You can manufacture something seamlessly, without polluting or wasting energy, sustainably, as Nature does, by adopting energy-minimizing solutions. After all, sustainability is a property of the system, not an ingredient to be added at some point. A system endowed with sustainability should also be efficient, incorporating intelligence of its own that can, by adapting, produce the best operating conditions. We are talking about a sustainable, waste-free, and transparent system, with an optimal cost-benefit ratio. Such a system exists. It is called a tree: the sustainability factory.
A destiny made of trees
Firstly, using wood for building systems means using a renewable raw material by emphasizing the sustainability of the material and the production process. Wood has performance characteristics in construction. It returns a range of solutions in line with environmental comfort and sustainability. But wood is not only valuable for building systems.
It can be used to produce biomethanol, tall oil, turpentine, cellulose for the textile industry, bioproducts, and many other goods. These are just a few examples, but really you can use every part of a tree. And the purpose of the sustainability factory is to create greater benefits for everyone.
“Wood construction is an excellent way to add value to the forestry raw material of family forestry and to continue the green transition. Wood can store carbon for a long time and help gradually phase out building materials with a large carbon footprint,” said Lotta Lyrå, president of Sodra.
Wood construction is an excellent way to add value to the forestry raw material of family forestry and to continue the green transition. Wood can store carbon for a long time and help gradually phase out building materials with a large carbon footprint.
Materials for the future
A sustainability-oriented society also requires new ways of working and collaborating, as well as the search for new ways to make conscientious use of available natural resources. That is why the effort toward sustainability requires making the best possible use of raw materials, such as wood. Building a sustainable society right from the sustainability factories is possible.
Take lignin, for example. Lignin is the binder of the tree’s plant fibers. But it can also be much more. The product can be extracted, and prepared to create new binders for future uses. Thus, in addition to its many productive functions, it enables the replacement of materials derived from fossil fuels. It thus contributes to more environmentally friendly products in a progressive green transition, letting forest raw material work for climate and sustainability.
Lignin
Second, only to cellulose, lignin is the most common polymer in nature. Cellulose and lignin are the main components of forestry raw materials. They are used in the production of paper pulp and dissolved pulp. In paper mills, lignin is broken down during the baking process. This allows the fibers to be separated from each other and become pulp. This means that large volumes of lignin are generated in the production centers, millions of tons each year.
The lignin is then burned to generate steam and electricity to power the plants. And this is already a contribution to plant sustainability in line with ongoing efforts to increase efficiency and sustainability. But there is more. Lignin can be used not only from an energy perspective. It is actually a perfectly renewable raw material with a plethora of uses. Lignin is therefore a natural choice to invest in and study, in order to obtain the best handling and processing options.
A natural binder
Just as it occurs inside a tree, lignin today is mainly used as a binder in the chemical industry. And especially in different types of glue. But a much wider use of lignin is possible. Its phenolic structure is excellent as a base for chemicals and raw materials that currently rely on fossil fuels.
Lignin has been used for several decades for various applications, as a dispersant for concrete and drywall and as a binder in road stabilization and animal fodder. Now the second generation lignin, a kraft lignin, has arrived. The term kraft comes from German and literally means strength, and resistance. The availability of the material in this solid form offers many new opportunities.
Where can lignin be at its best? And how might lignin make a difference to the transition to a fossil-free society? For greater sustainability of the compartments in which it is applied?
Stability and sustainability
One promising application of lignin is its use as a substitute for bitumen. Bitumen is a key resource for building roads, roofing, and other structures. In general, traditional asphalt production emits large amounts of CO2 in addition to numerous other pollutants. Being an essential material, however, it is so far irreplaceable. Lignin is one of the most abundant natural polymers. Its chemical structure mirrors the structure of bitumen. So it could be used as an alternative to it in many applications. Textile fibers, moreover, can be recycled on a large scale, allowing for circular flows within industrial production. No part of the tree, in this way, will go to waste. Every component of building a highly sustainable society is very important. A society that will not depend on fossil materials, where even the factory should not be synonymous with pollution and environmental degradation.
For further reading: Lignin (sodra.com)
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