ISSN ………… - International Network for Bamboo and Rattan
ISSN ………… - International Network for Bamboo and Rattan
ISSN ………… - International Network for Bamboo and Rattan
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6. CHEMICAL COMPOSITION<br />
In<strong>for</strong>mation on the chemical composition of bamboo is important as far as its utilization <strong>for</strong> pulping<br />
is concerned. Holocellulose (also called hemicelluloses) is the main component contributing to the<br />
strength of paper made from bamboo. The high cellulose content <strong>and</strong> a yield of 40-50 per cent pulp<br />
make bamboo an ideal raw material <strong>for</strong> manufacture of paper. From the angle of paper production, the<br />
average chemical composition of bamboo (on OD weight basis) is :<br />
Holocellulose 61 - 71%<br />
Lignin 20 - 30%<br />
Pentosans 16 - 21%<br />
Silica 0.5-4.0%<br />
Ash 1.0-9.0%<br />
The solubility in different solvents are :<br />
Cold water 1.6- 4.6%<br />
Hot water 3.1- 7.0%<br />
Alcohol-benzene 0.3- 7.8%<br />
1% NaOH 15 - 39%<br />
Apart from the high cellulose content, the other factors like high lignin, pentosans <strong>and</strong> silica contents<br />
as well as higher solubilities are not in favour of ideal pulping conditions. But, since it contains higher<br />
cellulose content, bamboo is a preferred raw material <strong>for</strong> pulping.<br />
Bhargava (1945) 136 provided data on the proximate chemical analysis of 10 bamboo species. In<br />
Dendrocalamus strictus, it was found that the proximate chemical composition varied with locality<br />
<strong>and</strong> also due to flowering.<br />
<strong>Bamboo</strong> pulps from Ochl<strong>and</strong>ra abyssinica <strong>and</strong> Oxytenanthera abyssinica have high alpha-cellulose<br />
content (Monteiro 1949 306 ; Seabra 1954) 189 . Numerous reports are available on the chemical<br />
composition of different species of bamboos grown in different countries [<strong>for</strong> example, Istas <strong>and</strong><br />
Hontoy (1952) 219 <strong>and</strong> Istas et al. (1956) 159 on the Belgian Congo species Sasa japonica, S. kurilensis,<br />
Bambusa hoffii, B. vulgaris, Gigantochloa aspera <strong>and</strong> Ochl<strong>and</strong>ra travancorica; Monsalud <strong>and</strong><br />
Tamolang (1962) 8 on some Philippine species; Tono (1963) 261 on some Japanese bamboos; Nair<br />
(1970) 9 , Maheshwari et al. (1976) 171, 227 , Azzini (1976) 366 , Bhola (1976) 218 , K<strong>and</strong>elaki (1977) 103 ,<br />
Guha et al. (1980) 452 , Karim et al. (1994) 407 on the Indian species Dendrocalamus strictus,<br />
Bambusa bambos, Oxytenanthera monostigma, Bambusa vulgaris, Bambusa tulda, Phyllostachys spp.<br />
<strong>and</strong> Melocanna baccifera; Ku (1971) 165 on Taiwan bamboos including Bambusa beecheyana Munro.<br />
39
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