An investigation comprising the effect of soda and bleaching sequences on suitability of sorghum bagasse as an alternative fiber in papermaking.

The aim of this work is to evaluate the potency of sorghum stalks as an alternative fiber for pulp and papermaking for the first time in Egypt. Sorghum Kraft pulp was bleached using D0EOD1 sequences to achieve a final high brightness and suitable mechanical strength. The results revealed that pulping alkali of 14% Na2O concentration is the best choice. In addition, this percentage preserved high pulp brightness with a value of 86 ISO together with low fiber degradation besides imparting a high mechanical strength to the product. So, sorghum bagasse can be utilized as an important available low‐cost non‐wood fiber for paper industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]