Alternative Fibers
Does the fiber for making paper have to come from trees?
What other fibers could be used for papermaking?
What would the advantages be to using these alternative fibers?
What are the potential environmental advantages of the more promising of these fiber sources?
Are there any projects that use these alternative fibers in making paper?
Does the fiber for making paper have to come from trees?
Historically, paper was made from a variety of plant fibers such as cotton and flax as well as from recycled materials such as rags and waste paper. Only after the growth of industrialization in the mid to late nineteenth century did virgin fiber from trees become the primary raw material for pulp and paper manufacturing. As this transition occurred in the United States, papermaking companies began to assimilate into the larger lumber and timber-products industry, eventually represented by a combined trade organization called the American Forest and Paper Association. Today, a massive pulp-and-paper industry is structured around the use of wood fiber. Modern integrated pulp-and-paper mills require capital investments in the range of $1 - $2 billion. Because their machinery is designed and calibrated to process this fiber source, it is difficult to shift the practices of the sector toward alternative fibers. [1]
What other fibers could be used for papermaking?
A number of other fibers could be used for making paper. These include agricultural residues such as wheat, barley, oat, rye, and rice straws or sugarcane bagasse; non-cereal straws such as red fescue or rye grasses; bamboo; cotton; flax; hemp; hesperaloe; and kenaf. In the past, some of these fibers were commonly used for papermaking, and still are used to some degree in other parts of the world. Globally, 9% of paper fiber comes from fibers other than wood; about 85% of this amount consists of non-wood papers made in China. [2]
Research carried out by U.S. Department of Agriculture and by the University of Arizona has identified two of these plant fibers as particularly suited to paper-making: kenaf and hesperaloe.[3] Other researchers have focused on the advantages of using agricultural residues, by-products of harvesting that are often burned in the field to dispose of the portion not needed for reconditioning the soil.[4]
What would the advantages be to using these alternative fibers?
First, the availability of alternative fibers could reduce the pressure to harvest trees for papermaking. Second, alternative fibers may be grown or collected after harvesting food crops in parts of the country where there are no forests, thereby helping to decentralize and diversity the pulp and paper industry and to create additional jobs for struggling rural economies. Third, some of these fibers may even offer environmental advantages.
However, as with all proposals for introducing new raw materials, it is important to be certain that there aren't hidden costs, especially once production reaches a commercial scale. Careful life-cycle analysis is needed to demonstrate that these alternative fibers would not cause unanticipated environmental damage, as has recently been shown to be the case with biofuels.[5]
What are the potential environmental advantages of the more promising of these fiber sources?
Three of the more promising alternative sources are offered by agricultural residues, hesperaloe, and kenaf.
Are there any projects that use these alternative fibers in making paper?
Several projects have used agricultural residues for papermaking. An early demonstration project was successfully carried out by a Canadian company named Arbokem, which manufactured a 50% wheat straw/50% post-consumer recycled fiber office printing paper that was test-marketed in the late 1990s. They have also worked on an agri-pulp based newsprint and are in the planning stages of a project in Mexico to produce agri-pulp pizza boxes. [8] More recently a collaboration among the non-profit environmental organization Markets Initiative, Canadian Geographic, the Alberta Research Council, and other groups led to the printing of the environmental issue of that magazine on wheat-straw based paper.[9]
Projects also are actively exploring the possibilities offered by hesperaloe and kenaf. Arbokem is currently involved in a demonstration project with Greenpeace Germany and a Finnish paper mill to produce paper from hesperaloe fiber that is being used in printing the organization’s quarterly newsletter.[10] Vision Paper, a company based in New Mexico, has produced kenaf-based papers for a number of years, but, because of the closing of small mills where the fiber was pulped, their products are currently not available. [11] However, the company is working on the development of its own small pulp mill to continue its work with kenaf fiber.
[1] For detailed discussions of the pulp-and-paper industry from this sectoral perspective, see M. Smith (1997). The U.S. Paper Industry and Sustainable Production: An Argument for Restructuring. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press and M. Smith (1998). Perspectives on the U.S. Paper Industry and Sustainable Production. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 1, 69 – 85.
[2] Environmental Paper Network (2007). State of the Paper Industry,pp. 43-44 at http://www.environmentalpaper.org/stateofthepaperindustry/.
[3] On kenaf, see T.A. Rymsza (2004). Vision Paper. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 7, 215-218. On hesperaloe, see S. McLaughlin (2000). Properties of paper made from fibers of hespseraloe funifera (Agavaceae). Economic Botany, 54, pp. 192-196.
[4] On agricultural residues, see Smith (1997 & 1998) and A. Wong (September 18-21, 2000). Experience in the technical and market development of agri-pulp printing papers in North America. Proceedings of the 4th Annual Non-wood Fiber Pulping and Papermaking Conference , pp.23-32 at http://www.agripulp.com/tech.html.
[5] T. Searchinger, R. Heimlich, R.A. Houghton, F. Dong et al. (February 7, 2008) Use of U.S. Croplands for Biofuels Increases Greenhouse Gases through Emissions from Land Use Change. Science Express at http://www.princeton.edu/~tsearchi/writings/Searchinger_et_al-ScienceExpress.pdf and J. Fargione, J. Hill, D. Tilman et al. (February 7, 2008). Land Clearing and the Biofuel Carbon Debt. Science Express at http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/1152747v1.
[6] Smith (1998), p. 76.
[7] USDA (September 1996). Hesperaloe has properties that interest papermakers. At http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/ius6/IUS6D.PDF and D. Ray, S. McLaughlin, B. Roth, & A. Wong (October 2007). Hesperaloe- the wonder fibre for papermaking. Paper presented at the Association for the Advancement of Industrial Crops 2007 Meeting, Portland, ME. Abstract at http://www.aaic.org/07progrm.htm .
[8] On Arbokem’s agri-pulp papers, see http://www.agripulp.com/about_us.html and Al Wong, Personal Communication, September 5, 2007.
[9] CBC News (May 21, 2008). Canadian magazine makes history using special paper. at http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/05/21/magazine-wheat.html and Markets Initiative (2008). The Wheat Sheet: A new era of papermaking in Canada at http://www.marketsinitiative.org/uploads/MI-wheatsheet-bg2.pdf ..
[10] Ray, McLaughlin, Roth & Wong (October 2007).
[11] Vision Paper at http://www.visionpaper.com/.
Does the fiber for making paper have to come from trees?
What other fibers could be used for papermaking?
What would the advantages be to using these alternative fibers?
What are the potential environmental advantages of the more promising of these fiber sources?
Are there any projects that use these alternative fibers in making paper?
Does the fiber for making paper have to come from trees?
Historically, paper was made from a variety of plant fibers such as cotton and flax as well as from recycled materials such as rags and waste paper. Only after the growth of industrialization in the mid to late nineteenth century did virgin fiber from trees become the primary raw material for pulp and paper manufacturing. As this transition occurred in the United States, papermaking companies began to assimilate into the larger lumber and timber-products industry, eventually represented by a combined trade organization called the American Forest and Paper Association. Today, a massive pulp-and-paper industry is structured around the use of wood fiber. Modern integrated pulp-and-paper mills require capital investments in the range of $1 - $2 billion. Because their machinery is designed and calibrated to process this fiber source, it is difficult to shift the practices of the sector toward alternative fibers. [1]
What other fibers could be used for papermaking?
A number of other fibers could be used for making paper. These include agricultural residues such as wheat, barley, oat, rye, and rice straws or sugarcane bagasse; non-cereal straws such as red fescue or rye grasses; bamboo; cotton; flax; hemp; hesperaloe; and kenaf. In the past, some of these fibers were commonly used for papermaking, and still are used to some degree in other parts of the world. Globally, 9% of paper fiber comes from fibers other than wood; about 85% of this amount consists of non-wood papers made in China. [2]
Research carried out by U.S. Department of Agriculture and by the University of Arizona has identified two of these plant fibers as particularly suited to paper-making: kenaf and hesperaloe.[3] Other researchers have focused on the advantages of using agricultural residues, by-products of harvesting that are often burned in the field to dispose of the portion not needed for reconditioning the soil.[4]
What would the advantages be to using these alternative fibers?
First, the availability of alternative fibers could reduce the pressure to harvest trees for papermaking. Second, alternative fibers may be grown or collected after harvesting food crops in parts of the country where there are no forests, thereby helping to decentralize and diversity the pulp and paper industry and to create additional jobs for struggling rural economies. Third, some of these fibers may even offer environmental advantages.
However, as with all proposals for introducing new raw materials, it is important to be certain that there aren't hidden costs, especially once production reaches a commercial scale. Careful life-cycle analysis is needed to demonstrate that these alternative fibers would not cause unanticipated environmental damage, as has recently been shown to be the case with biofuels.[5]
What are the potential environmental advantages of the more promising of these fiber sources?
Three of the more promising alternative sources are offered by agricultural residues, hesperaloe, and kenaf.
- Agricultural residues have the advantage of providing fiber without growing anything beyond what is already produced. As noted above, channeling excess residues into papermaking would mean they are not burned in open fields, a practice that contributes to air pollution and releases greenhouse gases. Researchers have estimated that as much as 280 million tons of residues are available in the U.S. alone and could be diverted for paper production. [6]
Hesperaloe, an arid-zone perennial, can be farmed with 30% less water than cotton and can be harvested at 18-month intervals over an 11-year period without replanting. Because of its superior fiber quality, 1 pound of hesperaloe pulp can replace 2 to 4 pounds of typical wood-fiber pulp. As a result, lighter weight paper can be manufactured for a given purpose than is possible with wood-based fibers. That results in lower costs for purchasers because paper is sold by weight and also in the use of less fossil fuel for shipping because products are lighter. Additionally, pulping and bleaching hesperaloe fiber reduces environmental impacts because the process can take place with less water and energy and without damaging chemicals. [7]
Kenaf is a fast growing annual, related to cotton and okra, that absorbs more CO2 than trees, outcompetes most weeds, and is resistant to many pests and diseases so that it can be farmed with minimal chemical inputs. It produces two types of fiber suitable for papermaking. Like hesperaloe, it is easier to pulp than wood-based fibers so that it, too, can be processed with less energy and water, and less environmentally problematical chemicals. Farmers could rotate kenaf into production with other row crops like corn or soy.
Are there any projects that use these alternative fibers in making paper?
Several projects have used agricultural residues for papermaking. An early demonstration project was successfully carried out by a Canadian company named Arbokem, which manufactured a 50% wheat straw/50% post-consumer recycled fiber office printing paper that was test-marketed in the late 1990s. They have also worked on an agri-pulp based newsprint and are in the planning stages of a project in Mexico to produce agri-pulp pizza boxes. [8] More recently a collaboration among the non-profit environmental organization Markets Initiative, Canadian Geographic, the Alberta Research Council, and other groups led to the printing of the environmental issue of that magazine on wheat-straw based paper.[9]
Projects also are actively exploring the possibilities offered by hesperaloe and kenaf. Arbokem is currently involved in a demonstration project with Greenpeace Germany and a Finnish paper mill to produce paper from hesperaloe fiber that is being used in printing the organization’s quarterly newsletter.[10] Vision Paper, a company based in New Mexico, has produced kenaf-based papers for a number of years, but, because of the closing of small mills where the fiber was pulped, their products are currently not available. [11] However, the company is working on the development of its own small pulp mill to continue its work with kenaf fiber.
[1] For detailed discussions of the pulp-and-paper industry from this sectoral perspective, see M. Smith (1997). The U.S. Paper Industry and Sustainable Production: An Argument for Restructuring. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press and M. Smith (1998). Perspectives on the U.S. Paper Industry and Sustainable Production. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 1, 69 – 85.
[2] Environmental Paper Network (2007). State of the Paper Industry,pp. 43-44 at http://www.environmentalpaper.org/stateofthepaperindustry/.
[3] On kenaf, see T.A. Rymsza (2004). Vision Paper. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 7, 215-218. On hesperaloe, see S. McLaughlin (2000). Properties of paper made from fibers of hespseraloe funifera (Agavaceae). Economic Botany, 54, pp. 192-196.
[4] On agricultural residues, see Smith (1997 & 1998) and A. Wong (September 18-21, 2000). Experience in the technical and market development of agri-pulp printing papers in North America. Proceedings of the 4th Annual Non-wood Fiber Pulping and Papermaking Conference , pp.23-32 at http://www.agripulp.com/tech.html.
[5] T. Searchinger, R. Heimlich, R.A. Houghton, F. Dong et al. (February 7, 2008) Use of U.S. Croplands for Biofuels Increases Greenhouse Gases through Emissions from Land Use Change. Science Express at http://www.princeton.edu/~tsearchi/writings/Searchinger_et_al-ScienceExpress.pdf and J. Fargione, J. Hill, D. Tilman et al. (February 7, 2008). Land Clearing and the Biofuel Carbon Debt. Science Express at http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/1152747v1.
[6] Smith (1998), p. 76.
[7] USDA (September 1996). Hesperaloe has properties that interest papermakers. At http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/ius6/IUS6D.PDF and D. Ray, S. McLaughlin, B. Roth, & A. Wong (October 2007). Hesperaloe- the wonder fibre for papermaking. Paper presented at the Association for the Advancement of Industrial Crops 2007 Meeting, Portland, ME. Abstract at http://www.aaic.org/07progrm.htm .
[8] On Arbokem’s agri-pulp papers, see http://www.agripulp.com/about_us.html and Al Wong, Personal Communication, September 5, 2007.
[9] CBC News (May 21, 2008). Canadian magazine makes history using special paper. at http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/05/21/magazine-wheat.html and Markets Initiative (2008). The Wheat Sheet: A new era of papermaking in Canada at http://www.marketsinitiative.org/uploads/MI-wheatsheet-bg2.pdf ..
[10] Ray, McLaughlin, Roth & Wong (October 2007).
[11] Vision Paper at http://www.visionpaper.com/.