摘要：The study was carried out at Forest College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu, India using five different age gradations viz.,one, two, three, four and five year old M. dubia wood samples. The samples were collected from the farm plantations raised atKollegal, Samraj Nagar District, Karnataka to evaluate the pulpwood properties. Five age gradations of M. dubia were subjected to physical and chemical analysis coupled with strength properties in order to recommend suitable rotation age for pulp and paper production. All the five age gradations exhibited considerable differences for physical, chemical and strength properties. Considering physical properties viz., bulk and basic density, the fifth year was best. Similarly proximate analysis of five age gradations indicated the difference in chemical properties due to age. In the chemical analysis, the lignin content was moderate for all the age gradation and hence proved their suitability. Holocellulose content also differed significantly for five age gradations, holocellulose constitutes the cellulose and hemi-cellulose which is essential property for pulp and paper production. The pulp yield and kappa number analysis indicated the dominance of fifth year wood due to higher pulp yield (50.00 %) and moderate kappa number (22.00). The strength properties of five age gradation revealed the superiority of fifthyear in terms of tensile index, burst index and tear index of bleached pulp. Considering all theparameters into account, the fifthyear wood proved superior in terms of pulp yield, kappa number and strength properties. Hencethis study recommended five year rotation for pulpwood plantation.
关键词：M. dubia;physical;chemical;strength properties;age gradation;rotation age
