Upm-Kymmene Corporation

Juha Tamper

Sami Turunen

Markus Nuopponen

Isko Kajanto

Mauno Miettinen

Taisto Tienvieri

Meri Ventola

Vilho Nissinen

Jere Salminen

Hans Hasse

Harri Kosonen

Mika Laitila

Tarja Sinkko

Martina Lille

Jakob Burger

Kari Hillebrand

Fabian Jirasek

Nadia Galeotti

Nina Heiming

Lisa Weigand

Maria Alajaaski

Maria ALAJÄÄSKI

A method for producing mono-ethylene glycol (MEG) from a wood-based raw material, and wherein method includes: i) providing a wood-based feedstock originating from the wood-based raw material and including wood chips, wherein at most 5 weight-% of the wood chips in the wood-based feedstock are overthick wood chips as specified by SCAN-CM 40:01, and subjecting the wood-based feedstock to at least one pretreatment to form a liquid fraction and a fraction including solid cellulose particles; ii) subjecting the fraction comprising solid cellulose particles to enzymatic hydrolysis to form a lignin fraction and a carbohydrate fraction; iii) subjecting the carbohydrate fraction to catalytical conversion to form a liquid composition of glycols; and iv) recovering mono-ethylene glycol from the liquid composition of glycols. Further is disclosed a corresponding arrangement and mono-ethylene glycol obtainable by the method.

Production of mono-ethylene glycol

Method and control system are provided for controlling values of process parameters of a pretreatment process of wood particles. A sampler is used to obtain a sample of a product flow of said pretreatment process after said wood particles have undergone steam explosion in a hemihydrolysis reactor. A particle measurement device is used to measure one or more characteristics of particles in said sample and to produce one or more pieces of measurement information indicative of the measured characteristics. Said one or more pieces of measurement information are used to select one or more values of one or more of said process parameters.

Method and arrangement for feedback based control in chemical refining of wood

In a method and an apparatus for an enzymatic hydrolysis in which plant based raw material is hydrolysed by means of enzymes in at least one enzymatic hydrolysis stage. A plant based feed () is fed to the enzymatic hydrolysis stage () in which the plant based feed is hydrolysed. A liquid fraction () comprising carbohydrates is separated from a solid fraction () in a solid-liquid separation stage (). At least a part () of the solid fraction () comprising enzymes is recirculated to the plant based feed () of the enzymatic hydrolysis stage () or to the enzymatic hydrolysis stage (), and a rest part () of the solid fraction () is recovered. Further, the invention relates to the liquid fraction and the solid fraction and their use.

Method and an apparatus for an enzymatic hydrolysis, a liquid fraction and a solid fraction

The invention relates to a method and an apparatus for producing a soluble carbohydrate containing fraction (), in which lignocellulose material () formed by treating plant based raw material () is conducted into a separation stage (). The method comprises at least one solid-liquid separation stage () for separating a soluble carbohydrate containing fraction () and/or a washing filtrate () from lignocellulose material (), and at least a part of the soluble carbohydrate containing fraction () and/or the washing filtrate () is recirculated to the lignocellulose material () for increasing concentration of the soluble carbohydrate containing fraction, and solids () and at least a part of the soluble carbohydrate containing fraction () are supplied out from the separation stage. Further, the invention relates to the soluble carbohydrate containing fraction and the solid fraction, and their uses.

Method and an apparatus for increasing concentration of soluble carbohydrate containing fraction, a soluble carbohydrate containing fraction, a solid fraction and their use

A method for treating plant based raw material with an enzymatic hydrolysis. The plant based raw material is treated to form lignocellulosic material. The lignocellulosic material or a solid fraction thereof is subjected to the enzymatic hydrolysis. The method includes treating the plant based raw material in at least one treatment stage for forming the lignocellulosic material including over 80% fine solid particles that are fiber-like or indefinable particles smaller than 0.2 mm and the viscosity of the lignocellulosic material is below 18000 mPas at 15% dry matter content. The method further includes subjecting the lignocellulosic material or at least one solid fraction thereof into the enzymatic hydrolysis for forming a lignin based material. The method further includes subjecting the lignin based material into at least one solid-liquid separation stage after the enzymatic hydrolysis and separating a lignin fraction and a soluble carbohydrate containing fraction.

Method and an apparatus for treating plant based raw material with an enzymatic hydrolysis

The invention relates to a method and an apparatus for treating plant based raw material with an enzymatic hydrolysis, in which the plant based raw material () is treated to form lignocellulosic material () and the lignocellulosic material () or its fraction () is conducted into the enzymatic hydrolysis (), wherein the method comprises at least one treatment stage () in which the plant based raw material () is treated so that the lignocellulosic material () contains over 80% fine solid particles which are fiber-like or indefinable particles smaller than 0.2 mm, defined by an optical measurement device, the lignocellulosic material () or at least one fraction () of the lignocellulosic material is supplied into the enzymatic hydrolysis () for forming a lignin based material (), and at least one solid-liquid separation stage () after the enzymatic hydrolysis () in which a lignin fraction () and a soluble carbohydrate containing fraction () are separated. Further, the invention relates to the soluble carbohydrate containing fraction, the lignin fraction, the lignin based material, the liquid fraction and the solid fraction, and their uses.

In a method and an apparatus for recovering chemicals from an alkaline lignin material, the alkaline lignin material () which comprises NaOH or KOH is precipitated in presence of an acid in a precipitation stage () for forming a precipitated lignin (), the precipitated lignin () is supplied to a separation stage () in which a purified lignin () is recovered and from which at least one fraction () which comprises Na or K is supplied to a crystallization stage (), and the fraction () which comprises Na or K is treated by crystallization in the crystallization stage () for forming a crystallized compound (). Further, the invention relates to use of the purified lignin, and lignin and chemical products.

Method and an apparatus for recovering chemicals from an alkaline lignin material

In a method for producing nanofibrillar cellulose, cellulose based fibre material, in which internal bonds in cellulose fibres have been weakened by 5 preliminary modification of cellulose, is subjected to disintegration treatment in form of pulp comprising fibres and liquid. The fibre material is supplied at a consistency higher than 10 wt-%, preferably at least 15 wt-%, to a disintegration treatment where fibrils are detached from the fibre material by joint effect of repeated impacts to the fibre material by fast moving 10 successive elements and the weakened internal bonds of the cellulose fibres. The nanofibrillar cellulose is withdrawn from the disintegration treatment at dry matter which is equal or higher than the consistency of the fibre material.

Method for producing nanofibrillar cellulose and nanofibrillar cellulose product

The invention relates to a method and an apparatus for washing a crude lignin slurry () formed from plant based raw material, wherein the method comprises separating a soluble carbohydrate containing fraction () from the crude lignin slurry () by using displacement washing in at least one solid-liquid separation stage () so that the crude lignin slurry is prepressed, washed and pressed, and recovering a solid fraction () and the soluble carbohydrate containing fraction (). Further, the invention relates to the soluble carbohydrate containing fraction and the solid fraction, and their uses.

Method and an apparatus for washing a crude lignin, a soluble carbohydrate containing fraction, a solid fraction and their use

A method and apparatus for enzymatic hydrolysis where a plant based feed is hydrolysed using an enzyme to form a hydrolysed product. An additive for preventing enzyme adsorption is fed to an enzymatic hydrolysis stage, the plant based feed, the hydrolysed product, a starting material, and/or a plant based material formed from the starting material. The hydrolysed product is supplied from the enzymatic hydrolysis stage to a first solid-liquid separation stage where a lignin fraction comprising the additive and a liquid composition comprising the enzyme are separated. The liquid composition is mixed with the plant based material in a mixing stage, forming a mixture. A solid and liquid fraction are separated from the mixture in a second solid-liquid separation stage. At least part of the solid fraction comprising the enzyme is fed as the plant based feed to the enzymatic hydrolysis stage.

Method and an apparatus for an enzymatic hydrolysis, a liquid fraction and a lignin fraction

In a method and an apparatus furfural is recovered from a steam stream () which is formed in a treatment of a pretreated wood based material (). The pretreated wood based material () which comprises at least carbohydrates is treated in a steam treatment stage () in which the steam is released. The steam stream () which comprises furfural is supplied out from the steam treatment stage (). A pretreated and steam-treated wood based material () which comprises carbohydrates is supplied out from the steam treatment stage (), and the steam stream () is treated in a recovery stage () for recovering a furfural based fraction ().

Method and an apparatus for recovering furfural

In a method and an apparatus furfural is separated from a material stream () which is formed in a treatment of a pretreated wood based material (). The material stream () which comprises at least furfural is introduced to a separation column (). A top vapor condensate () is introduced from a top end of the separation column () to a decanter () in which two liquid phases () are separated from each other. An organic phase () which comprises at least furfural is recovered, and an aqueous phase () is supplied as a reflux to the separation column (). Further, the invention relates to a furfural based product and chemical product and a use of the organic phase.

Method and an apparatus for separating furfural

In a method for producing nanofibrillar cellulose, cellulose based fiber material in dispersion is processed for separating fibrils. The method includes a first step where the fiber material is supplied to a disperser, where it flows through several counter-rotating rotors in such a way that the material is repeatedly subjected to shear and impact forces by the effect of the different counter-rotating rotors, and a second step, where the fiber material obtained from the first step is supplied to a homogenizer, where it is subjected to homogenization by the effect of pressure.

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Levänen, Finland

Juha Tamper