Abstract: Compositions and a method are disclosed for minimizing brightness reversion of chromophore-containing wood pulps, especially low-cellulose wood pulps, such as groundwood and thermomechanical pulps, which have been reductively bleached or bleached with hydrogen peroxide. Ascorbic acid and palmitoyl ascorbate are particularly effective for preventing such reversion at low levels.

Abstract: A method is described for increasing the brightness of reductively bleached high yield pulps, comprising bleaching the pulps with a reductive bleaching solution under anaerobic conditions and maintaining the bleached pulps under anaerobic conditions during all handling steps subsequent to bleaching, including paper formation, wet pressing, and drying of the paper formed therefrom. The bleached paper has higher brightness than the same paper produced under aerobic conditions, and the bleaching and handling-derived portion of this higher brightness is retained after storage of the finished paper.