Oriented Strand Composites Impacts - USDA WUR funding at the University of Maine has been has been heavily leveraged over the l

University of Maine. Wood Utilization Research Impact Statements 2008-2009

Project Director: Professor Barry Goodell (goodell@umit.maine.edu)

Faculty Co-PIs: Professor Barbara Cole, Professor Habib Dagher, Professor Douglas Gardner, Professor Jody Jellison and Professor Stephen Shaler

Oriented Strand Composites Impacts - USDA WUR funding at the University of Maine has been has been heavily leveraged over the last several years to help build the Advanced Engineered Wood Composites (AEWC) Center's oriented strand composites research program into a national leader. Impacts in this area include:

•$4.5 Million Leveraged State Funding - The largest impact was the use of research results to successfully convince the voters of the State of Maine to approve a bond, which allowed for the expansion of the AEWC laboratory to include an Oriented Strand Composites Pilot Line. In addition to $1.5 million to expand the building, close to $2 million has been secured and spent on equipping the facility with a log tank, strander, screener, dryer, resin blender and forming line.

•$340,000 in Industrial Contracts to Improve Industry Competitiveness - Major upgrades to the 4' x 8' press were made, making the line near-industrial in scale, capable of making full-size panels for testing. The pilot line is now being used to leverage additional funds, including a recent request for $5 million to purchase a steam-injection press for thick-strand composites. Such capabilities, along with published results from work conducted on the pilot line, are wholy responsible for a major increase in industrial contract work related to strand-based composites, totalling more than $340,000 since April 2005.

•Helping US Industries Grow and Withstand Foreign Competition - Support a $150 million Industry Investment -This type of collaboration with industry is essential in ensuring that the research is industrially applicable, providing opportunties for commercial successes, especially in the rural areas of Maine where the wood-based industry is in a period of transition. A prime example is the conversion of Louisiana Pacific's OSB mill in Houlton, ME to OSL, a $150 million dollar investment. LP's first boards will be coming to the AEWC Center for testing, and talks are underway to increase collaboration in terms of research related to oriented strand composites. These successes are due in great part to WUR funding, and future WUR projects will surely be leveraged in similar ways, allowing for excellent return on investment.

Wood Panels Are Superior for Energy Conservation - Thermal properties of panels used for house construction have been measured for the first time in decades. The updated data are being used for thermal efficiency calculations and show that wood panels are clearly superior to panels made of other materials and are now more efficient than ever for the thousands of wood-based structures manufactured annually.

WUR 07-09

Research Helps Protect the Health of Northern Sawmill Workers - Particulate measurements from sawmills show that the 40,000-50,000 workers in the Northern states exposed are not at risk. The first-ever measurements in Northern sawmills have shown levels of particulates well below levels considered hazardous.

Mold Resistance Testing Provides Protects Citizen’s Health and Improves Wood Products - Mold resistance testing provided for two Maine companies. This durability evaluation helps companies developing new wood and wood fiber based value added products.

Environmental Clean-up and Adhesives from Forest Bioproducts – A new patent has been awarded, Goodell, B. and J. Jellison. Oxidation using a non-enzymatic free radical system mediated by redox cycling chelators. This work permits new ways of generating oxygen radicals that can be used to clean up organic pollutants. The same oxygen radicals have been used to activate lignin and to make new adhesives and bond together composite products. It has been conservatively estimated that the global market for hazardous waste remediation technologies was worth about $11.4 billion in 2006 and $16.6 billion by 2011. Chemical treatment’s share of the remediation market is around 18%. The oxidation process developed in this patent is one of the most effective technologies in the chemical treatment segment.

Making Nanotechnology More Affordable – Carbon nanotubes have unique properties which include: strength 100 times greater than steel, the ability to conduct electricity 1,000 times better than copper or silver, and a unique ability to function as a vessel for targeted drug delivery in the body. The global carbon nanotube market has been estimated to exceed $1.9 Billion by 2010. One problem though is their very high cost of about $100 per gram. A new method to produce carbon nanotubes from wood fiber promises to produce lower cost carbon nanotubes than is possible using other methods.

More Durable Composites - Evaluation of decay resistance of composites made from hemicellulose extracted wood fiber suggests improved durability properties. This work is part of a natural products-based biorefinary approach which will enable companies to extract more value from the wood bio-resource.

First prize awarded by the Federation of European Microbiologists at the 2007 Biodegradation of Wood and Wood Products International Conference, Riga, Latvia to UMaine students for a presentation by students Jason Oliver, Caitlin Howell and Anne-Christine Hastrop on basic mechanisms involved in wood degradation.

Bird Flue Treatments to Save Lives- UMaine researchers have developed methods to extract shikimic acid, the key ingredient for synthesis of Tamiflu^â, from conifer waste materials. Tamiflu is being stockpiled worldwide for treatment of bird flu and the price of shikimic acid has risen from $45 to $700 per kilogram due to its shortage and demand.

Wood Composite Panels Protect our Troops and Win Top National Awards - Modular Ballistic Protection System (MBPS), composite ballistic panels mounted to the inside of a standard army tent frame, received two of the composites’ industry’s highest awards from the American Composites Manufacturers Association (ACMA) in October 2007. The first award - The Best of Show Award - recognizes the finest composites product of the year; and the second ACMA award - the People’s Choice Award - is selected by ACMA convention attendees for exhibiting the highest degree of design, innovation, creativity and the best use of composite materials. MBPS was developed at the University of Maine in partnership with the U.S. Army Natick Soldier RD&E Center.

Blast-Resistant Wood Structures developed for military force protection, homeland security applications and strengthening residential and commercial structures in natural disasters – UMaine’s AEWC Center in partnership with the US Army Corps of Engineers has developed blast-resistant wood structures with coated wood framing members, panels and subassemblies. The coating unlocks energy that exists in wood in a novel manner which allows otherwise brittle wood to become ductile. These structures have undergone both laboratory and field-testing during FY 2008.

Maine’s Congressional Delegation lauds UMaine Wood Composites Projects - The AEWC Center hosted Senator Susan Collins and Congressman Michael Michaud at a press event unveiling a blast-resistant wood building and celebrating ACMA awards for the MBPS. (2/19/08) All four of Maine’s members of Congress offered congratulations for innovative product developments at this event.

Carbon Nanotubes from Wood Fiber - Patent Pending – A new method to produce carbon nanotubes from wood fiber has been filed as a patent application and it also offers some unique pathways to resolve technical problems associated with using nanotubes in structural composites and metals. The patent by UMaine Faculty and students is based on WUR research: Goodell, B; Xie, X, Qian, Y. Zhang, D, Peterson, M. Jellison, J. A method of producing carbon nanotubes using natural fiber as the starting substrate.

Demand for carbon nanotubes is increasing rapidly in electrical, mechanical and health & medical applications due to their unique mechanical, thermal, and electrical conductive properties.

UMaine to hold 4th International Conference on Advanced Engineered Wood & Hybrid Composites -This conference – July 6-10, 2008 – will have keynote speakers from APA – The Engineered Wood Association and the Institute for Mechanics of Materials and Structures – as well as a half-day seminar Trends in Green Building: Composite Materials which was developed in partnership with the Wood Based Composites Center (Virginia Tech).

Breakthrough Composites Technology Granted Patent - Researchers at the University of Maine’s Advanced Engineered Wood Composites Center have developed a new composite fabrication process that they hope will revolutionize the industry. Their method, the composites resin infusion system (ComPRIS) involves the use of applied pressure to infuse polymer resins into fabrics, wood, concrete, ceramics and other materials to produce stronger, more durable composites for the marine, automotive, construction industries and others.

UMaine Develops Use for Banned Lobster Float Rope in Wood Plastic Composites - The Advanced Engineered Wood Composites (AEWC) Center worked with the Gulf of Maine Lobster Foundation (GOMLF) to establish the feasibility of processing and recycling of polypropylene float rope currently used by the lobster industry but expected to be banned in the near future. This processed rope then becomes a constituent for the manufacture of wood plastic composites.

Millions of Dollars Saved by Pulp Mills Due to UMaine WUR Research - Reduction in toxic effluents and increases in yield at Maine pulp and paper mills resulting in savings of millions of dollars have been realized based on UMaine WUR research on oxygen delignification.

Biorefinery Research Identifies High Value Biopharmaceuticals - UMaine researchers have identified several high value pharmaceutical compounds in the unutilized wood, bark and foliage of pulp and paper species. Methods to isolate and purify these materials are being developed. The economic and environmental success of a forest biorefinery requires the production of high value materials and use of underutilized materials.

Commercializing New Composite Products – Wood-Nylon composites hold great promise for applications at high temperatures. This opens the door for use of wood fiber composites even in high temperature applications “under the hood” and in engine applications. Commercialization discussion are underway.

Educating Youth About the Many Modern Uses of Wood - Maine high school students, working with WUR scientists, conducted research on extraction of high-value pharmaceuticals from wood and foliage.

Highest Recognition from the Forest Products Society - Barry Goodell from UMaine was recognized by the Forest Products Society with the Gottschalk Award. The Gottschalk Award is the Forest Products Society's highest level of recognition of an individual that has served the Society with great distinction and dedication and is for exceptional service to the Forest Products Society and the profession. The award is in memory of Fred W. Gottschalk, the first president of the society, who died in a plane crash in Salt Lake City in 1965.