Swedish researchers combine polymer chemistry with carbon fiber composite technology to develop recyclable wood composites

Swedish researchers combine polymer chemistry with carbon fiber composite technology 

to develop recyclable wood composites

Plastics used in home décor and construction materials could be replaced with a new wood-based biodegradable plastic with semi-structural strength. Unlike thermoplastics, this material can be broken down without harming the environment, according to a recent report by Swedish researchers.

One of the goals in the development of renewable wood composites is to make the material strong enough to replace fossil-based materials used in home construction and furniture, such as bathroom cabinets, doors, wall panels and countertops. It needs to be sustainable or recyclable.

Biodegradability makes recycling possible," says Peter Olsén, a researcher at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. By degrading the plastic, the fibers can be recycled and the chemical components in the plastic can be reused."

High fiber content is key to the strength of materials such as glass fiber, but it is difficult to create a wood composite that is degradable without suffering intense thermal damage from processes such as melt lamination.

Olsén and the KTH researchers report that they have found a way to provide both high fiber content and degradability, Olsén said, "No one has previously been able to make degradable plastics with such high fiber content, along with good dispersion and low fiber damage. This results in a significant improvement in material properties compared to previous attempts."

KTH researcher Peter Olsén holds a sample of a new biodegradable plastic made from wood. "These new materials, with their high fiber content and degradability, are matrix materials that could change the rules of the circular materials economy in the future," he says.

To obtain the higher fiber content, the researchers combined polymer chemistry with process technology for carbon fiber composites. everything is based on cheap and available raw materials, Olsén said. The degradation products are also environmentally friendly and can be reused, realizing what Olsén calls "the concept of a fully recycled product. It can actually save trees. This leads to the recycling of wood fibers and thus to the transformation of materials," he says.

But in order to be commercialized, Olsén says the formula needs further optimization. "The key to this work is that it shows a new way how we can create degradable biocomposites with high fiber content," he said. Their findings were recently published in the scientific journal Nature Communications.