The article examines six potentially significant innovations in the Finnish bioeconomy sector, the use of which could stimulate a reduction in the use of fossil raw materials and increase the recycling of materials.
1. Wood in electric vehicle batteries
Graphite, a synthetic and non-renewable material, may soon be replaced in rechargeable batteries by wood-based (bio)carbon. The innovation (1) created by Stora Enso can be used in electric vehicles, consumer electronics, large-scale energy storage systems, and for other purposes. The product reached the market last year.
Lignin obtained from coniferous wood can be processed into renewable materials and used for the anodes required for the operation of rechargeable batteries. Forecasts suggest that the global battery market will increase tenfold over the next ten years.
In the summer of 2021, Stora Enso began the experimental production of bio-based carbon materials at its Kotka mill in south-east Finland. Lignin has been produced at the Kotka biorefinery since 2015. The mill has a capacity of 50,000 metric tonnes of lignin per year, making Stora Enso the world's largest producer of ultra-dry lignin. After cellulose, lignin is the most common naturally occurring macromolecular compound.
2. Price stickers from recycled paper
When buying fruit and vegetables, it is now possible to print price stickers made from recycled wood fibre.
In the autumn of 2021, the company UPM launched new thermal paper labels (2) for retail and wholesale companies. They are used on fruit and vegetable scales, for salad and meal packaging, and for logistics labelling purposes. No virgin wood fibre is used in the production of these labels, and they do not contain phenol. UPM points out that the use of recycled paper reduces the consumption of wood for forest industry products.
"The need to reduce the amount of waste and ease the 'pressure' on virgin raw material sources is obvious and an ever-increasing necessity," says Ville Pollari, UPM Raflatac VIP&Prime Business Segment Director. "The shift to such labels offers a range of sustainability benefits for both brand owners and the environment," explains V. Pollari.
3. Wood provides the opportunity to reduce the use of concrete in construction structural elements
A new hybrid material combining wood and concrete (3) makes construction more eco-friendly. The material consists of Metsä Fibre Kerto LVL wood panels, a thermal insulation layer, and reinforced concrete used for the facade. The material, developed jointly by Metsä Fibre and partners, resembles a sandwich in its structure.
This hybrid material was first used last autumn in the construction of a Metsä Fibre sawmill in Rauma (a city in western Finland). The construction work was carried out by the company Skanska. Company representatives note that the new material, which partially contains wood, is used in a similar way to reinforced concrete wall elements, but is lighter.
"We were able to use a lower-capacity crane for the construction work because the hybrid material wall structures are lighter compared to concrete. In larger construction projects, the lower weight of the materials (structures) used can yield significant savings," emphasised Skanska Construction Manager Petri Puputti in a press release.
Skanska aims to become a carbon-neutral company by 2045. "The Rauma sawmill project gave us useful knowledge about the use of hybrid materials in construction. It seems these materials fit our technical needs perfectly," stated Ilkka Romo, Skanska Division Director for Productivity and Quality, in a Metsä Wood press release.
The materials were produced at the Lipa-Betoni factory in Southern Savonia, in eastern Finland.
4. A wooden satellite with a 'selfie' stick
In April 2021, UPM and space researchers announced an ambitious joint project (4). The world's first wooden satellite (as planned) will be launched into Earth's orbit from a rocket laboratory in New Zealand in the first half of 2022.
The Wisa Woodsat nanosatellite, made from plywood, was designed and built in Finland. It is like a small, solar-powered cube (with 10 cm sides) that almost fits in the palm of your hand.
The satellite will be used to test the suitability of wood for spacecraft, specifically the compliance of WISA-Birch (produced in Savonlinna, eastern Finland), a plywood manufactured by UPM. In space, the satellite (and thus the plywood) will be subjected to various conditions – heat, cold, vacuum, and radiation. It will be monitored by two cameras, one of which will be placed at the end of a deployable boom (resembling a selfie stick).
"A satellite with a selfie stick certainly sparks both positive interest and a smile, but this is a serious scientific and technological project," said WISA Woodsat Project Manager Jari Makinens (Jari Mäkinen) in a press release issued by Arctic Astronautics.
The birch plywood produced by Wisa is widely used in shipbuilding, the automotive industry, construction, and furniture manufacturing. In addition to the plywood and other things, the satellite will also "test" satellite telecommunications technology.
UPM is developing the WISA Woodsat satellite in collaboration with the Finnish company Arctic Astronautics, the European technology design firm Huld, and the European Space Agency.
5. Less carbon-intensive materials in nappies and feminine hygiene products
A number of everyday items, such as paper tissues, baby nappies, and incontinence and panty liners, may soon become even more eco-friendly. In October, Stora Enso began producing a very "fluffy" (5) cellulose material (with a lower carbon content) used in the production of absorbent hygiene products.
According to information provided by Stora Enso, the carbon footprint of the new NaturaFluff Eco cellulose grade is approximately 30% smaller compared to standard absorbent fluff pulp because no chemical bleaches are used in the production process. The cellulose is light brown in colour and is reportedly fully biodegradable.
"By excluding cellulose bleaching from the production process and treating it only with oxygen to remove lignin, we have produced cellulose with a significantly lower carbon dioxide emission footprint while maintaining the excellent properties of our standard cellulose," says Kirsi Seppäläinen, Vice President of Marketing, Competitive Intelligence and Product Management for Stora Enso's Biomaterials division.
6. Recycled bed sand clarifies water
The year 2021 brought good news for all fans of crystal-clear water. As Metsä Group reported last summer, the brown-coloured water (runoff) flowing from peat bogs becomes clearer if it is treated with sand (6) previously used in a bio-power plant.
"Humic substances reacted with the substances in the sand, forming compounds that are easy to dispose of," noted Vesa Junnikkala, Director of Sustainable Development at Metsä Group, in a press release.
According to data from the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, the sand contains potassium, aluminium, and iron, which are known to form chemical compounds with humic substances.
"Treatment with sand reduces chemical oxygen demand and the amount of coloured particles," says VTT researcher Joni Lehto. Improving water clarity is significant enough, as peatland restoration promotes the leaching of organic matter, which is difficult to remove from streams in any way. These substances colour the water brown and increase biological oxygen demand. The use of sand was also tested in a field experiment. The results of the project were published last spring in the journal Environmental Technology (7). It is important to add: further testing must be carried out before wider practical application of this method can begin.
1. https://www.storaenso.com/en/newsroom/news/2021/11/from-trees-to-batteries
2. https://www.upmraflatac.com/news-and-stories/news/2021/11/upm-raflatac-first-to-launch-thermal-paper-labels-with-100-recycled-fibers/
3. https://www.metsawood.com/global/news-media/articles/Pages/Innovative-hybrid-sandwich-wall-element.aspx?utm_source=frontpage
4. https://www.wisaplywood.com/wisawoodsat/
5. https://www.storaenso.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2021/10/stora-enso-launches-new-fluff-pulp-grade-with-lower-carbon-footprint
6. https://www.metsaforest.com/fi/Yritys/Tiedotteet/Pages/Tiedote.aspx
7. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09593330.2021.1906327?journalCode=tent20
Photographs from UPM and Metsä Fibre used from the original article