Accelerated design of solid bio-based foams for plastics substitutes

Isaac Y. Miranda-Valdez*, Tero Mäkinen, Sebastian Coffeng, Axel Päivänsalo, Luisa Jannuzzi, Leevi Viitanen, Juha Koivisto, Mikko J. Alava

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

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Abstract

Biobased substitutes for plastics are a future necessity. However, the design of substitute materials with similar or improved properties is a known challenge. Here we show an example case of optimizing the mechanical properties of a fully biobased methylcellulose-fiber composite material. We tackle the process-structure-property paradigm using Bayesian optimization with Gaussian process regression to map the processed material composition to the final mechanical properties of new bio-based solid foams. We exploited the fast-to-measure rheological properties of the liquid biofiber suspensions processed into foams to show how these collapse to an auxiliary sub-space of low dimensionality for design. The optimal compositions for methylcellulose-fiber foams shown here correspond to two distinct cases: high methylcellulose content for the formation of strong closed-cell foams, and high fiber contents with approximately equal amounts of methylcellulose for the formation of methylcellulose-bound fiber networks. The novel approach is transferable to other biobased foam compositions with different fibers and additives. This new approach allows the rational design of bio-based plastics replacements by encompassing desired final material properties, descriptors of materials processed, and knowledge of the process.

Original languageEnglish
JournalMaterials Horizons
DOIs
Publication statusE-pub ahead of print - 2024
MoE publication typeA1 Journal article-refereed

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  • BOMP: Aalto_R2B_Bayesian Optimization for Material Properties

    Alava, M. (Principal investigator), Mäkinen, T. (Project Member), Raukko, A. (Project Member), Koivisto, J. (Project Member), Vara, N. (Project Member), Holmström, M. (Project Member), Ngui, P. (Project Member), Mäntysaari, V. (Project Member), Mesh, A. (Project Member), Magar, S. (Project Member) & Qureshi, M. (Project Member)

    01/07/202431/12/2025

    Project: Business Finland: New business from research ideas (TUTLI)

  • CirPa: Aalto-R2B-Circular Panels

    Alava, M. (Principal investigator), Mäkinen, T. (Project Member), Ranta, R. (Project Member), Kokkonen, V. (Project Member), Koivisto, J. (Project Member), Miranda Valdez, I. (Project Member), Mobredi, K. (Project Member), Lejon, J. (Project Member), Raukko, A. (Project Member), Shaikh, A. (Project Member), Ahmad, O. (Project Member), Hartikka, A. (Project Member), Magar, S. (Project Member), Vara, N. (Project Member) & Bhattarai, A. (Project Member)

    01/01/202330/06/2024

    Project: Business Finland: New business from research ideas (TUTLI)

  • TUTL FoamWood: Manufacturing novel bio-based Woodlike foams by a continuous forming process

    Alava, M. (Principal investigator), Puisto, A. (Project Member), Olsio, S. (Project Member), Karjalainen, A. (Project Member), Mohammed, A. (Project Member), Mäkinen, T. (Project Member), Ranta, R. (Project Member), Koivisto, J. (Project Member) & Jannuzzi Fonseca, L. (Project Member)

    01/01/202130/06/2022

    Project: Business Finland: New business from research ideas (TUTLI)

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