Abstract: A new industrial product, namely 1,2,3,4,4a,9a-hexahydro-9,10-anthracene-dione, is disclosed together with a process for its preparation and its use in conventional alkali metal hydroxide cook or Kraft cook processes for the delignification of lignocellulose materials.

Abstract: A process is provided for preparing groundwood pulp from debarked pulpwood logs, which comprises grinding the logs under a superatmospheric pressure of a gas selected from the group consisting of steam, air, and steam and air, while continuously supplying thereto water comprising spent bleaching liquor at a temperature of at least 70.degree. C. and forming a pulp suspension in the resulting aqueous liquor; centrifugally separating steam from the pulp suspension and using the separated hot steam to heat spent bleaching liquor supplied for the grinding; thickening the pulp suspension to a concentration within the range from about 5 to about 40% and supplying water separated therefrom to the grinding; diluting the pulp suspension to a concentration within the range from about 0.5 to about 4.

Abstract: A novel process for producing pulp is disclosed, by which cooking of lignocellulosic materials can be carried out advantageously in the presence of a novel cooking aid added to the cooking liquor. Representative examples of such cooking aids include maleic acid, sodium maleate, potassium maleate, maleic anhydride, fumaric acid, sodium fumarate, potassium fumarate, mesaconic acid and sodium mesaconate. Both cooking yield and quality of pulp are substantially improved. The cooking aids can be used in combination with dihydroxydihydroanthracene.

Abstract: Sodium polysulphide is formed by reacting sodium sulphide and sodium sulphur-oxygen salts in the presence of carbon and oxygen. The invention is particularly applicable to reacting recovery furnace smelt from a polysulphide pulping process to form a mixture of sodium polysulphide and sodium carbonate which is substantially free from sodium sulphur-oxygen salts, so that dead-load sulphidity is substantially eliminated from the pulping liquor.

Abstract: Process and apparatus are provided for the preparation of improved high-yield cellulose pulps, such as semichemical, chemimechanical, thermomechanical, and mechanical pulps, which comprises mechanically defibrating a mixture of particulate lignocellulosic materials which have been partially pulped and softened to different extents. Part of the raw lignocellulosic material is particulate form is washed, moistened with steam, impregnated with pulping chemicals and pulped to a yield of from about 65 to about 92%. Another part is treated in similar manner but either not pulped at all or, if pulped, pulped to a lesser extent. The two parts are mixed without intermediate washing, after which the mixture is subjected to a vapor phase pulping by heating to a temperature within the range from about 90 to about 200.degree. C. under pressure to obtain softening of the lignin, and delignification, after which the resulting product is mechanically defibrated to form cellulose pulp.

Abstract: A process for delignifying lignocellulosic pulps, which comprises the steps of (a) impregnating a lignocellulosic pulp slurry with a water-soluble manganous salt having a manganous ion concentration of from about 1% to about 10%, by weight of oven-dried pulp; (b) mixing the impregnated pulp slurry with an amount of alkali equal to the stoichiometric quantity of alkali required to precipitate the soluble manganous ion as insoluble manganous hydroxide; (c) aerating the pulp slurry with an oxygen-containing gas without further addition of alkali and in the absence of alkali for a period of time sufficient to oxidize substantially all of the manganous hydroxide to manganic hydroxide; (d) treating the pulp slurry with sufficient sulfuric acid to lower the slurry pH to at least about 3, thus releasing soluble manganic ions to oxidize the pulp lignins; (e) separating the effluent containing manganous ions from the pulp slurry with a non-alkaline wash; and then (f) extracting the oxidized lignins from the pulp slurry

Abstract: Significant yield increases are obtained in pulping of wood or other lignocellulosic materials with polysulfide liquors through particular control of the times and temperatures of treatment. The lignocellulosic material is treated with a polysulfide liquor at less than 100.degree. C for about 45 minutes, the liquor is removed for reuse, the impregnated lignocellulosic material is quickly steamed to pulping temperature and is pulped at a low temperature of about 160.degree. C for a short period of time.

Abstract: A process for pulping hardwood to produce cellulose pulp in good yield and of high quality, with a low requirement for causticized pulping liquor, which comprises in a first pulping stage pulping the hardwood in an alkaline pulping liquor containing sodium sulfide at a pH of about 10.5 to about 13 and at a temperature within the range from about 110.degree. to about 170.degree. C while generating hydrogen sulfide in situ by reaction of sodium sulfide with organic acids liberated in the pulping; and then in a second pulping stage, following directly after the first pulping stage, continuing the pulping at a pH higher than said first stage pH, within the range of about 12.5 to about 14 and at a temperature higher than said first stage temperature within the range from about 145.degree. to about 190.degree. C, in the presence of added alkaline pulping liquor comprising sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide until cellulose pulp is produced.

Abstract: A process is provided for reducing the requirement of fresh chemicals without increasing emissions in the pulping of cellulosic material with alkaline sodium- and sulfur-containing-sulfate pulping liquor, which comprises evaporating and burning spent sulfate pulping liquor to obtain a smelt; dissolving the resulting smelt in water to form a sodium-sulfide-sodium carbonate-containing solution green liquor; regenerating pulping white liquor containing sodium sulfide and sodium hydroxide from said green liquor; and recirculating said regenerated white liquor to the pulping stage; oxidizing at least one of the resulting green and white liquors to form sodium thiosulfate therein; reacting the oxidized liquor with residual acid liquor, from the manufacture of chlorine dioxide by reduction of an alkali metal chlorate solution, to convert thiosulfate to sulfur dioxide and sulfur; removing and recovering formed sulfur dioxide; and returning the residual liquor, freed from sulfur dioxide, to the pulping.

Abstract: 70 To 85% yield semichemical wood pulping may be prepared for mechanical defibration by cooking comminuted hardwood in a continuous digestion vessel with an alkaline cooking solution wherein 50 to 100% as sodium oxide thereof is sodium carbonate. The solution may be formulated from unmodified kraft recovery process green liquor or, if a sulfur free cooking process is desired, the solution may be formulated from soda ash.

Abstract: A pulping process which includes the steps of oxidizing vegetable materials with an oxidizing chemical selected from the group comprising Cl.sub.2, Cl.sub.2 O,ClO.sub. 2, Mg(ClO).sub.2, Mg(ClO.sub.2).sub.2 Mg.(ClO.sub. 3).sub.2 and mixtures thereof, extracting the oxidized materials with Mg(OH).sub.2 thereby to delignify and bleach the materials and treating the waste liquor from the oxidation, extraction and washing steps by combustion or thermal decomposition thereby to regenerate the chemicals necessary for the oxidation and extraction steps. The process of the invention produces semi-bleached or completely bleached pulp of high strength with high yield while eliminating the problem relating to environmental pollution.

Abstract: A cyclic process is provided for utilizing sodium values in sulfate cellulose pulping, in which sodium losses normally are less than sodium additions to the process, thus tending to build up a sodium surplus, and which includes the steps of pulping cellulosic material with a pulping liquor comprising sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide, separating spent pulping black liquor, evaporating and combusting the black liquor to recover sodium values as sodium sulfide and sodium carbonate, dissolving the sulfide and sodium carbonate in water to form green liquor, causticizing the green liquor with calcium hydroxide to form white liquor, and recycling white liquor to form pulping liquor, the improvement comprising maintaining sodium balance at least in part by removing sodium values as white liquor, oxidizing the white liquor with air at an elevated temperature, and utilizing the oxidized white liquor as a source of alkali in another cellulose pulp treatment process.

Abstract: Delignification of lignocellulosic material, such as wood, straw or bagasse, by treatment with an alkaline pulping liquor containing a diketo hydroanthracene selected from the unsubstituted and lower alkyl substituted Diels Alder adducts of benzoquinone and naphthoquinone.

Abstract: Sodium polysulfide is prepared by the oxidation of sodium sulfide or sodium hydrosulfide, and by using new procedures and systems described, the production of thiosulfate can be markedly reduced and, in some cases, eliminated. The oxidant is air, oxygen or oxygen in mixture with other gases, the reductant is aqueous sodium sulfide or sodium hydrosulfide and the reaction is carried out with both reactants in non-flooded contact with a solid catalyst material, of which a typical example is a particulate carbon treated with polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). The reaction is typically conducted at atmospheric pressure and without the application of heat, with the oxidant and the reductant being in interfacial contact with each other, but only, insofar as possible, at sites where both are simultaneously in contact with a catalyst which is prevented from being flooded by either the oxidant or reductant. Sodium polysulfide and sodium hydroxide are produced, and are useable in treatment of lignocellulose materials.

Abstract: Delignification of lignocellulosic material by treatment with an alkaline liquor in the presence of a cyclic keto compound such as anthraquinone.

Abstract: A three stage process for pulping lignocellulosic materials, preferably softwood chips comprising: as a first stage treating the lignocellulosic material with a cyanide ion-containing solution at a pH between 7 and 12 to form cyanohydrin groups; in a second stage digesting the thus treated lignocellulosic material with an alkali metal pulping solution containing hydroxyl ions; and as a third stage treating the thus digested lignocellulosic material with 1% to 12% by weight sodium hydroxide, as sodium oxide based on o.d. pulp from the alkaline pulping stage, in the presence of an excess of oxygen.

Abstract: The invention relates to a continuous method of making cellulosic pulp from wood chips within a range of yield from 65 to 90 per cent by digestion with a digestion liquor containing Na.sub.2 S and Na.sub.2 CO.sub.3. The digestion is effected at temperatures between 150.degree. and 190.degree.C and malodorous sulfur compounds are removed from the pulp, the liquor and the vapors prior to their withdrawal from the digesting process. In order to eliminate their capacity of emitting obnoxious odors, the sulfur compounds are oxidized by addition of molecular oxygen to the digester prior to discharge of pulp and spent liquor from the digester after which the spent liquor is removed from the digested pulp, concentrated and burned for renewed use in preparation of fresh digesting liquor.