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Introduction

It is imperative for bleach plant operations to recirculate process liquors and to

minimize the consumption of fresh water. On the one hand, an increasing environmental

awareness calls for the responsible usage of water resources, yet on the

7.10 Bleach Plant Liquor Circulation 887

other hand there are strong economical arguments for liquor circulation, including

the reduced consumption of bleaching chemicals, energy and water itself, and

a lower hydraulic load to the effluent treatment facilities. Liquor circulation in the

bleach plant has certain limits, however, that are set: (a) on the process side, by

the accumulation of nonprocess elements or reaction products and by scaling;

and (b) on the equipment side, by the corrosion resistance of construction materials

or temperature sensitivity of machinery.

7.10.2

Intra-Stage Circulation and Circulation between Stages

It is possible to distinguish between two levels of bleaching liquor circulation, namely

intra-stage circulation and circulation between stages. Intra-stage liquor circulation

forms part of any modern bleach plant liquor management. As shown in Fig. 7.141,

filtrate coming fromthe washing equipment of a bleaching stage can be used to dilute

the pulp suspension in this very stage at various positions. Moreover, it can also be

used on the cleaning showers of the washing equipment itself. In some cases it may

be necessary to either heat or cool the dilution liquor in order to achieve a certain temperature

level in the dilute suspension. It may also be required to install a fiber filter

in a circulation line to protect the narrow shower nozzles from plugging.

Filtrate for dilution

Filtrate

for

cleaning

shower

Fig. 7.141 Generic intra-stage liquor circulation.

The circulation of liquors between bleaching stages is more delicate. Starting

with process matters, the advantages of liquor circulation include savings in energy

and chemicals. Clearly, the circulation of hot liquor to process steps where

heating is desirable and circulation of cold liquor to those steps where cooling is

needed, will save steam and cooling water. Likewise, the recirculation of filtrate

containing residual chemicals to the feed of a stage that uses such chemicals will

reduce the chemical charge required to reach a bleaching target.

In a given bleaching stage, both energy savings and chemical savings can be

usually achieved by using own filtrate as wash liquor on the preceding washer

(Fig. 7.142a). Depending on the bleaching sequence, other filtrates may, however,

at times be more appropriate than the own filtrate for such use (Fig. 7.142b). In

special cases, other filtrates may also be utilized for the dilution of incoming pulp,

reducing its consistency from the discharge consistency of the preceding washer

to the desired stage feed consistency (Fig. 7.142c).

888 7Pulp Bleaching

Pump,

mixer,

reactor,

blowtank,

etc.

Pump,

mixer,

reactor,

blowtank,

etc.

Pump,

mixer,

reactor,

blowtank,

etc.

a

b

c

Fig. 7.142 Generic liquor circulation between stages.

The bold gray arrows in Fig. 7.142 indicate the distribution of dissolved liquor

constituents moving along with circulated filtrate. If filtrate is used as washing

liquor on a washer, the dissolved compounds turn to both directions – downstream

to the subsequent stage, and also upstream to the preceding stage. For

example, an oxygen delignification filtrate is applied to the preceding brownstock

washing, thus introducing its dry matter into the cooking liquor loop for benefi-

7.10 Bleach Plant Liquor Circulation 889

cial recovery. On the other hand, it is problematic to recycle the filtrate from a

chlorine dioxide stage to post-oxygen washing, because undesirable chlorides will

also end up in the recovery loop.

7.10.3

Open and Closed Operation of Bleaching Stages

The drawback with liquor circulation is the accumulation of material in the liquor

cycles. There are cases, where such accumulation is inappropriate from a process

perspective, for example when transition metals build up in a totally chlorine-free

bleaching sequence. In elementary chlorine-free sequences, liquor circulation can

lead to an increase in the concentration levels of corrosive chloride ions. Depending

on the liquor management, such stages may also be affected which are not

charged with chlorine-containing chemicals and which, therefore, were not originally

designed for such conditions.

The normal practice of limiting the accumulation of undesirable matter is to

sewer either a part or the totality of a liquor, rather than to recirculate it. The stage

is then said to be operated partly or totally open, as opposed to closed operation

where all the filtrate is used elsewhere in the process (Fig. 7.143).

In an open stage, the concentrations of dissolved liquor constituents depend

primarily on the pulp consistency delivered by the washer preceding this stage. If

the feed pulp comes from a press at high consistency, a respectable amount of

intra-stage circulation is needed to dilute the pulp before medium-consistency

bleaching. This circulation brings the filtrate concentrations up to approximately

double the values observed in a stage fed from a washer with medium-consistency

discharge. At the same time, the effluent volume from a high-consistency fed

stage is about half that from a medium-consistency fed stage (Fig. 7.144).

Whilst there is a near-linear dependency of the filtrate concentrations on the

feed consistency to the stage, the effects of partial closure are highly nonlinear.

Partial closure occurs when filtrate which is otherwise sent to the sewer is utilized

elsewhere in the bleaching process. As the volume of filtrate sent to the sewer is

gradually reduced, the initial change in concentrations is rather low, especially in

bleaching systems using medium-consistency washing equipment. Note that a

reduction in effluent load (e.g., COD load) by 50% is reached only after 65–75% of

the filtrate volume is circulated back to the process (Figs. 7.145 and 7.146). In

these figures, a zero degree of closure represents an open stage (as per Fig. 7.142a)

and 100% closure means operation (according to Fig. 7.143c).

When a given bleaching stage is closed and concentrations rise, the carry-over

of dissolved matter to the subsequent stage increases in proportion to the filtrate

concentration. This fact must be carefully considered, since the amount of carryover

may affect the performance of the subsequent bleaching stage.

890 7Pulp Bleaching

Pump,

mixer,

reactor,

blowtank,

etc.

Pump,

mixer,

reactor,

blowtank,

etc.

Pump,

mixer,

reactor,

blowtank,

etc.

a

b

c

Filtrate

to sewer

Filtrate

to sewer

Circulated

filtrate

Circulated

filtrate

Fig. 7.143 Stages of liquor cycle closure: (a) open; (b) partly

open; (c) closed.

7.10 Bleach Plant Liquor Circulation 891

0%

50%

100%

150%

200%

250%

10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%

Relative filtrate concentration,

relative effluent volume

Pulp consistency

Filtrate concentration

Effluent volume

Fig. 7.144 Relative filtrate concentration and effluent volume

in an open bleaching stage with intra-stage circulation as a

function of the discharge consistency from the washing equipment

preceding the stage (simulation results).

0%

100%

200%

300%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Relative filtrate concentration,

relative effluent load

Degree of closure

Filtrate concentration

Effluent load

Fig. 7.145 Relative filtrate concentration and effluent load

from a bleaching stage as a function of the degree of closure;

bleach plant equipped with washing equipment discharging

at medium consistency (simulation results).

892 7Pulp Bleaching

0%

100%

200%

300%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Relative filtrate concentration,

relative effluent load

Degree of closure

Filtrate concentration

Effluent load

Fig. 7.146 Relative filtrate concentration and effluent load

from a bleaching stage as a function of the degree of closure;

bleach plant equipped with washing equipment discharging

at high consistency (simulation results).

7.10.4

Construction Material Compatibility

As liquor is circulated within and across the bleaching stages, chemicals accumulate

in and become distributed throughout the bleach plant. The liquor management

must consider that the circulation leads to concentrations acceptable to processes

and construction materials. Similar issues must be addressed when a

bleaching sequence retrofit requires that a particular stage be operated with a different

chemical. Sequence retrofits may be driven by furnish or product grade

changes, environmental pressure or capacity expansion.

Caution is always advisable when chloride-containing liquors are circulated to

stages built in basic metallurgy. On the other hand, liquor circulation within a

totally chlorine-free sequence is usually unproblematic.

At times, a chlorine dioxide stage may be up for a peroxide bleaching retrofit.

Despite earlier doubts, the corrosion resistance of titanium against alkaline peroxide

solutions under normal bleaching conditions has been confirmed, both in

tests and in long-term mill operation [1,2]. In case of metallurgical reservations,

expert advice together with immersion tests are highly recommended.

7.10.5