50 Shades of Wood Chemistry: Novel Materials from Ligno-Nanocellulose

Scientists at the Chair of Organic Chemistry are exploring ways to create innovative and sustainable materials from wood components.

At the Wood Chemistry and Lignin Laboratory of the Chair of Organic Chemistry, a new research and development project, „Puidu biomassi molekulaarne väärindamine pürgimaks väärtusahela tippu“ (Enhancing the molecular value of wood biomass to climb the value chain), was launched at the end of 2024. The project is being carried out in collaboration with Estonian and international companies.

Wood consists of three biopolymers: cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Traditionally, wood processing has mainly focused on cellulose, which is used for producing paper and packaging materials, while lignin is mostly burned. However, modern biorefining technologies enable the fractionation of all wood components, allowing the production of various products, such as wood sugars, microcrystalline cellulose, or lignin, which can be further refined into bio-based chemicals and materials.

One intermediate product of biorefining is a mixture of lignin and microcrystalline cellulose. Research results show that ultrasound technology can be used to create novel nanomaterials with unique properties from this mixture, such as hydrogels and aerogels. Junior researcher Anete Aunbaum noted that nanocellulose films containing lignin are stronger, antimicrobial, oxygen- and UV-resistant, making them excellent materials for food packaging.

Exploring the valorization of lignin-cellulose mixtures helps in developing new biomaterials to replace fossil-based materials, enhances the sustainability of wood biorefining, and provides valuable insights for optimizing the properties of new products more flexibly.