Starch Cooking

Starch is a carbohydrate, a high molecular weight polymer of glucose, that is produced and used by all plants to store energy. It is widely used in the production of paper and board as a retention aid, dry strength additive, internal sizing agent, surface sizing agent, and as a binder in coating formulas. This course discusses how starch is used in the paper and board production process, the hazards it presents, as well the equipment and process variables of starch cooking.

•Identify the hazards present around starch cooking and make-down systems •Define "starch," "internal sizing," "surface sizing," "amylose," and "amylopectin" •Identify and describe the uses of starch in paper and board production processes •Describe cationic, anionic and amphoteric starches •List the ways starch can be delivered to a site •List the four things necessary to cook starch •Identify the equipment used in batch and continuous starch cooking processes •Identify key process variables for cooking starch •Identify and describe the primary process flows