Fine particle size lime slurries and their production

A method of improving the wet strength of paper produced in a paper making process which process comprises providing a cellulosic suspension comprising cellulosic fibres and optionally fillers, including a wet strength resin, and then dewatering the cellulosic suspension on a wire or mesh to form a sheet and drying the sheet, in which the wet strength resin is a polymer comprising

• i) a synthetic polymeric component that has been formed from an ethylenically unsaturated water-soluble or potentially water-soluble monomer and an ethylenically unsaturated monomer carrying a reactive group, wherein the reactive group is directly reactive with a cellulose binding domain protein;
• and
• ii) a protein component comprising a cellulose binding domain protein, wherein the cellulose binding domain protein is covalently bonded to the synthetic polymer component through one or more of the reactive groups.

A method of internally sizing paper produced in a paper making process which process comprises providing a cellulosic suspension comprising cellulosic fibres and optionally fillers, including internal sizing agent, and then dewatering the cellulosic suspension on a wire or mesh to form a sheet and drying the sheet, in which the internal sizing agent is a polymer comprising

• i) a synthetic polymeric component that has been formed from an ethylenically unsaturated water-soluble or potentially water-soluble monomer and an ethylenically unsaturated monomer carrying a reactive group, wherein the reactive group is directly reactive with a cellulose binding domain protein;
• and
• ii) a protein component comprising a cellulose binding domain protein, wherein the cellulose binding domain protein is covalently bonded to the synthetic polymer component through one or more of the reactive groups.

A method of surface sizing paper which method comprises applying a surface sizing agent to the surface of a formed cellulosic sheet, in which the surface sizing agent is a polymer comprising:

• i) a synthetic polymeric component that has been formed from an ethylenically unsaturated water-soluble or potentially water-soluble monomer and an ethylenically unsaturated monomer carrying a reactive group, wherein the reactive group is directly reactive with a cellulose binding domain protein;
• and
• ii) a protein component comprising a cellulose binding domain protein, wherein the cellulose binding domain protein is covalently bonded to the synthetic polymer component through one or more of the reactive groups.