Sargassum sp. As a Potential Cellulose Filler in Handmade Papermaking

Abstract

In the Philippines, researches are being conducted to find alternative materials for papermaking. In this study, we made handmade paper containing varying concentrations of Sargassum and had its strength properties evaluated by the Standards and Division of Testing DOST. Foremost, the strength values of the handmade paper made with Sargassum as cellulose filler were compared to that without Sargassum (0:5). For grammage, all the handmade paper with Sargassum had a higher value than the paper without Sargassum except for the ratio 3:5 while in bursting strength, tensile strength, and tearing strength, 1:5 had a higher value than 0:5 Next, values from the test results of all the handmade paper were compared to the standard values of plain kraft paper. For grammage, all the handmade paper had higher values compared to the standard. For tensile strength, all the ratios failed to meet the minimum value. As compared to the kraft paper, 1:5 had a higher tearing strength MD value. For the tearing strength CD values, only 0:5 and 1:5 had higher values than the kraft paper. However, no standard values for the bursting strength of kraft paper were obtained. Based on the results, Sargassum sp. may be used as cellulose filler at varying concentrations in handmade papermaking. Furthermore, the ratio 1:5 met some of the standards set for kraft paper aside from the fact that it always garnered the highest values for all strength properties. Hence, for this study, the ratio that is recommended for handmade papermaking based on strength properties, is 1:5.