Wood foam offers a renewable, environmentally friendly insulation solution
Internationally, building regulations are demanding increased energy efficiency and sustainability, often via a carbon foot print requirement. Wall and roof insulation is a key factor in lowering energy consumption and running costs.
Commonly used insulation materials include expandable foams, foam panels or fibre batts based on petrochemical plastics. Affordable and easy to produce, these are good insulators but they are not particularly environmentally friendly and their source materials are not renewable.
Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Wood Research, Wilhelm-Klauditz-Institut, WKI in Braunschweig have developed a method for creating foam from wood particles.
“Our wood foam can be used in exactly the same way as conventional plastic spray foams, but is an entirely natural product made from sustainable raw materials,” explains Professor Volker Thole of the WKI.
The foam is made by grinding wood very finely until the tiny wood particles become a slimy mass. Then gas is added to this suspension to expand it into a frothy foam that is then hardened. The hardening process is aided by natural substances contained in the wood itself. In an alternative method, specific chemical processes are used to produce the final product.
“It’s a bit like baking, when the dough rises and becomes firm in the oven,” Professor Thole explains. Wood foam is a lightweight base material that can then be made into rigid foam boards and flexible foam mats.
The Braunschweig-based scientists are currently experimenting with different types of wood to discover which tree species make the best basis for their product. Furthermore, they are working out suitable processes for mass-producing wood foams on an industrial scale. This innovative material could also be used in areas other than insulation, such as packaging. Packing materials made from wood foam would provide a long-term alternative to expanded polystyrene.
Read more here: http://www.fraunhofer.de/en/press/research-news/2014/march/effective-thermal-insulation.html