Xylanase-aided Bleaching of Chemi-mechanical Pulp from Bio-treated Wheat Straw

Wheat straw chemi-mechanical pulp was pretreated with a crude xylanase which was secreted by white rot fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium prior to hydrogen peroxide bleaching. The process of xylanase pretreatment was optimized in the paper. At a dosage of 15 IU/g, the xylanase treated pulp was bleached to 66.1% ISO at a consistency of 15% after 3 h of incubation. The xylanase treatment could facilitate the bleaching of hydrogen peroxide, improving pulp properties. Fiber morphology of pulp treated with xylanase was also studied by SEM.