Enzymatic pulping of lignocellulosic biomass

With advances in biotechnology, enzyme technologies have been increasingly applied to pretreat lignocellulosic biomass before the production of pulp. There are several driving forces, which include decreasing environmental impact from the traditional pulp and paper manufacturing processes, decreasing the overall production cost, and improving the product properties. This paper reviews recent developments in the area, particularly, related to the production of bleached pulp, dissolving pulp and pulp refining. This paper focuses on the mechanism and influencing factors of enzymatically assisted pulp bleaching to reduce adsorbable organic halide (AOX) formation and dissolving pulp production and focuses on saving energy in pulp refining. The enzyme technology is in the marketplace of the pulp and paper processes, and it is expected to gain more importance in the future.