Research of Wood Waste as a Potential Filler for Loose-Fill Building Insulation: Appropriate Selection and Incorporation into Polyurethane Biocomposite Foams.

Nerijus Augaitis,Saulius Vaitkus,Agnė Kairytė,Sylwia Członka

doi:10.3390/ma13235336

Nerijus Augaitis, Saulius Vaitkus + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/ma13235336

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Abstract

Currently, the recycling potential of wood waste (WW) is still limited, and in a resource efficiency approach, recycling WW in insulation materials, such as polyurethane (PUR), appears as an appropriate solution. It is known that the quality of WW is the main aspect which influences the stability of the final products. Therefore, the current study analyses different WW-based fillers as possible modifiers for polyurethane biocomposite foams for the application as loose-fill materials in building envelopes. During the study of WW-based fillers, it was determined that the most promising filler is wood scobs (WS) with a thermal conductivity of 0.0496 W/m·K, short-term water absorption by partial immersion—12.5 kg/m2, water vapour resistance—0.34 m2·h·Pa/mg and water vapour diffusion resistance factor—2.4. In order to evaluate the WS performance as a filler in PUR biocomposite foams, different ratios of PUR binder and WS filler (PURb/WS) were selected. It was found that a 0.40 PURb/WS ratio is insufficient for the appropriate wetting of WS filler while a 0.70 PURb/WS ratio produced PUR biocomposite foams with the most suitable performance: thermal conductivity reduced from 0.0523 to 0.0476 W/m·K, water absorption—from 5.6 to 1.3 kg/m2, while the compressive strength increased from 142 to 272 kPa and the tensile strength increased from 44 to 272 kPa.

Highlights

Environmental consciousness has led to an increase of interest in the development of more sustainable and environmentally friendly materials from renewable resources which could replace the traditional ones
Biocomposite foams which are processed without any additional loading, the average values of biocomposite foams which are processed without any additional loading, the average values of thermal thermal conductivity for each filler are presented based on their measured bulk density (Figure 1)
The current research has shown that wood scobs (WS) filler is characterised as the most suitable for building insulation properties with thermal conductivity—0.0496 W/m·K, short-term water absorption by partial immersion—12.5 kg/m2, water vapour resistance—0.34 m2 ·h·Pa/mg and water vapour diffusion resistance factor—2.4

Summary

Introduction

Environmental consciousness has led to an increase of interest in the development of more sustainable and environmentally friendly materials from renewable resources which could replace the traditional ones. For this reason, green building strategies can be extremely efficient in terms of fossil fuel savings and greenhouse gas reduction [1]. Wood waste (WW) causes an important economic and environmental issue. WW is highly biodegradable and attacked by microorganisms and insects, which shortens its service life. In order to extend its service life and increase its durability, wood is modified by physical or chemical methods.

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