Effect of microwave drying on paper properties

Effects of microwave drying on the mechanical and optical properties of handsheets made from kraft and chemi-thermomechanical pulps were studied experimentally. The quality of paper dried in a microwave field of 2450 MHz is compared with that of paper dried by conventional method under standard conditions. Key physical properties measured include burst index, density, tear index, breaking length, zero-span tensile strength, double fold, STFI compressibility and optical properties include brightness, opacity and scattering coefficient. All properties were found to be either enhanced or at the same level as those obtained under standard conditions. Furthermore, it is suggested that microwave drying could replace the conventional drying method in the standard testing of pulp and paper samples for quality control purposes