting the raw material and delivering them to the processing site.
Unlike in the case of wood-based pulp mills, raw material availability dictates production of non-wood fiber in
smaller pulp mills based on their availability. This is followed by another set of challenges related to technology
and commercialization of these products.

In this paper, we examine the technologies and the economics of non-wood fibers and its various uses: pulp for
packaging and bleached pulp for printing and writing, molded products, cellulosic ethanol and its derivatives, lignin
separation, and long fiber pulp for specialty paper markets. The paper focuses on the North American market where
there is an abundance of non-wood fibers like wheat straw, bagasse and flax straw, but its uses are in nascent stage
in terms of commercialization and production. Finally, the paper highlights the opportunities for innovation in non-
wood supply chain, non-wood fiber processing equipment and systems, and development of new markets for end -
products using non-wood fibers.

1. INTRODUCTION

Papermaking from non-wood fibers can be traced back to Egyptian times where paper-like materials were produced
from reeds found on the riverbanks [1]. Chinese in early AD developed paper by pounding the fibers from plants
and adding rags and other material containing cellulose. As papermaking evolved, the use of non-wood fibers was
slowly replaced by wood pulp, and non-wood paper making was relegated to the arena of arts and crafts. In the last
30-40 years, the use of non-wood fibers in commercial papermaking and other products has made a comeback due to
the paucity of wood in regions like Asia. The non-wood fiber sources are agricultural residue such as sugarcane
bagasse, wheat straw as well as grasses and reeds like bamboo and elephant grass. These fiber sources were
developed out of necessity and came with their own set of growing pains and challenges in terms of use, quality and
acceptance. Since the use of these fibers in commercial venues started at a time when the pulp and paper industry
was starting to mature, vendors did not produce equipment or technology specific to non-wood fibers. Instead,
systems used in the traditional wood pulp mills were repurposed for deployment in mills using non-wood fibers.
This approach led to slow adoption of these types of raw materials in pulp and paper industry.

The paper is divided into three main sections that address Products, Process (technologies) and Purpose
(economics) of non-wood sector. In these sections, we will explore how this sector has evolved from being a niche
raw material born out of necessity to one that can create and sustain a healthy value chain.

2. PRODUCTS

There are numerous studies that have been conducted and papers published in the last five decades on non-wood
fibers and products that can be produced from them. However, only a few of the technologies have been
commercialized. For the pulp and paper industry, the use of non-wood fibers started as a necessity in Asia and then
spread to Latin America, Middle East and Africa, where agrarian societies dominate the landscape. The other
industries where non-wood fibers are starting to play a greater role like the pulp molding and biofuels, the arena is
quite small and limited. In Table 1 we identify some of the main products that are produced from non-wood fibers
and their related industries. We will look at some of these products and industries in more detail in the following
sections.

Table 1. Non-wood fibers and their uses

Non-wood Fiber
Bagasse, Wheat Straw, Bamboo, Pulp Printing and writing, fluting
Grasses medium, packaging material
Bamboo, wheat straw Pulp for tissue Tissue
Bagasse, Wheat Straw, Bamboo, Market pulp Printing and writing, fluting
Grasses medium, packaging material, tissue
Bagasse, Wheat Straw, Bamboo, Pulp for molding Food containers, plates, cups
Grasses
Bagasse Dry fiber Particle board
Bagasse, Wheat Straw, Bamboo, Ethanol Fuel additive, polyethylene as
Grasses, Cotton linters, Corn Stalk, plastic replacement
Corn Cobb, Palm Fronds, Arundo
Donax, High Energy Sorghum
Bagasse, Wheat Straw, Bamboo, C5 and C6 sugars Precursors for biochemicals in
Grasses, Cotton linters, Corn Stalk, pharma and food industries
Corn Cobb, Palm Fronds, Arundo
Donax, High Energy Sorghum
Bagasse, Wheat Straw, Bamboo, Lignin Biochemicals from lignin, bio-
Grasses, Cotton linters, Corn Stalk, adhesives, bio-surfactants, etc.
Corn Cobb, Palm Fronds, Arundo
Donax, High Energy Sorghum

2.1 Paper Products

Using pulp from non-wood fibers was a logical extension for the pulp and paper industry. However, when non -
fibers were initially introduced in the pulping process they were inferior to wood pulp and caused a number of issues
ranging from evaporator tubes plugging up due to higher black liquor viscosity to runnability issues on paper
machines due to silica. These have been overcome with technologies discussed in the next section. In this section
we want to focus on how products from non-wood fiber perform against their wood fiber counterparts.

In Table 2 a quick comparison of the wood and non-wood fibers commonly used have been made. Although the
cellulose content is important, the lignin, ash and silica content play a critical role in the pulp quality. As it is clearly
seen the ash and silica content in wood is nonexistent while these percentages can be fairly significant in non-wood
fibers. Similarly, the lignin content in non-wood fibers tend to be lower than wood but the resulting black liquor is
more viscous. Both of these impacts the overall pulp quality if they are not addressed correctly in the pulp
processing steps.

In Table 3 the fiber lengths, yields and life cycle show that non-wood fibers have similar fiber lengths and have
much shorter life cycles. The fiber production is also significant and sustainable as non-wood fiber is usually
considered as agricultural waste or used for crop rotation. This table clearly shows that non-wood fiber source is a
viable alternative to wood. The key is the supply chain of collection and delivery of these raw materials.
Table 2: - Chemical Composition of Wood and Non-Wood Fibers [2]

Fiber
Cellulose Lignin Pentosan Ash Silica
Softwood 40-45 26-34 7-14 <1 -
Hardwood 38-49 23-30 19-26 <1 -

Non-Wood
Sugarcane 32-48 19-24 27-32 1.5-5 0.7-3.5
Bagasse
Wheat Straw 29-51 16-21 26-32 4.5-9 3-7
Rice Straw 28-48 12-16 23-28 15-20 9-14
Bamboo 26-43 21-31 15-26 1.7-5 0.7
Kenaf - Bast 37-49 15-21 18-24 2-4 -
Hemp - Bast 57-77 9-13 14-17 0.8 -

Table 3: Fiber lengths, yields and life cycle of these non-wood fibers in comparison with wood

Fiber Fiber Pulp Yield Years to

length ton/year/ha ton/year/ha grow
(mm)
Softwood ~2.0 1.5 0.7 47% 10
Fast growing 2-2.3 8.6 4 47% 7
Softwood
Temperate softwood ~2.3 3.4 1.7 50% 6
Fast growing 1.5-1.7 15 7.4 49% 4
hardwood
Wheat straw 1-1.5 4 1.9 48% 1
Rice 0.5-1.4 3 1.2 40% 0.5
Straw
Bagasse 1-1.7 9 4.2 47% 1
Bamboo 2.7-4 4 1.6 40% 1
Kenaf 1.5-2.5 15 6.5 43% 1
Hemp 1.5-2.5 15 6.7 45% 1
Elephant grass 1.2 12 5.7 48% 1

3. PROCESS

The process of using non-wood fibers starts with collection, processing, storage and transportation of these
materials. Those that are agricultural waste like wheat and rice straw, require the materials to be collected from the
fields and then cut into lengths (~ 50 mm) suitable for pulping or other processes. Other fibers like bamboo require
chipping - similar to wood logs, while non wood fibers like Kenaf, Jute and Flax straws need more processing prior
to entering into the process of pulping. Storage is the next critical component as availability of non-wood fibers is
seasonal. Loose fiber piles, bales and wet pad storage are some of the ways these fibers may be stored prior to
processing. Baling is quite popular for fibers like bagasse, wheat straw and rice straw while wet pad storage is more
geared towards bagasse as this type of operation allows the removal of residual sugars that may be present in the
fibers. The way in which these fibers are collected and stored dictates the amount of extraneous elements like silica
and dirt that can be entrained along with these fibers.

In the next few sections, we will look at the processes within pulp mills, particle board mills or bio-refineries that
are somewhat similar, with final processing entailing specialized unit operations to produce the desired products.

3.1 Pulping process of non-wood fibers

Typical chemical non-wood pulping processes are shown in Figures 1-3. At first glance, the closed cycle operation
looks very similar to that of wood pulp mills. However, there are distinct differences. The Fiber Preparation and
Wet Washing stages do not exist in a traditional wood pulp mill. Figures 2 and 3 show how non-wood fibers are
pulped using semi-closed chemical recovery cycle and no chemical recovery, respectively.

Figure 1: A Closed Cycle Chemical Recovery Bleached Pulp Mill for Non-Wood Fibers

Figure 2: A Semi-Closed Cycle Chemical Recovery Bleached Pulp Mill for Non-Wood Fibers With Option to Close

Figure 3: Unbleached Pulp Mill for Non-Wood Fibers Without Chemical Recovery
In the previous section, we addressed how the quality of products made from non-wood fibers have significantly
improved and can be considered to be on par with those from wood pulp. The increase in the quality comes mainly
from pretreatment of fibers prior to pulping or cooking.

3.1.1 Fiber preparation

The fiber preparation stage for non-wood fibers involves several processes – cutting (straws), bale breaking, and
depithing or dedusting. The separation of fines or pith is done using a vertical type hammering operation using
depither (Figure 4 (a)) or deduster (Figure 4 (b)). The centrifugal action separates the fibers that fall straight down
while the pith or fine dust is separated as they pass through the screens. These materials are then sent to the boilers
to be burnt as fuels.

(a) (b)

 
Figure 4: Fiber Preparation of Bagasse and Wheat Straw - (a) Depither (b) Deduster

Some of the mills use an additional step called wet depithing for bagasse. This uses very similar equipment except
the material enters the equipment with water. However, this type of operation has only resulted in marginal
improvement in any additional pith removal. Such wet depithing operations have been discontinued as the power
consumed during these operations does not justify the benefits. Furthermore, the wet washing systems that we will
address in following section do the same job with relatively lower power consumption.

3.1.2 Wet washing

It was recognized early on that non-wood fibers are unlike wood chips and need to be washed to remove extraneous
material like silica, fertilizer that may contain nitrates and chlorides. So, the initial attempts at washing these fibers
were done using vessels filled with water that had an agitator to create turbulence. This concept was taken to the
next level by the introduction of pulper which is similar to the ones used for repulping broke and recycled material
in the paper machine systems. The pulper shown in Figure 5 was used with low consistency fiber and water mix.
The silica and heavier particles settled to the bottom to be removed via the junk traps while the lighter fiber moved
to the next stage. Unfortunately, the pulper suffered from some deficiencies related to the inability to separate the
heavier dirt particles from the fiber as the residence time in a pulper tends to be 1-3-minute range. The design of
these pulpers allow the materials to leave the equipment without being subjected to the turbulence generated by the
agitator. For this reason, the pulpers have had limited success in reducing the silica or ash content in non-wood
fibers. Figure 5 shows how fibers can short circuit their path and can leave the pulper without being washed
properly. There is not enough residence time for the heavier dirt particles to settle to the bottom and removed from
the junk traps.
Figure 5: How a Pulper for Fiber Washing Operates

To address these issues observed in the pulper, the washing equipment was redesigned by Agro Pulping Machinery
in early 2000’s to increase the residence time along with agitation. Just like the pulper the twin turbo washer
requires a dilute mixture of the fibers to be effective in its washing. However, it can operate at higher consistencies
compared to the pulper. The twin turbo washer enhanced the washing by creating both turbulence and increased
residence time while gently beating the fibers with deep troughs that allow settling of heavier dirt particles. The
lengths of the troughs and number of cones below vary depending on the capacity of the twin turbo washer, the
quality and type of fiber. The residence time also allows the fertilizers to be dissolved by the water. Figure 6 shows
a typical arrangement of a twin turbo washer that operates around 2.5-3% consistency.

Figure 6: Twin Turbo Washer: Beating Zones and Areas That Create Turbulence
Figure 7: Complete Wet Washing System – Twin Turbo Washer, Aquaseparator or Inclined Screw, and Screw Press
Along with Water Recycling System

In the next phase of the wet washing system, the water is drained using an inclined screw, and showers are used to
enhance the washing of the fibers. The filtrate from these systems is typically sent through a water recovery cycle
to remove the suspended solids and the clear water is recycled back to the fiber washing system. Coming out of the
inclined screw, the typical consistency of fiber is around 16-18%. This mixture is directly sent to the pulping stage
in some cases. In others, the fibers are squeezed to remove the excess water using a screw press as shown in Figure
8. Screw press is used to increase the consistency of the fiber which in turn helps increase the throughput of the
system in the pulping stage.

Typical fiber consistency after going through the screw press is between 24-28%. Higher consistency screw presses
are available to increase the consistency to 35-40%. However, the latter also consume more power and is only used
in specialized operations. For pulping operations, this type of high consistency screw press is not needed but certain
bio-refineries prefer to have high consistency washed fiber for their pretreatment processes.
Figure 8: Screw Press for Fibers

3.1.3 Pulping

The fiber water mixture is then sent to be pulped using chemicals. The typical cooking chemicals used are Sodium
Hydroxide (NaOH) or a combination of NaOH and Sodium Hydrosulphide (NaSH) similar to the wood pulp mills.
In some cases, mills use a combination of NaOH and Sodium Carbonate (Na2CO3) and in other cases they use
organic solvents like isobutanol. However, sodium hydroxide or soda cooking and Kraft pulping (NaOH-NaSH) are
two most prevalent processes used for non-wood fiber cooking. Unlike wood chips, the cellulose in the non-wood
fibers tend to be more loosely bound with the lignin, requiring lower dosages compared to wood pulping operations.
Using additional oxidizing agents such as anthraquinone has been shown to slightly improve yields and quality of
the pulp but their use is limited due to the low cost-benefit trade-off.

Early on, non-wood fiber cooking was done using batch digesters but mills subsequently transitioned to continuous
digesters which have better control on pulp quality and use less chemicals and steam. One of the tougher aspects to
control in the case of non-wood fibers is the bulk density of the fibers that tend to vary based on season and
collection methods. The bales of non-wood fibers tend to have varying bulk densities based on how these fibers are
compacted. On the other hand, the materials stored in loose piles tend to suffer from even more variations compared
to the bales as the fiber accumulation is not regulated. Given the variability in bulk density, the pulp operations
using batch digesters tend to be conservative in their chemical dosage and cooking time. To avoid the higher costs
of pulping due to these factors, the use of batch digesters has been restricted to high yield pulping used of packaging
materials where the chemical dosage and residence time needed tend to lower than other end products.

For pulps used for printing and writing and other grades, pulp mills have switched over to continuous digesters or
CD to avoid the pitfalls of a batch digester and to ensure uniform pulp quality [3, 4]. There are two major types of
continuous digesters: horizontal tube CD and vertical CD. The horizontal CD systems shown in Figure 9 (a) can
process up to 500-550 tons of fiber per day based on their bulk density. For mills looking at capacities larger than
600 TPD of fiber, multiple lines of the horizontal CD system can be deployed, or they can choose to use the vertical
CD system (Figure 9(b)). The vertical operation is similar to the batch digester system except that it has different
zones for chemical impregnation, liquor recycle and final cooking. These systems tightly control the liquor
circulation and flow of the fibers down the system to ensure the pulp quality.

Horizontal CD Systems: The horizontal continuous digesters typically have an approach flow system (Figure 9 (a))
to streamline and regularize the fiber flow into the digesters. The horizontal CD system also employs a plug screw
feeder that forms a plug from the fibers. This plug is pushed in the horizontal tubes that are under 8-10 bar pressure.
Since the plug must withstand the back pressure from the tubes, the feeding of the fiber into the plug screw feeder is
very critical. If the plug integrity is broken, the steam will escape, causing what is known as blow back. This will
also result in entrainment of the fibers with the steam. Such CD systems are equipped with a blow back valve which
will automatically shut off the system when a blow back condition is sensed.
The timer screws in the horizontal tubes are responsible for the material mixing with the chemicals and steam, while
their revolutions control the residence time of biomass in each tube. The kappa number of the final pulp is inversely
related to the residence time and directly related to the time screw revolutions. Finally, the cold blow discharger at
the bottom helps lower the pressure with black liquor addition, before blowing the pulp into a blow tank. Since the
blow tank is at atmospheric pressure, the water in the pulp tends to flash and produce steam, which is then used to
heat the cooking chemicals, prior to its addition to the CD system. This approach helps optimize the energy balance
to reduce the amount of steam needed to facilitate cooking. Each of the tubes also has nozzles for additional steam
or chemical injections, if needed to improve the pulp quality. The main advantage of a continuous digester in
comparison with a batch one is the ability to control the pulp quality rather quickly and without producing off spec
materials which have to be reprocessed.
Figure 9(b): Horizontal Continuous Digester with Fibers Being Fed Through a Plug Screw Feeder

Figure 9(a): Vertical Digester with Fibers Being Fed Through a Screw Feeder
3.1.4 Screening, washing and bleaching

These processes are very similar to those in a wood pulp mill. The screen sizes, displacement ratio in brown stock
washers and bleaching dosages are a function of the non-wood fiber being pulped. The amount of black liquor
solids generated is lower than wood pulp mills. The characteristics of these liquors are also different. The washing
results in lower solids concentration (8-11% versus 13-14% for black liquor from wood pulping). Since non-wood
pulping predominantly uses caustic for their cooking, the black liquor chemical composition is different for the
typical Kraft liquor. Furthermore, the inherent silica in some of the non-wood fibers like rice straw and, bamboo
results in higher silica concentrations in the black liquor. This leads to scaling in evaporators, especially when the
concentrations are greater than 40%. The viscosity of the black liquor from non-wood pulping tends also to be
higher.

3.1.5 Chemical recovery

Typical chemical recovery consists of these processes: (1) Black Liquor Evaporators, (2) Black Liquor Incineration,
(3) Green Liquor Generation, (4) Recaustizing - White Liquor Generation by Addition of Lime, (5) Lime Mud
Calcining - Reburning of Lime Mud to Recover the Lime. While these processes are usually found in all wood pulp
mills, in certain non-wood pulp mills open chemical recovery systems have been deployed where process steps (1)
and (2) are present. The remaining unit operations are not necessary but may be used to reduce the production cost
of pulp.

Black liquor concentration is achieved using multiple effect evaporator systems that have steam economies greater
than 6. The concentrated black liquor is then incinerated to remove the organics and recover the inorganics. The
incineration technology that is typical in a wood pulp mill is that of a recovery boiler where the concentrated black
liquor is fired at concentrations 65% solids or greater. In the case of non-wood pulp mills, concentration of black
liquor above 50% requires special heat treatment to reduce viscosity to allow easy firing of the liquor. The presence
of silica in the liquor presents some operational issues. The system produces the inorganics in smelt form that is
collected at the bottom and conveyed to a dissolving tank to produce green liquor. The incineration produces steam
that can be parlayed through a turbine to produce power.
Figure 10: Typical Chemical Recovery Cycle Deployed in a Closed Cycle Pulp Mill

The other alternative is low temperature incinerator or LTI (Figure 11), that employs a fluidized bed approach to
combust the black liquor. The organics are burnt off while the inorganics are recovered as solid pellets. Unlike the
recovery boiler, the black liquor concentration required from the evaporators is only in the range of 23-25%. This
liquor is concentrated in the venturi scrubber to 48% using the flue gases from the system. The concentrated black
liquor can then be fired into the LTI system to produce soda ash pellets. This approach provides flexibility to the
pulp mill on whether to close the chemical recovery cycle, or leave it open by selling the soda ash pellets in the
marketplace – to glass, soap or other industries that use Sodium Carbonate. If the pulp mill wants to close the
chemical recovery cycle, the soda ash pellets can be dissolved to generate green liquor and steps (4) and (5) are then
introduced to generate white liquor to be reused in the cooking, while lime is regenerated by calcining the lime mud
(CaCO3) produced in step (4). This flexibility is not possible if a conventional recovery boiler is deployed as the
output is in smelt form that has to be converted to green liquor. Hence steps (40 and (5) are mandatory in the case of
recovery boilers.
Figure 11: Low Temperature Incinerator for Combusting Black Liquor and Recovering Inorganics.

Traditionally, lime kilns have been used for Step (5) - Lime Calcining in wood pulp mills. The operation of the lime
kilns in non-wood pulp mills is no different. The lime mud from non-wood pulp mills tends to have more silica in
them which can increase the ring formation in the kiln. There is another alternative to lime kiln, a technology
predominantly used in the mining industry for calcining limestone. This technology was introduced by Dorr Oliver
[5] in 1960’s and is currently used only at one pulp mill in the United States. However, this technology holds great
promise for non-wood pulp mills as it is not impacted by silica in the lime mud. Furthermore, this system allows
other fuels to be introduced and is more economical compared to lime kiln (see Table 4). This technology addresses
capacities as low as 30-50 TPD of lime production and competes very favorably with lime kiln at larger capacities.

Table 4:  A comparison of lime kiln with fluidized bed calciners for reburning lime mud in the recovery cycle 

   
Lime Kilns  Fluidized bed Calciners 
Horizontal layout   Vertical and compact footprint 
Operating temperature – 900‐1100 C    Operating temperature – 900‐1100 C   
Requires maintaining temperature profile  No temperature profile is needed 
 
Fuel: Furnace Oil, Natural Gas, PetCoke  Multi‐fuel: Furnace Oil, PetCoke, Low ash Coal and 
other fuels. 
150‐170 liters of Furnace Oil per ton of lime 120‐130 liters of furnace oil per ton of lime 
Lime output in powder form  Lime output in pellet form which is grit free and dust 
free 
Lime output purity: 88‐90%  Lime output Purity: 88‐90%
Ring formation enhanced due to silica in lime mud Silica in lime mud does not impact operation
Startup and shutdown process is longer compared to  Fluidized nature of the technology allows for quick 
Calciners  startup and shutdown 
Finally, we have surveyed few non-wood pulp mills to understand their operation. A summary of these findings is
provided in Table 5.

Table 5: Mill information from a survey of pulp mills that use non-wood fibers in their operations

   Mill A Mill B Mill C Mill D 

Unbleached pulp   Bagasse /  Wheat Straw /  Wheat Straw /  Bagasse/Wheat

Wood  Bagasse   Wood Line  Straw
Kappa number  9 to 12 12 to 15 11.5 to 13 11 to 14 

Viscosity  16‐20 17 – 19 17 ‐ 20 16 – 20 

Black liquor solids, % solids  120gpl 10.5‐11 % 9‐11 % 10% 

Cooking temperature  160‐165 165‐175 170‐175 170‐175 

Cooking pressure  6 to 7 bar 7 bar 6.5 to 7.5 bar 6.5 to 7 bar 

Pulping equipment       

Stationary digester  No No No No 

Continuous digester  Yes Yes Yes Yes 

Horizontal CD  Horizontal CD  Horizontal CD  Horizontal CD 
Pulping chemicals  White liquor  White liquor  NaOH NaOH 
(NaOH +  (NaOH + Na2S)  
Na2S)  
Dosage of Pulping Chemical  275 to 300kg  350 kg/MT BD  300 to 350  320 kg/MT BD 
% weight /weight of fiber  as Na2O per  bleached pulp  kg/MT BD  bleached pulp 
MT ton of  bleached pulp 
unbleached 
pulp  
SCREENING       

Knotters  Pressure  Yes Yes Yes 

Knotter 
Primary screen  Yes Yes Yes Yes 

Secondary screen  Yes Yes Yes Yes 

Tertiary screen  Yes Yes Yes Yes 

Vibratory screen  Yes Yes Yes Yes 

Screening losses  1 to 2% 1% 1 to 1.5%  Less than 1 %

WASHED PULP       

Soda loss (%)  10‐12 kg/ ton  10‐12 kg/MT  11 kg/MT pulp 10‐12 kg/MT 

of pulp  pulp  pulp 
Number of stages of washing  4  4 4 4 

Decker present  Yes Yes Yes Yes 

BLEACHED PULP  D0‐EoP‐D1 C‐E‐P C‐E‐P D0‐EoP‐D1  

Brightness  86 to 88 deg  84‐85 deg ISO 85‐86 deg ISO 85 deg ISO 

ISO 
Whiteness      75‐77 deg ISO 74‐76 deg ISO 75‐76 deg ISO

Yellowness  4  4 to 5 4‐6 5‐6 

Viscosity  10 to 11 9 to 10 9.5 to 11 10.5 to 11.5 

Ash, %  1% Less than 1 % 1 ‐1.1 % 1% 

Deg SR  300CSF 18‐20 20‐22 20‐21 

Tear  60‐65 50 50 48‐50 

Breaking length  6000 5500 5500 ‐ 6000 5000‐5500 

pH  5.4 7.5‐7.6 7.6 7.4‐7.6 

Fines fraction (200 mesh)  30% 20% 25% 21% 

Residual chlorine, ppm / %  10 to 20ppm Less than 10  10 ‐ 15 ppm 10 ‐ 13 ppm 

ppm 
3.2 Molding industry

Egg cartons or food containers are example of molds from pulp and paper products. The drive for sustainability has
led to several fast food corporations to switch to biodegradable containers made from non-wood fibers like bagasse.
The cost is a key factor in this industry. However, the demand and sustainability objective has led to greater
adoption of non-wood pulp. One of the key aspects of the pulp, other than appearance, is drainage characteristics.
Non-wood fibers typically suffer from drainage issues in comparison to wood pulp. For this reason, the refining
process prior to any molding operation becomes critical. Despite the increase in demand, the amount of pulp
required is less than 50 tons per day for these units. So traditional non-wood pulp mills are either selling excess
pulp to these molding units, or in some cases deploying their own molding units. Unlike paper products that are
sold to businesses for further conversion, these molded products tend be the final finished products.

3.3 Particle board

The particle board industry has used non-wood fibers in their furnish. These fibers need to be dried to moisture
levels below 5-10%. One of the issues that these units run into is the formation of silica clunkers or glass when the
fibers are dried in a rotary drum type system. To avoid these glass clunkers, the fibers need to be washed to remove
the silica. For this, a wet washing system similar to one mentioned in in section 2.2 is necessary. Fibers free of
silica will drive the usage of higher percentage of non-wood fibers in this industry.

3.4 Ethanol and biochemicals

Cellulosic (2-G ethanol) industry or the concept of biorefinery is becoming more viable [6,7,8,9] as these
technologies mature and new laws like RFS-2 promote cellulosic biofuels.

Figure 12: Sample Cellulosic Ethanol Production Process

Several technologies that use a range of chemicals to pretreat the fiber to enable the separation of the cellulose and
lignin are available. One such process is shown in Figure 12. The pretreatment and process preceding it is very
similar to the pulping process. However, the material used in the construction of the equipment may vary depending
on the reacting chemicals used in the system.

Similar processes are used for producing C5 and C6 sugars or producing lignin. There is growing interest in the
extraction of sugars for purposes other than producing ethanol. The lignin separated from the sugars offers new
pharmaceutical pathways to new products. These technologies offer additional revenue streams for non-wood fiber
processes. The increasing focus on sustainability and move away from fossil fuels will allow these technologies to
become more attractive and move to the forefront.
4. PURPOSE

In this section, we will explore the purpose or economics of using non-wood fibers to produce a variety of products.
We will focus on the pulping of non-wood fibers for paper or molded products, but also address the economics of
2G ethanol and other biochemicals.

4.1 Non-wood pulp for paper products

Figure 13: Typical Process Flow for a Wheat Straw-based Bleached Market Pulp Mill

To understand the economics of a non-wood fiber pulp mill, let us take an example of a hypothetical scenario of a
bleached pulp mill that uses open chemical recovery and produces 200 tons per day from wheat straw. Figure 13
shows a typical set of operations in a bleached pulp mill that produces market pulp. The mass balance of a 200 TPD
bleached wheat straw pulp mill is shown in Figure 14.
Figure 14: Mass Balance of Wheat Straw Pulp Mill Producing 200 tons of Bleached Pulp Per Day

In the next few tables, we look at rough production costs of the bleached wheat straw pulp in a closed and open
chemical recovery system (see Figures 1 and 2). The cost figures in Table 6 are hybrid global costing that speak to
the viability of such a pulp mill. It is critical to note that actual production costs are dictated by the location of the
pulp mill, feedstock availability and cost, labor and chemical costs in that region. We are not addressing these
aspects here.

Table 6: Production cost for Bleached Wheat straw pulp for a 200 TPD plant

COST FIGURES3  Open Chemical Recovery Closed Chemical Recovery 

$/ton of pulp  $/ton of pulp 
Fiber cost  $ 194 $ 194
Net chemicals cost1  $ 216 $ 136
Maintenance, other  $   61 $   61
chemicals 
Labor  $ 100 $ 100
2 
Steam & electricity $   (9) $   (9)
Pulp production cost  $ 561 $ 482
1–
Cooking and bleaching chemicals cost less the soda ash sale credits in the case of open chemical recovery cycle.
2
- Net excess electricity credits after considering natural gas fuel, boiler and turbine operational costs.
3 – This cost varies based on location, raw material availability, and labor costs in the region.
Table 7: Comparison of annual financial contribution between open and closed chemical recovery mills as a
function of market pulp price

Selling  Open chemical  Open chemical  Closed chemical recovery  Closed chemical 

price/ton  recovery   recovery   pulp production cost/ton  recovery  
pulp production  margin per annum  margin per annum
cost/ton 
 $    600    $ 561    $   2,719,152  $ 482  $                8,263,670 
 $    700   $ 561   $   9,719,152  $ 482  $              15,263,670 
 $    800    $ 561   $ 16,719,152 $ 482  $              22,263,670 
 $    900    $ 561   $ 23,719,152 $ 482  $              29,263,670 

The above exercise shows that even for a small pulp mill of 200 TPD, the financial returns may justify the project
given that BHKP prices are trending in the range of $900-1000 per ton in 2018-2019 [10]. Although non-wood
pulp for paper products will not replace wood pulp, it provides a nice supplement for paper producers to introduce a
sustainable raw material that is derived from agricultural residue into their furnish mix. The marketing aspect of
such pulps has been the focus of several personal care companies like Kimberly Clark [11].

4.2 Non-wood pulp for molded products

These products use unbleached or bleached market pulp to produce food trays and containers. The cost of these
items is predominantly the pulp cost in addition to the molding and drying cost. The most important characteristic
for molded products is freeness which determines the strength and integrity of the final products. The molded
products retail as pieces. However, to understand the value chain, we have looked at the price in terms of final
weight. It is roughly $1800-2500/ton while production costs are around $900-1000/ton. For molded operations that
purchase pulp, the per ton cost is much higher as they buy very low quantities (10,000-30,000 tons per year).
Nevertheless, these products provide good margins and provide additional revenue stream for non-wood pulp mills.
It is critical to note that these products are sold in units and not by weight, and the number of SKU’s be limited.

4.3 Cellulosic ethanol from non-wood fibers

A rough production cost model is provided in Figure 15, not necessarily to calculate the cost of product but to
provide an understanding of where the costs lie. Raw materials and enzymes account for the major portion of the
cost with yield playing a critical role in the viability of these products. The renewable credits offered in the US
makes cellulosic ethanol viable even with low gas prices.
Figure 15: Renewable Fuel Standard Volume by Year set by EPA [11]

Figure 16: A Rough Estimate of Cellulosic Ethanol Production Cost Based on Hybrid Numbers of Several
Technologies
https://afdc.energy.gov/fuels/prices.html

Figure 17: Final Volume Requirements issued by EPA for 2017-2020

Other Biochemicals like C5, C6 and lignin can be extracted from non-wood fibers using a process similar to one
shown in Figure 16. The first three process steps – fiber preparation, washing and pretreatment, appear to be
common amongst them. The steps following the pretreatment could vary quite dramatically. For example, the
extraction of C5 and C6 sugars is typically done after pretreatment using enzyme hydrolysis. Lignin extraction, on
the other hand, focuses on separating the components into cellulose/hemicellulose and lignin streams. C5 and C6
sugars can be profitable if they are sold as precursors to high value products. Similarly, lignin is used in
biopharmaceutical products and could demand higher prices.

5 CONCLUSIONS

In this paper, we have reviewed the products, process and purpose of non-wood fibers as their usage increases
around the world. The North American market, replete with feedstock like wheat straw, sugarcane bagasse, sweet
sorghum, miscanthus and other agricultural materials, is poised to kick start new processing plants that address the
sustainability needs of the paper products - whether it is paper and board or molded products. There are several
projects in the pipeline looking to use non-wood fibers for pulping, cellulosic ethanol, and molded products.

As these industries go through rowing pains, it is best to look at other countries in Asia and S. America, who out of
necessity had to use non-wood fibers for their needs. The key assertion of this paper is that technologies utilizing
non-wood fibers are well beyond the pilot testing phases and have several years of commercial operation under their
belt - especially in the case of pulp mills for paper products like printing writing, container board and tissue. The
new technologies that use non-wood fibers for production of biofuels or biochemicals have also moved beyond the
pilot stage and are being deployed on commercial scale. The non-wood fibers industry will move out of the shadows
of traditional wood pulping and provide products that are uniquely produced from their feedstock - whether it is
paper, tissue, board, molded containers, biofuels or biochemicals.
[1] “How Papyrus was made” - https://www.ancient.eu/Egyptian_Papyrus/

[2] Part of this paper was presented as Fiber Property Comparison at the TAPPI 1998 North American
Nonwood Symposium at Atlanta, GA, February 17~18 Co-sponsored by USDA Forest Service and USDA
Bio based Products Coordination Council.
[3] Green, F.B. K, US Patent 2,953,202, Continuous Digester, 1960

[4] Darwesh, H. R. / Sharma, M. / Khan, P. A. An Experience With Pandia Continuous Digester on

Agricultural Residues, IPPTA ; 10 , 3 ; 67-74, IPPTA, 1998
[5] Dorr Oliver’s Fluosolids Technology

[6] Sánchez ÓJ, Cardona CA. Trends in biotechnological production of fuel ethanol from different feedstocks.
Bioresources Technology 2008;99:5270–95.

[7] Achinivu EC, Howard RM, Li G, Gracz H, Henderson WA. Lignin extraction from biomass with protic
ionic liquids. Green Chem. 2014;16:1114–9.

[8] Bozell JJ, Petersen GR. Technology development for the production of biobased products from biorefinery
carbohydrates—the US Department of Energy’s “Top 10” revisited. Green Chem. 2010;12:539–54.

[9] Clark JH. Green chemistry for the second generation biorefinery—sustainable chemical manufacturing
based on biomass. J Chem Technol Biotechnology. 2007;82:603–9.

[10] U.S Department of Energy Administration Today in Energy report, December 2018 “EPA finalizes
Renewable Fuel Standard for 2019, reflecting cellulosic biofuel shortfalls”

[10] 2018 Corporate Presentation of Fibria, page 14 showing the trend of BHKP pulp in 2017

[11] 2015 Kimberly Clark press release on their plan to start incorporating rapidly renewable plant-based fiber,
such as wheat straw and bamboo, into Kleenex and Scott brand towel and tissue products

[12] Renewable Fuel Standard volume by year set by RFS volume requirements by EPA
Gateway to
the Future

Review of the Economics, Technologies 
and Products in the Non‐wood Sector 

Dr. Karthik Raghavan
Sim Agro Inc
Offices: Mason, OH and Chennai, India
Gateway to
the Future
Outline
Products

Non‐Wood  Process
Fibers
Purpose
Gateway to
the Future Fiber
Cellulose Lignin Pentosan Ash Silica
Softwood 40‐45 26‐34 7‐14 <1 ‐
Hardwood 38‐49 23‐30 19‐26 <1 ‐

Non‐Wood 
Sugarcane  32‐48 19‐24 27‐32 1.5‐5 0.7‐3.5
Bagasse
Wheat Straw 29‐51 16‐21 26‐32 4.5‐9 3‐7
Rice Straw 28‐48 12‐16 23‐28 15‐20 9‐14
Bamboo 26‐43 21‐31 15‐26 1.7‐5 0.7
Kenaf ‐ Bast 37‐49 15‐21 18‐24 2‐4 ‐
Hemp – Bast 57‐77 9‐13 14‐17 0.8 ‐
Gateway to Fiber  Fiber  Pulp  Yield Years to 
the Future Length ton/year/ha ton/year/ha grow
(mm)
Softwood ~2.0 1.5 0.7 47% 10
Fast growing Softwood 2‐2.3 8.6 4 47% 7

Temperate softwood ~2.3 3.4 1.7 50% 6

Fast growing hardwood 1.5‐1.7 15 7.4 49% 4

Wheat Straw 1‐1.5 4 1.9 48% 1

Rice Straw 0.5‐1.4 3 1.2 40% 0.5

Bagasse 1‐1.7 9 4.2 47% 1

Bamboo 2.7‐4 4 1.6 40% 1
Kenaf 1.5‐2.5 15 6.5 43% 1
Hemp 1.5‐2.5 15 6.7 45% 1
Elephant Grass 1.2 12 5.7 48% 1
Ref ‐ Part of this paper was presented as Fiber Property 
Comparison at the TAPPI 1998 North American Nonwood
Symposium at Atlanta, GA, February 17~18 Co‐sponsored by 
USDA Forest Service and USDA Bio based Products Coordination 
Council.
Gateway to
the Future
PROUCTS
• Market Pulp
• Paper
• Printing and writing
• Packaging
• Tissue and Towels
• Particle board
• Molding
• Food contact
• Dunnage ( Packaging insides)
• Ethanol
• Lignin
Gateway to
the Future
PROCESS
• Pulp
• Batch – chemical pulping
• Continuous – Chemical Pulping
• Steam Explosion – Using only steam – Pulp may be only 
suitable for Molding or other purposes
• Ethanol
• Acid Hydrolysis followed by enzymes
• Steam Hydrolysis followed by enzymes
• Lignin Extraction
• Part of the pulping process
• Part of the cellulosic ethanol process
Gateway to
the Future Bleached Pulp Process with 
Closed Recovery Cycle
Fiber  ODL &  Bleached
Wet washing Pulping Screening Washing Pulp
Preparation Bleaching
Black Liquor
White Liquor
Evaporators
Lime

Lime  Green Liquor BL  Steam and

Recaustizing
Regeneration Lime Incineration Power
Mud
Gateway to
the Future Bleached Pulp Process with 
Open Recovery Cycle
Fiber  ODL &  Bleached
Wet washing Pulping Screening Washing Pulp
Preparation Bleaching
Black Liquor

Caustic
Evaporators
Optional
White Liquor

Lime  Green
BL 
Soda
Recaustizing Liquor Incineration
Regeneration Lime Ash
Mud

Sold to Market
Gateway to
the Future Unbleached Pulp Process with 
No Recovery Cycle
Fiber  Unbleached
Wet washing Pulping Screening Washing Pulp
Preparation

Cooking Chemicals Black Liquor

to Produce
Bio-Products
Gateway to
the Future Cellulosic ethanol

Fiber  Enzymatic  Lignin  Fermentation  

Wet washing Pretreatment Ethanol
Preparation Hydrolysis Separation & Distillation

Reacting Chemicals Lignin

and Steam
Gateway to
the Future
Fiber Preparation
• Non wood fiber preparation Process include
• Depithers or dedusters
• Trommel screens
• Wet Washing Systems
• Water recirculation systems
Gateway to
the Future Depithing/ 
Dedusting
Gateway to
the Future
Depither/Deduster
Gateway to
the Future Fiber Washing

1.5%
Agitation
consistency

Dilution
PULPER
Residence Time

Separation
Junk Traps
valves
Gateway to
the Future
2.5‐3% 
Twin Turbo Washer
consistency
Fiber Washing
Agitation

Dilution

Residence Time

Separation
Junk Traps
valves
Gateway to
the Future
Wet Washing Systems

Key Parameters

Water to Fiber Ratio
Residence time
Turbulence
Settling time
Gateway to
the Future
Twin Turbo Washer and AquaSeparator
Gateway to
the Future SCREW PRESS

Squeezing to 
remove water 
along with 
washed “dirt”
Gateway to
the Future
Continuous Cooking
Vertical Horizontal  Cooking
Feed Chemicals Steam
Non‐wood fibers

Screw feeder
Plug Screw Feeder

< 500‐550 TPD
> 550 TPD
Gateway to
the Future

Approach flow
system

Steam and 
Chemical 
Addition

Cooking Zone
Gateway to
the Future
Chemical Recovery
1 BL 
Evaporation 
and 
2 Incineration

3 Green 
Cooking Liquor 
Production

4 5
Recaustizing  Lime mud 
White liquor 
with Lime  Calcining
Clarification
Addition
Gateway to
the Future
Black Liquor Incineration
Recovery Low Temperature Incinerator
Boiler
Black Liquor

Soda Ash 
Smelt Pellets
Gateway to
the Future
Lime Recovery

Lime Kiln Lime Calciner
Gateway to
the Future PURPOSE

Economics
Non‐wood Process and Technologies
Gateway to
the Future Mass Balance for 200 ADTPD Bleached Pulp
2NaClO3 + H2SO4 ‐‐> 2ClO2 + Na2SO4
226/ 45% 
532/ (1‐6% 
Pulping  Oxygen = 37.5 kg /ADMT of pulp
Dedusting losses) 
Yield/ (1‐6%  200 ATPD x 90%(BD/AD)/ (1‐ ClO2 = 30 kg /ADMT of pulp
/(1‐ 12% 
Wet Washing  20% Screening, Washing &  Peroxide = 17.6 kg /ADMT of pulp
moisture=
losses) = Bleaching losses) = Caustic = 81.25 kg /ADMT of pulp
644 TPD of 532 BDTPD Fiber 226 BDTPD 200 ATPD
Wheat Straw
Fiber  ODL &  Bleached
Wet washing Pulping Screening Washing Pulp
Preparation Bleaching
Black Liquor
266/ 45% 
Pulping Yield % 
Caustic
x 14% Dosage = 70 TPD Evaporators

BL 
Soda
Ash
Incineration

Sold to Market
70 TPD
Gateway to
the Future
Margin Contribution for a 200 TPD Pulp mill
Selling  Open chemical  Open chemical recovery  Closed  Closed chemical recovery 
price/ton recovery  margin per annum chemical  margin per annum
pulp production  recovery pulp 
cost/ton production 
cost/ton
$    600  $ 561  $   2,719,152  $ 482  $  8,263,670 

$    700  $ 561 $   9,719,152  $ 482 $ 15,263,670 

$    800  $ 561 $ 16,719,152  $ 482 $ 22,263,670 

$    900  $ 561 $ 23,719,152  $ 482 $  29,263,670 

Gateway to
the Future
Conclusions
• Non‐wood fiber can be an important sustainable source for several 
products
• Products, Processes and Purpose (Economics) for this sector seem to 
be on the rise 
• Compliment for Wood pulping in the pulp and paper industry
• New areas
• Molding
• Biofuels and Biochemicals
• Nanotubules