Preparation of Hydrophobic Optically Transparent Wood via An Efficient UV-Assisted Route

Abstract

In the context of the double carbon goal, the green, low-carbon and environmentally friendly modern wood construction market is promising and is expected to be further promoted and applied in the construction market. Optically transparent wood is a new building light-transmitting material with excellent performance, designed to reduce the energy consumption of buildings. An efficient and green method for the preparation of hydrophobic optically transparent wood is proposed in this study, in which its microstructure, chemical composition, surface wettability and optical properties are investigated. Hydrophobic optically transparent wood (90% light transmission, 80% haze, 130° water contact angle) with identical optical properties on the positive and negative sides was obtained by UV-assisted hydrogen peroxide treatment of natural wood to remove lignin chromogenic groups in situ, followed by dipping the epoxy resin into the wood substrate template and finally combining it with PDMS low surface energy modifications on the surface. The scanning electron microscopy and chemical composition analysis showed that the epoxy resin was successfully immersed in the internal pores of the wood and exhibited a homogeneous interface with the wood cell walls. All results confirm that this optically transparent wood preparation method is effective, and the resulting hydrophobic optically transparent wood is a new wood composite alternative material with excellent optical and hydrophobic properties, which broadens the application area of traditional wood and offers potential applications in energy-efficient buildings, smart windows and solar cells.