CHARACTERIZATION OF NONMICROBIOLOGICAL PAPER-MILL DEPOSITS BY SIMULTANEOUS TG-IR-MS

The problem of deposits and their identification is one of the most pe rsistent ones facing paper mills. Materials other than fibers accumula te in closed water circulation systems and may appear as impurities in pulp and paper or can contaminate wires. and felts or build up deposi ts at various points in the mills. Traditionally, chromatographic and spectroscopic methods have been employed in the analysis of deposits a nd other pulp and paper process impurities. Simultaneous thermogravime try-infrared-mass spectrometric (TG-IR-MS) analysis is a relatively ne w technique which, when applied to the analysis of mill deposits, prov ides a rapid means of identifying the source of these contaminants.