In a kraft process for the production of wood pulp which comprises the steps of digesting wood chips in a digesting zone, bleaching the resulting wood pulp in a bleaching zone, and concentrating the separated liquor from the digesting zone in an evaporation zone, the improvement which comprises adding to at least one of said digesting zone, bleaching zone and evaporation zone a polymeric antiscalant in an amount sufficient to inhibit the scale formation therein, said polymeric antiscalant comprising a terpolymer of 1,2-dihydroxy-3-butene, maleic acid and acrylic acid, wherein said terpolymer is 33.3 mole percent 1,2-dihydroxy-3-butene, 33.3 mole percent maleic acid and 33.3 mole percent acrylic acid, wherein said polymeric antiscalant is added in an amount in the range of from about 1 ppm to about 200 ppm, and wherein said polymeric antiscalant has a weight average molecular weight in the range of from about 1,000 to about 100,000.