Upscaling of natural plastic alternatives: towards a sustainable industry
The extensive use of fossil-based plastic around the world is accelerating climate change. The global life cycle GHG emissions of fossil-based plastics were 1.7 Gt of CO2 equivalent in 2015 and would reach 6.5 Gt CO2 equivalent by 2050 if the current plastic demand trend were to continue. However, legislations and consumers are pushing the […]
Colloidal properties of nanocellulose dispersions
The project aim is to control the stability and orientation of nanocellulose particles, by understanding the fundamental colloidal interactions between them in aqueous media. The information will then be used to create ordered and self-organized structures from nanocellulose dispersions. This knowledge is of great importance, since many nanocellulose based materials today are produced directly from […]
Conducting polymers-modified wood composites
In this project, we used different conducting polymers to impregnate the wood. Our goal is to create a pathway for studying the nano/microscopic structure of the conductive wood and the interactions between the wood components and the conducting polymer matrix. . In detail, we mainly focus on the difference of crystallinity and the orientation of […]
Multi scale modeling of the delignification kinetics during kraft cooking
The kraft process is today the dominant industrial technology for the production of pulp from wood.In this process, wood chips are boiled with chemicals in order to dissolve lignin, hemicellulose andextractives. The process itself contains several complex mass transport mechanisms, where thechemicals are to be transported into the wood chip and then further into the […]
Polysaccharide Monooxygenases (LPMOs) for Advanced Nanocellulose Materials
LPMOs (lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases) are oxidative enzymes that enhance cellulose fibrillation by introducing charged carboxyl groups onto the cellulose surfaces in aqueous reaction conditions. The use of LPMOs in production of nanocelluloses could reduce the need of hazardous chemicals and facilitate more environmentally friendly processes. The aim of this subproject is to produce recombinant LPMOs […]
Assessment of the homogeneity of chemical modifications aimed for thermoplasticisation of cellulosic fibres
The strong driving force behind the sustainable biomaterial-based society is to replace the fossil fuel-based materials with renewable resources to for example address the climate change. Thermoplastic polymer products are used on a daily bases in every household and they need to possess the properties such as being ductile and formable. However, cellulosic materials do […]
Bio-based binders for molded cellulose fibers
Natural binders are inexpensive, biodegradable, environmentally friendly and renewable, but usually form weaker bonds and slightly harder to apply. The objective of the project is to develop and optimize the process of using various plant polysaccharides as binder for holocellulose fibers and cellulose nanofibrils (CNF). The selected polysaccharides are further functionalized to improve interfacial adhesion […]
A new sustainable route to polysaccharide hydrogel formation for medical and cosmetic applications
Hydrogels are an extremely versatile class of material, and have found relevance in cosmetic, medical, pharmaceutical, and industrial processes. A hydrogel has a low solid content, often comprising at least 90% water. Although hydrogels are increasingly used in cosmetics and drug manufacture, the production process is far from sustainable, relying on fossil-based polymers and chemical […]
Enhancing the stability of biomass-processing enzymes
We are investigating the basis of (thermo)stability in bacterial biomass-processing enzymes, and will use this information to engineer stability into enzymes of interest in the wood biorefinery.
Cross-linked protein-carbohydrate hydrogels
Using newly discovered carbohydrate-binding proteins, we are developing a novel method for hydrogel formation via biopolymer cross-linking.
Wood cell walls on the nano level
The aim of the project is to obtain information about the nanoscale distribution of the constituents in wood cell walls, such as cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. To reach our aim we will use a novel infrared microscopy technique (nano FTIR microscopy) with the unique ability to provide chemical information with a spatial resolution of 20 […]
Self-assembly of 2D nanoflakes by using 1D cellulose nanofibrils
The earth-abundant 1D cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) have shown the capacity to assemble different functional nanoparticles into 2D films and 3D foams. 2D nanomaterials such as MXene, graphene, transitional metal dichalcogenides (MoS2, WS2, etc.) are the ones of most promising functional materials in optical, electronic, and magnetic fields. We are using the 1D CNF to align […]
