Haile et al. Bioresour. Bioprocess. (2021) 8:35 https://doi.org/10.1186/s40643-021-00385-3
Open Access
REVIEW Pulp and paper mill wastes: utilizations and prospects for high value-added biomaterials Adane Haile * , Gemeda Gebino Gelebo, Tamrat Tesfaye, Wassie Mengie, Million Ayele Mebrate, Amare Abuhay and Derseh Yilie Limeneh
Abstract A wide variety of biomass is available all around the world. Most of the biomass exists as a by-product from manu- facturing industries. Pulp and paper mills contribute to a higher amount of these biomasses mostly discarded in the landfills creating an environmental burden. Biomasses from other sources have been used to produce different kinds and grades of biomaterials such as those used in industrial and medical applications. The present review aims to investigate the availability of biomass from pulp and paper mills and show sustainable routes for the production of high value-added biomaterials. The study reveals that using conventional and integrated biorefinery technology the ample variety and quantity of waste generated from pulp and paper mills can be converted into wealth. As per the findings of the current review, it is shown that high-performance carbon fiber and bioplastic can be manufactured from black liquor of pulping waste; the cellulosic waste from sawdust and sludge can be utilized for the synthesis of CNC and regenerated fibers such as viscose rayon and acetate; the mineral-based pulping wastes and fly ash can be used for manufacturing of different kinds of biocomposites. The different biomaterials obtained from the pulp and paper mill biomass can be used for versatile applications including conventional, high performance, and smart mate- rials. Through customization and optimization of the conversion techniques and product manufacturing schemes, a variety of engineering materials can be obtained from pulp and paper mill wastes realizing the current global waste to wealth developmental approach. Keywords: Paper mill, Biorefinery, Pulping waste, Biomass, Biomaterials, High value-added
Introduction The demand and use of pulp and paper have marked the levels of civilization and development of many societies (Armstrong et al. 1998; Lwako et al. 2013). The pulp and paper mills mainly utilize wood sources for the produc- tion of pulp and paper. Though appropriate quantitative analysis of waste produced from pulp and paper mills has not been done yet; in general only a few percent of the wood sources are utilized for the actual pulp and paper production (Bajpai 2015b). The rest is discarded as solid
and liquid waste. Considering the developing coun- tries’ scenario both quantitative and qualitative analysis of biomass generated from the mills has not been done yet. Except for a few percent of wastepaper utilized in paper recycling the rest of the waste is left in the landfill or incinerated with no commercial significance; besides no satisfactory waste recycling scheme is implemented. Furthermore, in developing countries, the trend towards the conversion of the wastes into valuable materials is not practiced appreciably (Bajpai 2015d). Environmental sustainability is a priority issue as far as sustainable development of nations is progressive. It is also a global concern recently to get rid of the fac- tors that counteract environmental sustainability such
*Correspondence: adaneh77@gmail.com Biorefinery Research Centre, Ethiopian Institute of Textile and Fashion Technology, Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia
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