Performance of Fixing Agents in Controlling Micro-Stickies in Recycled Newsprint Pulp

The microstickes control effects of some fixing agents, including an inorganic PAC, an organic polyamine (PA) and polydiallydimethyl ammonium chloride (Pdadmac), and a high cationic starch (HCS), were investigated, together with their effects on wet end performances and physical properties of handsheets. Despite that the HCS and Pdadmac had lower cationic charge densities than the PA and PAC (the HCS being even lower), they gave higher zeta potentials to fibers, and lower turbidities, cationic demands and residual COD contents to the pulp liquid phases than the PA and PAC did. In all cases, the HCS showed even better effects than the Pdadmac. In addition, drainage speed was also much higher by the HCS treatments although paper formation was worsened. All the phenomena showed that the HCS can fix more dissolved and colloidal substances to cellulose fibers, indicating that the HCS functioned mainly with flocculation and even hydrogen bonding mechanisms. Data on optical properties further indicated that the HCS interacted preferentially with colloidal substances, since it fixed more 'dirty' microstickes to fibers which decreased more sheet brightness while increasing more sheet opacity (with both higher light absorption and scattering coefficients). Interestingly, the organic fixing agents did not decrease tensile, tearing, and folding strengths of paper sheets made from 100% recycled newsprint pulp, except when they were dosed in high amounts. On the contrary, the inorganic PAC had more serious negative effects on the strength properties, especially on folding endurance. The study suggested that proper use of the HCS can lead to better microstickies control effects than traditional agents and methods.