Paper engineering

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Paper Engineering is an interdisciplinary branch of engineering that deals with the application of physical science (e.g. chemistry and physics) with mathematics to the process of converting renewable bio-resources into useful and valuable products. Similar to chemical engineering in many aspects, the field employs the common principles of chemical process engineering to the manufacture of pulp, paper and other biomaterials.

Paper engineering encompasses the design and analysis of the various unit operations employed in the manufacture of paper; addressing the preparation of its raw materials from trees or other natural resources via a pulping process, chemical and mechanical pretreatment of these recovered biopolymer (e.g. principally, although not solely, cellulose-based) fibers in a fluid suspension, the high-speed forming and initial dewatering of a non-woven web, the development of bulk sheet properties via control of energy and mass transfer operations, as well as post-treatment of the sheet with coating, calendering, and other chemical and mechanical processes.

Universities offering a degree in paper engineering include:

• USA
  • Miami University
  • North Carolina State University
  • SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
  • University of Maine
  • University of Minnesota
  • University of Washington
  • University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
  • Western Michigan University

• Canada
  • University of New Brunswick

• Finland
  • Helsinki University of Technology

• India
  • Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee