Having had lignin (a woody substance in plants) removed or stripped away, making the material softer or more suitable for processing.
From de- (remove) + lignin (from Latin lignum, wood) + -ate (verb form) + -ed (past participle). The term emerged in 19th-century materials science and forestry to describe the chemical or mechanical removal of lignin from plant fibers.
Delignation is crucial in papermaking—removing lignin from wood pulp is what makes paper white and flexible rather than brittle and brown like cardboard. It's why paper mills use chemicals like bleach; they're essentially dissolving the glue that holds wood fibers together.
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