Graphene application in bioadhesive for sustainable wood composite panels

Purpose and goal

The wood panel industry uses almost exclusively petroleum-based thermosetting adhesives, mainly formaldehyde-based. The low-cost and good adjustable properties of these adhesives have made it difficult for new bio-based alternatives to enter this market. However, stricter legislation on carcinogenic formaldehyde and consumer interest in healthy and sustainable products, have forced the wood industry to find alternatives to these toxic adhesives. Therefore, this project aims to develop a new efficient bio-based wood adhesive by employing the unique properties of graphene.

Expected effects and result

Considering the 12,3 million tonnes (on a dry base) consumption of urea-formaldehyde (UF) adhesive worldwide in 2020 and 600,000 tonnes of the annual consumption of IKEA alone for producing wood composite panels indicate the huge market potential. Therefore, developing sustainable wood composite panels with a high-performance graphene-based wood adhesive within this project expects to have a substantial influence on the market and provide a leading position for the Swedish graphene industry by expanding the usage of graphene and linking it with the wood panel industry.

Planned approach and implementation

This innovation project is carried out by the Forest Products Group at Linnaeus University (LNU) and the companies such as Bright Day Graphene (BDG), IKEA Industry, and Avantium. The research will be conducted by LNU, during a period of two years, through close collaborations between project partners for producing green graphene from lignin, developing bio-adhesive formulas, manufacturing and testing sustainable wood composite panels, and analyzing the relevant market and environmental impact of the wood composites prepared with new graphene-based bioadhesives.