Nanocellulose has emerged as a valuable addition to construction and building materials, contributing to improved strength and environmental benefits in a host of products.

One example is particle board bound with cellulose nanofibrils (CNF) rather than a formaldehyde-containing synthetic resin. The product made with CNF tests higher for fracture toughness and sequesters carbon and oxygen for its life span — typically decades. Eliminating the use of formaldehyde, a known human carcinogen, erases concerns about potentially harmful off-gassing in a product used widely in furniture and countertops.

91¸£Àû holds a patent for the process to make particle board with CNF, and a similar process could be used to create composite fiber board for insulation and other composite wood products; lighter, stronger alternatives to traditional drywall; binders for paint that would reduce the need for petroleum-based binders and more.

91¸£Àû researchers are exploring these and other possibilities along with public and private partners. Work led by Dr. Mehdi Tajvidi involves collaborations with several companies on products, including a scratch-, fire- and water-resistant flooring system made of CNF and cement. Tajvidi also is developing nanocellulose construction technology as part of P3Nano, a public-private partnership founded by the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities and the U.S. Forest Service.

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Biomaterials that address existing and emerging challenges in human health are in high demand, and this is another area in which nanocellulose shows real promise.

One of many health care-related solutions that researchers at the University of Maine, led by Dr. Michael Mason, are developing is a nanocellulose composite material for use in orthopedics that promotes the growth of strong natural bone while safely dissolving over time, eliminating the need for metal devices that can be expensive, dense, stiff, prone to infection, and often require costly follow-up surgeries for removal. The nanocellulose composite developed at 91¸£Àû, by contrast, is a cost-effective, customizable, resorbable, porous platform biomaterial with the potential to help optimize the healing process for patients. It could be used as a synthetic bone, surgical bone scaffold, or bone grafting implement, designed for dissolution and gradual replacement with native bone cells.

The affordability of the CNF material is attractive in itself, but the value proposition becomes significant when combined with the potential cost savings that would be realized by eliminating follow-up surgeries. The U.S. market for orthopedic fixation devices is around $4.6 billion, annually, servicing approximately 11 million individuals. Clinical studies show that of the approximately 11 Million fixation surgeries every year, more than 15 percent of patients require removal of the metal device, in a second surgery, due to mechanical complications, osteoarthritis, infection, or nonunion of bone. These approximately 2 million procedures cost tens of thousands of dollars each and cost hospital systems billions of dollars annually. This material system could also serve as an alternative to existing bone graft materials, which often are derived from cadaver. This global market is approaching $10 billion annually. In this space, physicians identify a need for lower cost, less brittle yet stiff, materials that promote bone in-growth and speed the healing process. 

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As nanocellulose is commonly extracted from wood pulp fibers, some of the earliest applications have involved nanocelluose in papermaking – both adding the material to the furnish (the raw materials used for papermaking in liquid form), as well as adding it to the top of the sheet.

Researchers and companies have found that the addition of nanocellulose increases the strength of the paper. This has allowed some companies to remove a small amount of fiber, yet maintain performance. Nanocellulose can be produced on site at a paper manufacturer, using their source material. It’s not about using less fiber, but making better us of the fiber that is already there.

When adding a small amount (less than six grams per square meter) of 91¸£Àû cellulose nanofiber (a type of nanocellulose) to the surface of paper, dramatic improvements can be seen in the porosity. Using traditional industry paper tests, air porosity decreases by orders of magnitude. Researchers at companies and at 91¸£Àû are investigating how these top-layer or surface applications can be used to introduce new paper grades with improved barrier properties, with the goal of competing with plastics.

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