# US 8,784,609 B2 · Fibre furnish

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- Number: US 8,784,609 B2
- Document ID: US8784609B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 13/141,703
- Filed: 2009-12-24
- Published: 2012-06-21
- Granted: 2014-07-22
- Earliest claimed: 2008-12-24
- Assignees: Papyrus Technology Pty Ltd.
- Applicants: Ramy Abraham Azer
- Inventors: Ramy Abraham Azer
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US8784609B2

## CPC

- D21H 11/12: Pulp from non-woody plants or crops, e.g. cotton, flax, straw, bagasse
- D21B 1/061: {using cutting devices}
- D21H 15/06: Long fibres, i.e. fibres exceeding the upper length limit of conventional paper-making fibres; Filaments
- Y10T 83/0267: Splitting
- D21H: PULP COMPOSITIONS; PREPARATION THEREOF NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES D21C OR D21D; IMPREGNATING OR COATING OF PAPER; TREATMENT OF FINISHED PAPER NOT COVERED BY CLASS B31 OR SUBCLASS D21G; PAPER NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- D21B: FIBROUS RAW MATERIALS OR THEIR MECHANICAL TREATMENT
- Y10T: TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION

## Abstract

Fiber furnish for use in the manufacture of paper and paper-based products, the fiber furnish consisting essentially of plant petiole tissue, wherein substantially longitudinally aligned petiole fibers have been cut generally laterally to form fibers with a fiber length distribution such that at least 95% of the fibers have substantially the same predetermined fiber length.

## Claims

### Claim 1

Fibre furnish for use in the manufacture of paper and paper-based products, the fibre furnish consisting essentially of generally laterally cut, substantially longitudinally aligned, fibres of plant petiole tissue from banana plants in the family Musaceae, the fibres having a fibre length distribution such that at least 95% of the fibres have substantially the same predetermined fibre length wherein the predetermined fibre length is in the range of about 1.0 mm to 12.0 mm.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

Fibre furnish according to claim 1, wherein at least 98% of the fibres have substantially the same predetermined fibre length.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

Fibre furnish according to claim 1, wherein the plant petiole tissue is from the pseudostem of edible-fruited banana plants.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

Fibre furnish according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined length is in the range of from about 1.0 mm to about 2.0 mm.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

Fibre furnish according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined length is in the range of from about 3.0 mm to about 4.0 mm.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

Fibre furnish according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined length is in the range of from about 4.0 mm to about 6.0 mm.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

Fibre furnish according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined length is in the range of from about 7 mm to 12 mm.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

Fibre furnish according to claim 1, wherein the substantially longitudinally aligned petiole fibres are obtained from the plant petiole tissue of banana plants in the family Musaceae, by a process that removes sheets of fibres from the outer portion of a pseudostem by virtue of separation between bundles of fibres, as the pseudostem is rotated.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

Fibre furnish according to claim 8, wherein the sheet removal process allows for separation in a manner that retains the integrity of the fibre bundles along virtually the entire length of the pseudostem and thus along a continuously removed sheet.

### Claim 10 (depends on 8)

Fibre furnish according to claim 8, wherein the sheet removal process includes the steps of feeding a pseudostem into a workstation, supporting the pseudostem for rotation thereof about its longitudinal axis within the workstation, and contacting the rotating pseudostem along substantially its entire length with a fibre-separating device, such that a continuous sheet of fibre is removed from the pseudostem by the fibre-separating device during rotation.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

Fibre furnish according to claim 1, wherein the substantially longitudinally aligned petiole fibres have been cut by a cutting process undertaken with a cutting device in the form of either low or high speed slitters or cutting discs, or an array of shredders having cutting blades or grinding wheels, set to a specific cutting width.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

Fibre furnish according to claim 11, wherein the substantially longitudinally aligned petiole fibres are oriented at an angle within the range of 85° to 95° to the cutting device.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

Fibre furnish according to claim 12, wherein the substantially longitudinally aligned petiole fibres are oriented at an angle of about 90° to the cutting device.