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Abstract Pulp and paper industry is one of the high priority sectors that generates large amount of solid (sludge) and liquid (paper mill effluent) wastes. Making use of this huge quantity of paper mill sludge (PMS) in an environment friendly manner is challenging and cost involving. Similarly the present wastewater treatment strategies based on physical and chemical methods encounter certain serious setbacks including secondary pollution generation with expensive mode of abatement processes. The present study aims at a "waste treats waste" strategy for the bioremediation of paper mill effluent in fluidized bed reactor (FBR) using another waste of the same industry, PMS as immobilizing matrix for Planococcus sp. TRC1, a wastewater bacterial isolate. This study simultaneously explores this isolate for the yellowish orange pigment it produces (2.3 ± 0.2 mg/gm of dry bacterial biomass) and characterizes it as a member of the pharmacologically important carotenoid pigment family via UV-Vis spectrophotometry, TLC, FT-IR and 13C NMR. The antioxidant potential of this pigment was studied by DPPH assay (IC 50 = 33 ± 0.4 μg/ml) and H 2 O 2 assay (IC 50 = 147.4 ± 2.2 μg/ml). In FBR, the PMS immobilized bacteria showed removal of phenol, lignin, colour and COD from the effluent by 96%, 74%, 81% and 85% respectively after 60hr of treatment. The experimental data on immobilization fitted well with pseudo second-order (R2 = 0.955) and Freundlich adsorption isotherm (R2 = 0.996) models. The alterations in PMS before and after bacterial immobilization, as revealed by SEM and FT-IR, depicted the success of PMS as immobilization matrix. Phytotoxicity (90% seed germination) and mutagenicity studies confirmed that the treated effluent was substantially less toxic than its raw state. This study highlights a novel utilization possibility of PMS in an eco-friendly and economic way as immobilization matrix for Planococcus sp.TRC1 for paper pulp mill effluent treatment along with production of carotenoid pigment from this potential bacterial isolate as value added product. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • Carotenoid production and abatement of paper pulp mill effluent by Planococcus sp.TRC1 was studied. • Paper mill sludge (PMS) was characterized for immobilizing the bacteria to be used in fluidized bed reactor. • Reusability of PMS and scale up possibility was described. • Toxicity studies revealed reduced phytotoxicity and mutagenicity of the effluent by this approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Building bricks were produced by utilizing deinking paper mill sludge (DPMS) and alluvial soil by varying percentage of sludge at different firing temperatures. Different mix proportions were prepared with 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25% and 30% of DPMS incorporation in alluvial soil by weight. Three firing temperatures of 900 °C, 950 °C and 1000 °C were investigated to simulate the typical condition of kiln. The density, firing shrinkage, water absorption, efflorescence, apparent porosity, compressive strength and thermal conductivity of the bricks were determined. The XRD and microstructural analysis of brick specimens were also studied. The optimum firing temperature was 950 °C. The thermal conductivity decreases with increase in percentage of deinking paper mill sludge. It was found that 15% deinking paper mill sludge gives optimum strength at firing temperature of 950 °C. Developed bricks satisfy the requirements of class 10 of Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), in terms of efflorescence, compressive strength and water absorption. Thermal conductivity results show that the developed brick was thermally more insulated than the conventional bricks and can be used as alternative to conventional bricks. This will address the issue of waste management through cleaner production and show the ways towards sustainable, economical and energy efficient construction. Highlights • Building bricks were developed utilizing deinking paper mill sludge (DPMS) & soil. • Maximum level of DPMS in production brick is 15% at firing temperature of 950 °C. • The developed bricks satisfies the requirement of class 10 bricks of BIS. • Developed bricks are sustainable and thermally insulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The biological deinking method using microbial enzymes is quite promising and rather eco-friendly. In this paper, we discuss about the impact of enzymatic deinking of newspaper pulp using ligno-cellulosic (cellulase, xylanase and laccase) and lipolytic enzymes. The individual treatment of paper pulp with enzymes (cellulase/xylanase) could enhance the paper brightness to about 32.86% whereas combinational effect could enhance only about 28.67%. There was a release of chromophores from phenolic and hydrophobic compounds released during the deinking process. Physico-chemical parameters of effluents were also found to be within the standard limits and the metals like iron, lead and zinc were not detected in the enzyme assisted deinking effluent sample. The heavy metals in the paper pulp was found to be reduced after enzyme treatment. The obtained effluent was found have low phytotoxicity and was safe for agricultural applications. Hence, the present report was found to be a suitable enzymatic deinking process which was eco-friendly that results in non-toxic effluents. The method also provides an avenue in water resource recycling within industries. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • Individual enzyme treatment was effective for increasing brightness upto 10%. • Combinational enzyme treatment improved 8.2% brightness of recycled paper. • Ligno-cellulosic enzyme along with lipase was effective in deinking. • Effluent was non-toxic and had very low heavy metals detected. • The effluent fit for irrigational purposes due to low phytotoxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Guiding industries to produce in an effective and environmentally sustainable manner has become a key issue for governments around the world. Over the past 15 years, series of regional and industrial development policies have been introduced by the Chinese government. This has influenced the geographical distribution and energy efficiency performance of China’s industries. This paper quantifies the influence of enterprises geographical distribution on energy efficiency improvement in the paper industry and aims at providing some helpful suggestions on industrial development to policy makers. The main results show that, firstly, the paper industry in eastern China shows obvious characteristic of agglomeration. The average location quotient is 1.2278. However, following the industrial and regional development policies, the characteristic of agglomeration is weakening. Secondly, only when agglomeration reaches a certain level (location quotient is above 0.5447) will industrial agglomeration positively impact on industrial energy efficiency improvement (a 1% increase in agglomeration will increase dynamic energy efficiency by at least 0.23%). Thirdly, the regional development policies carried out by the government slow the pace of energy efficiency improvement in China’s paper industry. The empirical results indicate that the government needs to consider regional characteristics and consciously guide industrial enterprises to concentrate in the dominant area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need to view innovation policy through the lens of policy mixes has gained momentum given the growing complexity, the dynamics of real-world policy and the wide array of difficulties to address the current great societal challenges, notably the increasing pressure on the ecosystems that support our society. One of the main challenges concerning the transition towards bioeconomy, is to gain a more in-depth understanding on the policy mix to stimulate innovation in sustainability transitions. Our paper aims at enriching the portfolio of empirical case studies on policy mixes for innovation and sustainable transitions, by investigating the development of the policy mix underpinning the sustainability transition of the pulp and paper industry in Sweden. We apply a case study approach which draws on event history analysis, semi-structured interviews with industry and policy makers, literature reviews, a participative workshop with stakeholders from the pulp and paper industry, as well as on the IEA databases on climate change and energy efficiency policies and measures. Our analysis emphasises coordination, timing and scale in policy mixes as important elements to understand how instruments interact to accelerate sustainability transitions. The mapping of the policy mix shows that destabilising policies were crucial for accelerating the transition process of the industry. Prior to novelty creation policies, destabilising policies (e.g. environmental policies) were needed for 'innovation policy instruments' to be effective. More specific instruments (e.g. carbon tax), targeting particular functions of the innovation systems, require 'on-the-ground' policy intelligence and benefit from close interaction with industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was the valorization of paper sludge waste from paper industry in designing one-part geopolymer cement using ground granulated blast furnace slag as main precursor. The effects of increasing the amount of paper sludge pretreated with a constant amount of sodium hydroxide (2% of slag) on mechanical strength, heat evolution, setting time and durability were analyzed. The reaction products were characterized using X-ray diffraction and thermogravimetric analysis. The findings showed that paper sludge can successfully be used as a secondary source of calcium carbonate in the one-part (“just add water”) geopolymer. The compressive strength of the cured geopolymer increased with increasing the amount of paper sludge, and the non-reacted sludge acted as a filler. The maximum strength (42 MPa, 28 d) was reached at 18 wt-% paper sludge addition. The main reaction products were calcium aluminate silicate hydrate and hydrotalcite-like cementitious gels. From the perspective of its blast-furnace slag content, strength properties, water absorption and setting time, the one-part geopolymer cement could be classified as a CEM IIIC and Type 32.5N class cement under the European standard EN-197. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]