In the pulp and paper industry there is a need to disinfect white water systems of paper machines to prevent microbial contamination of fibrous material in the circulation water. If not controlled this microbial contamination can lead to the formation of inorganic/microbial and pure microbial slime deposits.
These deposits can cause critical failures in papermaking and reductions in the quality of paper resulting in costly losses to the paper manufacturer. Slime formation in paper machines has long been a cause of concern to paper manufacturers and has led to the use of slime control agents in paper manufacture. These slime control agents have changed over the years from mercuric compounds through halogen compounds to today’s organic microbiocides.
PROXITANE® 12:20 has been proved to be extremely effective at removing these deposits this mainly being due to its existence as an equilibrium mixture of peracetic acid, hydrogen peroxide, acetic acid and water. The hydrogen peroxide present reacts within the polysaccharide layer of the biofilm causing it to disrupt allowing the peracetic acid present to destroy the micro-organisms. This synergistic effect in removing biofilm has been exploited in the paper industry, where Peracetic acid is widely used as a slimicide.
A drawback to the single use of most types of organic biocides is the possibility of immune strains of micro-organisms developing in white water systems which would then require multi-biocide addition. The use of Peracetic acid overcomes this as there is no known immunity to peracetic acid.
