PHYSICAL, CHEMICAL AND PULPING CHARACTERISTICS OF ONCOCALAMUS WRIGHTIANA IN RELATION TO PAPER-MAKING.

The preliminary physical, chemical and pulping characteristics of Oncocalamus wrightiana- a non-woody plant was investigated for its potential as a source of paper-making raw material using standard methods. The result shows that the stem has an average fibre length of 3.45±0.07 mm. This clearly shows that the plant belongs to the long fibre group. The ash content was 1.14 % and acid insoluble lignin was 30.11 % which is typical of non-woody plants. In the kraft pulping process the maximum tensile strength of 78.45 Nm/g was attained at 180 °C using chemical concentration of 40 g/dm³; the highest tear index of 12.55 mNm²/g was attained at a chemical concentration of 60 g/dm³, while the highest burst strength of 6.06 kg/cm² was attained at a chemical concentration of 40 g/dm³. In the soda process, the grammage, tear, burst and tensile strength properties decreased with increase in temperature and concentration of chemical. The highest tensile strength of 62.22 Nm/g was attained at a temperature of 160 °C, and a chemical concentration of 40 g/dm³, while the highest tear strength of 9.22 mNm²/g was attained at a chemical concentration of 50 g/dm³. These values were less than the corresponding values in kraft process. The results have demonstrated the potential of Oncocalamus wrightiana as a source of long fibre for the pulp and paper industry as compared to its current usage in cane chair production.