> The production of transparent wood from the delignification process vary study by study. However, the basics behind it are as follows: a wood sample is drenched in heated (80 °C–100 °C) solutions containing sodium chloride, sodium hypochlorite, or sodium hydroxide/sulfite for about 3–12 hours followed by immersion in boiling hydrogen peroxide.[15] Then, the lignin is separated from the cellulose and hemicellulose structure, turning the wood white and allowing the resin penetration to start. Finally, the sample is immersed in a matching resin, usually PMMA, under high temperatures (85 °C) and a vacuum for 12 hours.[15] This process fills the space previously occupied by the lignin and the open wood cellular structure resulting in the final transparent wood composite.
How could transparent wood production methods be sustainably scaled?
Is the lignin extracted in transparent wood production usable for valorization?
> Most of the research on lignin valorization has been done on lignin from pulp and paper industries (Bruijnincx et al., 2015, Reshmy et al., 2022) The advantage of using lignin from those facilities is that the resource is already centralized and the transportation costs to further process are significantly less
> The production of transparent wood from the delignification process vary study by study. However, the basics behind it are as follows: a wood sample is drenched in heated (80 °C–100 °C) solutions containing sodium chloride, sodium hypochlorite, or sodium hydroxide/sulfite for about 3–12 hours followed by immersion in boiling hydrogen peroxide.[15] Then, the lignin is separated from the cellulose and hemicellulose structure, turning the wood white and allowing the resin penetration to start. Finally, the sample is immersed in a matching resin, usually PMMA, under high temperatures (85 °C) and a vacuum for 12 hours.[15] This process fills the space previously occupied by the lignin and the open wood cellular structure resulting in the final transparent wood composite.
How could transparent wood production methods be sustainably scaled?
Is the lignin extracted in transparent wood production usable for valorization?
"Lignin valorization: Status, challenges and opportunities" (2022) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S09608... :
> Most of the research on lignin valorization has been done on lignin from pulp and paper industries (Bruijnincx et al., 2015, Reshmy et al., 2022) The advantage of using lignin from those facilities is that the resource is already centralized and the transportation costs to further process are significantly less