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ABSTRACT
Unfavorable changes in global environmental conditions caused in no small part by human activities has necessitated a push for alternative sources of conventional human demands. One of such detrimental human needs has been the use of vast expanse of forest trees in the production of paper. An alternative developed in this study is the use of groundnut shells rich in cellulosic fibre as an ideal exploratory avenue for use in paper production through chemical pulping. In this study, the efficiency of chemical pulping in liberating fibres through the dissolution of lignin embedded within the cellulose necessitated the choice of the pulping technique as against mechanical pulping with its high energy demand and greenhouse gas effluent emissions. It is imperative that optimum conditions be identified in the chemical treatment process so as to maximize yield while ensuring minimal energy and chemical consumption. The aim is to present chemical pulping as an economically viable alternative with reduced production cost as against mechanical pulping which has less costs. Three independent variables (temperature, cooking time and sulphidity) were varied and their effects on Pulp yield and kappa number were analyzed using the Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The optimum conditions obtained were 88oC, 229 mins and 7 wt %. A pulp yield of 69.6345 wt% with a kappa number of 7 were obtained at optimum conditions. Results show that the investigated parameters have a statistically significant effect on the production of pulp. The increased cooking time ensured there was sufficient contact and impregnation of the groundnut shell with the pulping chemicals ensuring a total dissolution of the lignin. Lower temperatures restricted the hydrolytic peeling effect of carbohydrates thereby increasing pulp yield due to higher cellulose retention. Therefore, the pulp obtained is well cooked with an appreciably higher quality with low bleach consumption.
