Introduction of research on sustainable and environmentally friendly wood-based materials

Abstract

Wood-based materials are used for construction and furniture etc. The demand is expected to increase due to population growth and economic development. Wood-based materials are considered as sustainable material because wood is the main raw material. However, adhesives are indispensable when manufacturing those, and almost wood adhesives are made from chemicals derived from fossil resources. In recent years, breaking away from dependence on fossil resources has become an important global issue. One of the purposes of this work is to develop bio-based adhesives with simple preparation, low dependence of fossil resources and high adhesiveness. Novel bio-based adhesives using citric acid and/or sucrose are being researched. On the other hand, considering significant decrease of global forest area, alternative raw components for wood-based materials is desperately needed in the future. Un-utilized lignocellulosic biomass such as agricultural wastes would be promising for these. The utilization of agricultural wastes also contributes to carbon fixation of lignocellulosic biomass. Now, researchers at the Laboratory of Sustainable Materials are interested in developing new wood-based materials that combine agricultural wastes with bio-based adhesives. These efforts will make wood-based materials more sustainable and environmentally friendly.