The wonderful wizards of wood
Clever chemistry can turn humble timber into a sustainable material with many uses, Kit Chapman finds
Despite an estimated 15 billion trees cut down every year – for lumber, paper or pulp – the lumber industry has largely overlooked the potential of the chemical makeup of its raw material. The chemistry of wood varies depending on the type of tree, but, generally speaking, is relatively straightforward. Wood is largely cellulose and hemicellulose, as well as more lignins, a series of complex organic polymers. These molecular chains weave into elementary fibres, nanofibres, then fibre bundles about 50µm in diameter.
Groups around the world are turning wood into anything from elastic rubber-like toys to bulletproof armour or construction materials as strong as steel.