TAPPI UM 256:2015

Water retention value is a measure of the water retained by a wet pulp specimen after centrifuging under standard conditions.

Water retention value can be a useful tool in evaluating the performance of pulps relative to dewatering behavior on the paper machine. The usefulness of the method on a particular application may vary depending on type of stock, additives, machine configuration and other factors. The method is established to provide standard values of centrifugal force, time of centrifuging, and sample preparation so that results can be compared between investigators at standard values.