Towards a measurement of paper pulp quality ultrasonic spectroscopy of fibre suspensions

Abstract: For the paper and pulp industry in Sweden and Finland to remain competitive against countries with lower overheads, they have to constantly strive to improve the quality and the efficiency of the manufacturing processes. One of the ways of doing this is to introduce sensors that will provide valuable online feedback on the characteristics of the pulp so that adjustments can be made to optimise the manufacturing process. The measurement method proposed in this thesis is based on ultrasound, since it is rapid, inexpensive, non-destructive and non-intrusive. Thus could be done online. Since ultrasound propagation and attenuation depends on the material properties through which is propagates, it has the potential to provide measurements of material properties such as pulp fibre density and elasticity. The aim of this thesis is to investigate the possibility of using ultrasound to measure pulp fibre material properties. The idea is to solve the inverse problem of estimating these properties from attenuation measurements and to establish the degree of accuracy to which this can be done. Firstly a model is developed and is tested with synthetic fibres to establish is validity. It is then used to solve the inverse problem of estimating material properties from attenuation measurements, again with synthetic fibres, to test the accuracy to which these properties can be estimated. Resonance peaks in the frequency response of the attenuation were found. On closer investigation it was established that the location of these peaks in the frequency domain is sensitive to the diameter of the fibres and their material properties. If the diameter is known, these peaks improve the accuracy of the estimation process. The results of the estimation process for synthetic fibre suspensions show values for the shear modulus are within known ranges but the estimation of Poisson's ratio and Young's modulus is poor. Improving the model or the estimation procedure may lead to better results. For the method as it is to have applicationin the paper and pulp industry there are certain conditions that need to be fulfilled. These are that we find peaks in the frequency response of the attenuation in pulp, know the diameter distribution of the fibres and the hollow nature of the fibres does not significantly alter the results. We can then, potentially, be able to establish the shear modulus of the pulp fibres. If the shear modulus is a factor in paper quality, we may be close to an online measurement of paper pulp quality using ultrasonic spectroscopy. Improving the model may allow us to estimate further properties and take into account the fibres being hollow. The thesis consists of two parts. The first part includes an overview of the pulp and paper industry and current testing methods, background theory on which the model is based and an overview of the model that is used in predicting ultrasound attenuation. There then follows a summary of the work done, some addition points are raised in the discussion before drawing conclusions. Finally we discuss what needs to be done to take this further. The second part contains a collection of four papers describing the research.