Comments on the International Young Scientist Forum for Climate Change: Material innovations driving the future of sustainable fiber technologies

I thank the University of British Columbia Faculty of forestry for organising The Third International Young Scientist Forum for Climate Change with the theme of Sustainable Development through Bamboo Resources. It was a wonderful opportunity for me to learn so much from the bright materials scientists working hard to make lignocellulose a viable alternative in structural and functional applications that goes beyond just laminated wood.

INBAR’s successful promotion of bamboo in Asia as well as in Africa and parts of EU has positioned bamboo as one of the most valuable biomaterials that can help achieve sustainability goals while providing a source of income to rural communities.

Bamboo has proven itself as a highly flexible material that can not only help uplift communities by enabling them to build handmade products like window blinders but also technical products such as fibers and reinforced plastics.

As a rich source of lignocellulose bamboo has immense potential in revolutionising the textile industry by supplementing and even displacing cotton entirely. Traditional processes like viscose use toxic carbon disulfide to produce rayon but milder lyocell techniques are gaining importance.

Ozone treatment is an upcoming greener route that can provide flexible fiber production by control over oxidation rate followed by mechanical fibrillation to produce fibers ranging from mm in length down to a few nanometers.

Currently plastic matrices are used for reinforced composites but new developments in glass and oxidised carbon coatings (with epoxy,carbonyl and hydroxyl groups) can enable dense ,lightweight and waterproof structures that can replace the petroleum based plastics/resins enabling use of these fibers in any application where glass fibers are used traditionally; even allowing molding for making complex shapes.These coatings work by densifying the porous structure inherent to all cellulose fibers through microstructural refinement.

The focus of the forum was on bamboo materials and while bamboo is amazing it has one shortcoming. Certain colder regions including those in the EU,Canada and Russia are not suitable for bamboo growth. Hemp and flax helps to some extent but the real star in these regions could be a little known grass Eriophorum aka cottongrass[1]. It grows even in tundra climates in temp below freezing points at a yield of about 200-600kg/hectare in soils not suitable for cultivation of food crops. It's perennial, requires no fertilisers, regrows after the stem is harvested and is as close to free fiber as one can hope to get. Combined production of 100s of million of tonnes is possible. But what's even better, this hardy little crop growing to a max height of 80cm can easily satisfy local demands of the region.

Cellulose is often seen as a boring material with little potential beyond green agenda but it is important that researchers don't dismiss it as a whimsical biomaterial but rather develop processes around it. The paper and pulp industry has done the heavy lifting so far but it must be carried forward. Plasma ozone synthesis ,dispersion machines, cheap electrospinning equipment and carbon based coatings could unleash the true potential of cellulose.

[1]https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/graminoid/erivag/all.html

Akshat Jiwan Sharma

Strategy Consultant--Innovation/ Materials science/International relations/Telecommunications/Digital Transformation/Partnerships

Mobile/whatsapp:+919654119771

email:getellobed@gmail.com

Comments

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Do electrons really flow as a beam in cathode ray tubes?

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Notes by Akshat Jiwan Sharma

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