COMPARATIVE STUDY BETWEEN THE CHEMI-THERMO MECHANICAL PULPING FROM EUCALYPTUS SPP., BAMBUSA VULGARIS AND DENDROCALAMUS ASPER

In this study, pulps of the species Bambusa vulgaris and Dendrocalamus asper were produced through the chemi-thermo mechanical pulping process, which had their morphological and mechanical properties compared with industrially produced Eucalyptus spp. pulp. The total yields of the pulping processes were 71.3 and 77.0% for the species Bambusa vulgaris and Dendrocalamus asper, respectively. The higher basic density presented by the biomass of the Dendrocalamus asper species can lead to a high productivity. Both bamboo species led to pulps with higher mechanical properties compared to industrial Eucalyptus spp. pulp. The pulp of Bambusa vulgaris stood out in terms of mechanical properties, reaching a higher level of mechanical properties with less energy spent on refining, being indicated for the production of papers for applications where high tensile index is required. Dendrocalamus asper pulp proved to be more suitable for applications, in which high liquid absorption capacity is required due to its high bulk.