The great promise of obtaining a stronger material than steel

Inventwood, a company that emerged at Maryland University, The Superwood Commercial Manufacture will begin After seven years of development.

The material, invented by the scientist Liangbing Hu In 2018, it has 50% more tensile strength than steel and a ten-times higher resistance ratio.

Why is it important. The construction industry generates high CO2 emissions: producing a ton of steel emits almost two tons of carbon dioxide.

This supermadera not only eliminates these emissions, but carbon capture when manufactured with sustainable farm wood. In addition, it offers natural resistance to fire, humidity, termites and fungi without chemical additives.

The context. What began as an academic discovery documented in Nature In 2018 It has evolved to become a technology that promises to be commercially viable.

The company has managed to reduce the manufacturing time of weeks to hours and has raised $ 15 million to build its first plant in Maryland.

In detail. The process requires two main steps:

1. First, lignin is partially dissolved – the polymer that hardens wood – using food degree chemicals.
2. Then, the wood is compressed at 65 ° C, collapsing its cellular structure in a dense matrix.

The result is a material five times thinner than the original, but twelve times more resistant and ten times harder.

The figures:

• The first installation will produce a million square meters per year from this summer.
• A second phase in autumn of 2025 will introduce outdoor panels.
• The initial price will be “Premium” but competitive with tropical high-end wood: between 12.50 and $ 25 per pound (between 27.5 and 55 per kilo), compared to the $ 1-2 of steel (2-4 per kilo).

Yes, but. Although the supermadera is initially more expensive than steel by weight, its upper resistance-peso ratio means that a 5 kilos beam could match the load capacity of a 45 kilos steel beam.

This reduces its effective cost to 2.75-5.5 dollars per kilo when we adjust for yield. Much more interesting and less far from steel.

The panoramic. Inventwood A second installation already plans of more than 30 million square meters for infrastructure and large developments. Contractors can cut, pierce and hold this overmaster with standard carpentry tools, which should facilitate its adoption.

The material could also be extended to other sectors such as vehicles, aircraft or furniture, but for now the company is focusing on construction, where steel and concrete suppose 90% of the carbon impact of buildings.

Outstanding image | Inventwood

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