Design of biochar from residual streams – influence of fuel and process parameters on biochar properties for water and soil applications

Biochar can be used in many applications, including water treatment and soil improvement. The properties of biochar are affected by the conditions during production. In this project, the influence on the properties of the biochar at different process conditions is investigated through the gasification of residual streams from both the forestry and agricultural sectors. The […]

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 […]

Soft highly swelling fibres by alkali-activated chemical modification 

To make cellulose fibres more flexible and malleable, components inside the fibre must be properly modified, that is, the lignin, hemicellulose or cellulose needs to be at least partly transformed into a proper derivative. Several cellulose derivatives are today produced through chemical reactions that involves formation of ether bonds. To reach sufficient efficiency, these reactions […]

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 […]

Cellulosed based foams for water purification

We have designed foams which are built only from green components and can be prepared in up-scalable and easy manner: blending and oven-drying. Amyloid nanofibrils are used mainly as a foaming agent and cellulose nanofibrils are playing the role of the main visco-elastic stabilizer. We also use covalent cross-linking to enhance foam resistance towards capillary […]