Improved uniformity of the fibers liberated in the kraft pulp digester
This project sets out to elucidate mass transport characteristics during delignification of wood chips as a means of understanding and controlling non-uniform delignification effects, associated to low efficiency and poor property control in the current pulping processes. To obtain information on local variations of delignification effect in a wood chip, the treated chips will be […]
Novel gels based on polysaccharides and polyphenols
This project will develop a new generation of functional hydrogels using cell wall polysaccharides and polyphenols from plant side streams, combining the material properties of the polysaccharides and the antioxidant properties of polyphenols. This project contributes to a circular biomass utilisation exploiting abundant by-products from agricultural production.
Hemicelluloses for fibre enzymatic modification
Our project focuses on hemicelluloses, as they play an important role within lignocellulosic biomass, interlocking cellulose microfibrils, and lignin. Hemicelluloses affect the mechanical properties of cellulose fiber surfaces by creating rigid and flexible domains. The vision of the project is to unlock the full potential of hemicelluloses in wood and open the way for a […]
In-situ polymerization of functional polymers within the fiber cell wall
In this project, the fiber wall is modified to enable diffusion of functional monomers and subsequent polymerization and crosslinking within the wet-fiber wall resulting in a stiff and elastic fiber-composite. The fibers are modified in a fully biobased system and the end material is biocompatible and degradable.
Enzymatic engineering of hemicellulose hydrogels
In this project we will engineer hemicellulose hydrogels using a wide range of enzymes, from oxidative laccases that introduce crosslinking to specific hydrolases that cleave selectively side chains from the hemicelluloses. We expect that the enzymatic treatments will modulate the network interactions in the hydrogels and the rheological properties. We will investigate the morphology and […]
Wood modification towards hierarchical catalyst
Electrocatalytic reaction is a green technology for sustainable energy conversion, materials design, environment remediation, and green chemistry, where the role of catalyst is essential. Hierarchical structures combining multi-scale pores are favorable due to combined high specific surface area, mass diffusion in the structure and accessibility to the surface. In nature, biological materials are much more […]
Förhorning av träfibrer
Projektet går ut på att genom experimentella studier bygga upp en kunskap kring förhorning av komponenterna i träfibrer. Förhorning är ett fenomen där, i nuläget praktiskt sett irreversibla, processer i samband med torkning förändrar fibrernas svällning och flexibilitet och därmed bindningsförmåga. Bindningsförmågan till andra fibrer har stor inverkan på hur starka fibernätverk kan skapas och […]
Wood-based barriers for wood-based materials
Paper/wood-based materials suffer from poor barrier and moisture-sensitive properties (left figure). By learning how nature (plants/fruits) create moisture and gas barriers, we have developed crosslinked barrier biopolyesters (representing the cutin layer in plants) with also a process that yields a rough wax-like outer layer, similar to what is observed in plants, giving high surface hydrophobicity […]
Physical Structure and Interactions between Lignin and its Surroundings
The aim of the project is to gain a deeper fundamental understanding of how the classical structural factors and unique morphology of lignin affects the interaction between lignin and lignin-based materials and its surroundings. The affect of chemical structure and morphology on the material performance of lignin-based materials will be investigated along with the behavior […]
Water based wood treatment
For a more sustainable production of wood aerogel, treatment with the water based solvent, NaOH, can give the wood template a porous structure in sub-zero conditions. However, it is found that the porosity of the wood templates treated with NaOH (aq) can be affected at room temperature conditions as well. Towards a greener aerogel production, […]
Digital Cellulose Center
Centrumet har en tvärvetenskaplig kompetens och infrastruktur för industridriven, excellent forskning inom området digital cellulosa. Genom strategisk kompetens och samarbetsstrukturer ska centrumet göra cellulosabaserade produkter till en integrerad del av ett hållbart, digitalt samhälle och bidra till en ökad tillväxt hos den deltagande industrin. Forskningen inom Digital Cellulose Center fokuserar på området digital cellulosa, där […]
Structure-properties relationship of covalently crosslinked cellulose networks
In this work, the structure-property relationship of covalently crosslinked cellulose networks is studied by utilizing surface modified cellulose nanofibrils and polymer links of defined structure and molecular weight. The effect of molecular weight, chemical functionality and concentration on specific surface area, swelling, and mechanical properties of the hydrogel networks will be investigated.
