NE1037: Wood Utilization Research : Biofuels, Bioproducts, Hybrid Biomaterials Composites Production, and Traditional Forest Products
Statement of Issues and Justification
The NeedThe United States is the world's largest producer and consumer of forest products, with US consumption of wood exceeding our consumption of metals, plastics and masonry cement - combined - each year. The forest products industry is a major contributor to the nation's economy. In 2004, the US sold approximately $260 billion of wood products, which comprised about six percent of the total US manufacturing output, and directly employed more than one million employees nationwide. However, the American forest products manufacturing industry is facing stiff international competition. The volume and value of imported manufactured forest products is increasing annually. American jobs in many traditional wood and paper industry sectors are being lost, primarily to foreign competition. Because many forest products manufacturers are small-to-medium sized firms, and are located in rural areas or at the rural-urban interface, this foreign competition has also resulted in a disproportionate impact on rural economies. To remain competitive and to protect and expand our rural economies, American forest products producers must innovate.
Our current infrastructure and economy rely on foreign fossil-based fuels, power, and products, which presents a serious challenge to our economic stability and national security. The continuing and increasing consumption of fossil fuels also poses environmental challenges such as pollution and green house gas emissions. Viewed with a new perspective, these challenges also present excellent opportunities for the forest products industry. Our forests provide a vast storehouse of renewable domestic feedstock for production of biomass-derived fuels, power, and chemicals. Properly managed forests also provide important environmental benefits such as carbon sequestration, ecological balance, and wildlife habitats. The forests of our country have the potential to provide the biological resources needed to replace fossil-based energy and products with renewable, non-food based bio-energy resources and bio-products.
In President Bush's 2007 State of the Union address and the recently signed 2008 Farm Bill, significant changes were made in our energy policy to encourage the production of renewable and alternative fuels from non-food biomass. The Senate is expected to consider legislation to impose limits on greenhouse gas emissions and to allow companies to trade pollution credits. President Obama's administration is also expected to promote green energy initiatives. Significant scientific and engineering breakthroughs are required to realize the vision of replacing fossil-based energy and products with renewable bio-based fuels and products. At the same time, continued innovation in the use of biobased composites in construction and infrastructure applications, and development of advanced biomaterials requires efficient utilization of our forest-based resources. Research and educating students for the workforce are equally important if the US is to remain competitive in this traditional economic sector.
This project continues work initiated in NE 506. The objectives have been narrowed and focus on two interrelated areas: The development and application of innovative structural biomaterials from wood, lignocellulose and hybrid materials, and the production of new and innovative biofuels/biochemicals from wood.
Project goals include development of novel wood composites and hybrid wood, lignocellulose and polymer matrix composites. Research in this area requires initial study of the selection and harvesting of feedstock to define optimal processing methods for separating biomass that is best suited for use in structural biomaterials and biomass that will be used for conversion to biofuels and chemicals. Research on advanced engineered biocomposites is included to insure that this new feedstock can be used to produce new structural materials intended to optimize use of our native natural resources. Advancements in research on traditional wood products and composites, such as oriented strand board (OSB) and oriented strand lumber (OSL), will also be expanded, as will development of new polymer matrix composites and hybrid composites produced from inorganic/biomaterial mixtures. Additionally, we will seek novel applications for nanocomposite materials through the study of nanomaterials from wood, such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and cellulose nanofibers. Further, we will investigate the incorporation of nanoparticle fillers to enhance the strength and durability of composites, and explore the interfacial properties of composite materials at the nano scale to produce bio-based composites of greater strength.
Coupling the harvest and initial processing of biomass with the study of the production of nanomaterials and novel composites allows us to exploit unique opportunities in the area of biofuels and biochemical production from wood and lignocellulose biomass. One example is the extraction of hemicellulose from the furnish used in the production of OSB and other composite products. This wood furnish for products ranging from particleboard to OSB is produced with a large surface to volume ratio, providing an opportunity for ready extraction of compounds from the wood. Research shows that extracted strands used in the production of OSB actually offer some improved properties for panel production, encouraging extraction of a new feedstock for use in biofuels production [1]. In addition, we seek to develop efficient and environmentally benign biomass conversion processes for hemicellulose and other cellulosic by-products. Delignification processes using recyclable chemicals and select bioprocessing methods will be developed to produce lignin-free carbohydrates. Chemical and biological methods of pretreating and saccharifying lignocellulosic biomass for the production of fermentable sugars and new chemicals will be explored. Because most industrial ethanol production processes use only starch and glucose, modified fermentation processes and alternative technologies will be developed to efficiently ferment xylan-rich lignocellulosic materials for production of liquid and gas biofuels including bio-oil, ethanol and hydrogen.
In this collaborative multi-state research initiative, we will focus on two main areas: innovative structural biomaterials, and production of biofuel/biochemicals from wood. These areas encompass a very wide range of topics, from research on sustainable wood harvesting methods, production of value-added biomaterials including biofuels, bioconversion processes, fermentative processes, nano-technologies, new biocomposite product development. The value of working on solid structural biomaterials on the same multistate project with the development of liquid and gaseous fuels is that processing efficiencies can be achieved when byproducts or waste residues from one process are used for the other. Process efficiencies will be explored as part of all components of research undertaken in this proposal.
The overarching theme is development of novel and efficient uses for traditional forest products. Participation in this integrated research effort will extend the capabilities of several research groups at different universities, further our understanding of wood science and utilization, and ultimately reinvigorate our forest products industry through technological innovations in processes, materials, and markets.
The Importance of the Work
The importance of wood utilization research at the National level has been highlighted in a 2006 United States General Accountability Office report [2] that identified national needs and recognized that research and education in this field are crucial to ensuring proper utilization of wood, a important natural resource and our nation's most widely used structural material.
Over the last 50 years, the United States has become dependent on foreign energy sources. With our shrinking petroleum base, it is critical that we develop our own biobased resources and develop structural materials that reduce our reliance on foreign energy sources. Development of advanced engineered wood composites is critical because these materials can replace energy-intensive construction materials like steel and concrete. Further, the development of biobased adhesives will allow wood composites, and advanced hybrid composites to be bonded together using forest-based derivatives. Development of hybrid structural composite products using nanoparticle reinforced thermoplastics combined with underutilized hardwoods holds great potential. Biopolymers and bioplastics from wood and other lignocellulose resources is another area that researchers in this Hatch multistate project will focus on.
A multistate effort focusing on new methods to produce biofuels, bioproducts and polymers from woody biomass through biological and chemical processes is needed to help focus our wood utilization efforts in the US on areas linked to efficient, yet sustainable, forest resource utilization. Similarly, continued development of new bio-based composite materials and improvement of traditional harvesting and milling techniques compatible with these materials is vital to the future of building construction in America. The production of the next generation of building products in the US must be done in an energy efficient and environmentally sustainable, manner. It is also important that production be done locally and regionally to reduce the costs and energy consumption involved in transportation, and to help rebuild the American economy. This project will focus on wood utilization research in several states, linking varied research programs in collaborations designed to ensure efficient and sustainable forest resource utilization. Benefits in addition to a reduction in dependence on foreign oil include economic stability and growth, increased industrial capacity, job creation and development of green technologies.
Technical Feasibility of the Research
The technical feasibility of the proposed research is high, with well-developed facilities and highly skilled personnel in the participating University programs. Some example University programs highlight the type of facilities available for this multistate effort:
The University of Maine is a leader in the field of wood composites and biobased products. The 48,000-ft2, ISO-accredited Advanced Engineered Wood Composites Center at the University of Maine is a state-of-the-art facility for integrated composite-materials/structural-component development with in-house capabilities for developing a composite product or structure from the conceptual stage through research, manufacturing of prototypes, comprehensive testing and evaluation, code approval and commercialization. The Center contains laboratories for composite materials manufacturing science, polymer/interface science, environmental-durability testing, mechanical testing, nondestructive evaluation (NDE), advanced microscopy, and large-scale multi-degree-of-freedom static and dynamic structural testing. The Center also houses two pilot plants: a Wood Plastic Composites Pilot Plant and an OSB/OSL Pilot Plant. It is currently undergoing a 12,000ft2 expansion with focused activities on nanocomposites and composites for renewable energy production
West Virginia is the third most heavily forested state with 12 million acres of forestland and more than 80% of its land in forest coverage. West Virginia has been successful in attracting wood products industries that use new technologies to better utilize Appalachian hardwoods. The West Virginia University Division of Forestry and Natural Resources has been leading the way in research and extension efforts that meet the needs of private and public sectors in West Virginia. West Virginia University provides research leadership to the forest products sector in the Appalachian region and increases the success of the primary processing and manufacturing sectors of the wood products industry.
The University of Tennessee has extensive research programs to serve agriculture and forestry producers. The Tennessee Forest Products Center is the only such full-time research facility among U.S. university programs. Undergraduate and graduate students are included in the research programming of the Center and gain valuable experience in conducting research. The Tennessee Forest Products Center houses a new 10,000 sq. ft. facility, which contains 3-1200 sq. ft. processing labs, a 30-person training facility, 3-500 sq. ft. wet labs, 1-500 sq. ft. PLC room, and offices for faculties and graduate students.
The University of Kentucky has an active research and extension program in wood utilization. The Robinson Forest is one of the largest research and educational forests in the United States, and is managed for research, teaching, and extension education by the University of Kentucky, Department of Forestry. In addition, the Wood Utilization Center in Kentucky was established in 1963, and has a 14,000 square foot facility that contains an industrial hardwood furniture manufacturing laboratory, with teaching space and a 10,000 board foot hardwood lumber dry kiln.
The University of Minnesota has a history of wood science related research and education dating back to the 1920s. Similar to other participating academic units nation wide, it is home to the Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering (BBE; formerly called the Department of Forest Products in the College of Natural Resources) and Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI). The wood and forest products research in the BBE Department is primarily conducted in Kaufert Laboratory of Forest Products and Wood Science in St. Paul, which houses the Biofuels and Bioproducts Innovation Laboratory which has extensive biomass characterization and analytical facilities, biomass thermo-chemical and biochemical conversion capabilities, fungal culture laboratory certified by the American Type Culture Collection, Advanced Bio-based Materials Characterization Lab, basic particle-composite manufacturing facilities, and controlled environment laboratories. The University of Minnesota Imaging Center, Rheology Lab and Characterization Facility at the Twin Cities campus have state-of-the-art material characterization equipment and can be accessed at reasonable user fees, with experts available to provide assistance on equipment training and/or data interpretation.
The NRRI facility in Duluth Minnesota houses among others pilot plants for wood materials and composite making and testing.
Advantages of Conducting the Work as a Multi-State Effort
Multi-disciplinary research is needed to improve our understanding of the fundamentals of the key mechanisms for biomass production and conversion and to develop economically viable biofuels. At the same time, continued research is needed to advance composite technologies, particularly nano reinforcement of biobased products, to permit the wood products industry to remain competitive. However, research efforts in these areas are currently fragmented. The advantage of conducting this research as a Multistate Hatch project is that the synergistic effects of the larger group of researchers, who will share knowledge within related projects, will allow greater productivity and efficiency than could be achieved at any one of the University programs alone. Funding will permit the exchange of researchers and students from each of the programs, and facilitate the attendance of meetings where researchers from all Universities can share research results and discuss future research directions. In the proposed collaborations, shared research facilities and collaborative research would result in substantial cost savings to the participating Universities. As one example, the University of Tennessee does not have appropriate facilities for the development of pilot scale wood plastic composites (WPCs), hybrid composite materials composed of wood particles and polymers, which have seen a very large market acceptance in recent years. The University of Maine has State-of-the-Art pilot scale facilities for WPC production. University of Tennessee researchers have now been able to develop their research ideas and see the fruition of their bench chemistry results translated into large-scale products through collaboration with the University of Maine. This is just one example of the synergies that will be developed through the support of a joint multistate project in this area.
The Likely Impact of the Successful Completion of the Work
It is anticipated that completion of this multistate research project will bring together some of the best research minds and facilities for research on wood and biobased products in the United States. It is anticipated that the program will include participation from 17 States, from Hawaii to Maine and Alaska to Louisiana. The completed multistate research effort in this area will provide a comprehensive view of forest utilization, ranging from an improved understanding of utilization of southern pine and bottomland hardwoods in the south, to broader applications for underutilized species in the spruce fir forests of the north, and Douglas-fir in the west.
Through participation in this integrated multistate research effort, we hope to extend our capabilities allowing the participating University programs to contribute to an enhanced understanding of wood science and utilization. Even though each University program will focus on specific wood species and research projects, the basic understanding that will be developed in subfields ranging from wood processing for composites, to sustainable harvesting techniques, to biochemical and microbial processing will be transferable to the specific systems being researched at other member institutions. Sharing of the information through this proposed multistate Hatch project will foster streamlined relationships between the participating programs and it will provide the framework needed for collaborative research to be conducted by all University programs.
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