Abstract: Eucalyptus globulus is one of the hardwood species suitable for papermaking.The pulp yield is high and the alkali consumption is relatively low when kraft process is used.The pulping characteristics of E.globulus depend on their wood ages.In the present study, three kind of wood chips of E.globulus of 6, 10 and 18 years old were used in pulping experiment by chemical analysis in order to clarify the effect of wood age on chemical components and their pulping characteristics.The results showed that the sequence of pulp Kappa number obtained in the same condition is 6 years>10 years>18 years.However, the sequence of pulp yield obtained in the same condition is 18 years>10 years>6 years.It was found that 1% NaOH extractive content, holocellulose content, lignin content and neutral sugar composition were main factors influencing the pulping characteristics of wood chips with different wood ages.

Key words: Eucalyptus globulus, kraft pulping, neutral sugar