The importance of xylan for the strength properties of spruce kraft pulp fibres

In this work the role of xylan in spruce kraft pulp fibres was investigated by selectively removing the pulp fibre xylan and also by sorbing xylan onto the pulp fibres. The effects of xylan removal and sorption on fibre properties were measured and the chemical composition of the fibres and also that of the selectively removed xylans was analyzed. According to the results the xylanase could act on both sorbed and native xylan located on accessible fibre surfaces. Xylan was found to affect the strength properties of handsheets. The location and the charge of xylan had a considerable impact on the formation of interfibre bonds. Scott Bond-values correlated with the amount of surface xylan on fibre surfaces, whereas tensile strength was affected by the total amount of xylan and particularly by the total charge of the fibres. The fracture energy was determined by the combined effect of interfibre bonding ability and effective fibre length.