ANDRITZ has started up the pulp line at the Arkhangelsk Pulp and Paper Mill (“APPM”) in Novodvinsk, Russia.

The new line at the Arkhangelsk mill features ANDRITZ green liquor technology for efficient pulp cooking, refining, and washing. Its daily production capacity is 1,000 tons of semi-chemical pulp that can be used in the manufacturing of corrugated board from birch and aspen.

Semi-chemical pulp is produced using a combination of a mild chemical treatment and a subsequent mechanical treatment, in which the fibers are liberated from the wood matrix. This delignification process is interrupted at an early stage in order to increase the yield and produce stiff fibers – an important quality criterion in the production of a corrugated medium. A major advantage of the ANDRITZ green liquor technology – which is mainly applied for hardwoods to substantially enhance the fiber quality – is the efficient and easy recovery of cooking chemicals in the adjacent kraft mill. Thus, no additional steps are needed in the process of chemical recovery.

The production capacity of APPM has doubled with the introduction of the new processing line, all the while productions costs and wastewater volumes have been substantially reduced.