Sustainability 2023 , 15 , 2850
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general, recycling and retreatment of paper impact sustainability, particularly the economy, environment, and society. Whilst the paper recycling rate can undoubtedly be further increased in most countries, the quality of wastepaper may eventually decrease as increasing numbers of marginal paper fractions are gathered for recycling. However, increasing the paper recycling rate requires the use of recycled fibers from high-quality paper. This is crucial since the mechanical and printing properties of the material deteriorate every time it is recycled owing to the limited number of recycling rounds [17–21]. These fibers are shortened and their swelling and flexibility properties deteriorate. Poor-quality wastepaper not only reduces the papermaking ability of pulp but is also associated with increased use of chemical additives and fillers, which produce large quantities of by-products, creating major environmental and economic challenges [22]. Moreover, poor-quality recycled fibers increase the content of injurious substances in paper [23–25]. In this context, systematic analysis of paper pulp is essential to provide a basis for further evaluation of the quality of wastepaper as a resource as well as to identify appropriate processing methods for ensuring that the resulting recycled pulp meets the expectations of papermakers and, ultimately, consumers. This is particularly applicable to sanitary papers, which must be not only strong but also absorbent and soft. In addition, consumers require a certain quality of whiteness and brightness. Thus, recyclable wastepaper can be segregated into various grades to facilitate the production of high-quality products. By dividing the recyclable paper waste according to its properties and comparing them with the characteristics of the desired final product, paper waste can be recycled more efficiently. In addition, a highly sorted paper stream facilitates the production of high-quality end products; saves processing chemicals, water, and energy; and reduces the amount of sludge and rejects generated during wastepaper processing. Removing contaminants from wastepaper, ensuring papermaking ability, and maintaining consistent quality whilst limiting the environmental footprint of products have become a major goal and challenge in the industry. These goals and challenges were explored by many studies on paper recycling at the turn of the last decade [26–30]. Previous research mainly focused on the develop- ment of technologies that enable the reuse of fibers from wastepaper, such as bleaching methods [31–35] of fibers and deinking technologies [36–39]. Publications on paper recy- cling peaked in 2000, which may have been dictated by the European declaration on paper recovery issued in that year [40]. During the next decade, publications continued to focus on fiber recovery issues [41–45]. In recent publications, the topic of recovery of biomateri- als and bio-refinery feedstock from wastepaper prevailed [46–49] since, considering the principles of circular economy, this is strategic for mitigating the ongoing climate change. However, the available literature lacks thorough analyses of the papermaking ability of specific types of wastepaper, along with the verification of the possibility of using them for the production of specific types of paper. All of this is more significant since, in practice, the quality and composition of wastepaper delivered to paper mills often differ from expectations, and the specific types of wastepaper do not meet the requirements in the respective standards. Therefore, in the present study, we determined the papermaking ability of a wide range of wastepaper processed in a selected paper mill and verified the possibility of using them for the production of high-quality sanitary paper. The research in the article contributes further to the methods of assessment of wastepaper for the paper production. 2. Materials and Methods 2.1. Materials The following materials were selected from the paper mill for research: • White wastepaper, including products of bleached pulps, scraps of wood-free paper, little printed, no glue, no waterproof paper, and no colored paper (ranked 3.04 ac- cording to the EN643 ‘List of European standard types of wastepaper’ [50]) (seven samples).
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