Smart assembly of wood polymers for multifunctional advanced materials

Background: Answering the call for sustainability, there is growing demand to develop bio-based materials from renewable sources. Lignin, as the second-most abundant biopolymer, has great potential to valorize industrial side streams to replace many fossil-based materials. However, its inherent heterogeneity and complex structure have hindered commercialization of lignin, resulting in the majority of it being burned for energy production.
We valorize poorly soluble lignin into a colloidal lignin nanoparticle (CLP) suspension by tailoring their surface properties, showing great potential for lignin utilization. CLPs are an integral component in this research, enabling us to develop multiphase systems thanks to their tunable surface and amphiphilic properties.

Aim of the project: The primary aim of this project is to provoke well-defined functionalized, bio-based materials for large-volume commercial applications, such as nanocomposites and foams, by unravelling the interfacial properties of wood-based resources and renewable polymers as well as their colloidal assembly, addressing the important scientific challenges in colloid and interface science. To achieve this ambitious goal, we use our expertise in colloid and surface chemistry. We rationally design emulsion-based systems by controlling the interfacial interactions
between wood polymer building blocks. Generated colloidal systems can be used as a platform to fabricate biomaterials for a varied range of applications with additional bioactivity and competitive mechanical performance compared to synthetic materials. This strategy allows us to avoid excessive chemicals and treatments that facilitate the sustainable use of wood components originated from Finnish natural resources, thus bringing positive societal impacts for the development of high value-added materials.