The next generation of forest products is all around us, with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) revealing that global roundwood demand could grow 49% over the next 25 years, fueled by developments in mass timber, biomass, and cellulosic products. According to Dunan Mayes, the founder and principal of Helsinki-based Lignutech Oy and co-author of the FAO report, material researchers are busy enhancing wood’s primary components, including lignin, cellulose, and even hemicellulose:
“Industry is now integrating cellulose from wood into cement, used in concrete structures,” Mayes told Wood Central last year. “It enables the speed of curing of the concrete structure to be increased and even 3D printed, and at the same time enhances the strength of the concrete. Similar functionality has been found with lignin, which may reduce the corrosion-prone steel needed to reinforce concrete.”
However, Wood Central understands the push to use fibre goes back centuries, with innovators using specially layered and treated pulp in artificial leathers: Invented in Germany, Presstoff gained its widest use in the first half of the 20th century and was used in everything from binocular cases, straps, horse tack, bayonet frogs, equipment belts, and cap visors: “Presstoff was used in almost every application normally filled by leather, except items like footwear where repeated flex wear and moisture cause Presstoff to delaminate,” according to German historians.
Expect to see a lot more wood fibre in everyday products!
As for the 21st century, the FAO has predicted timber demand based on four scenarios: lower global warming and moderate growth, to higher global warming and high growth: “According to the projections, world roundwood production will increase by 4–8% between 2022 and 2030,” they said. “Production could increase by 6–32% between 2022 and 2050 (with uncertainty increasing markedly over the longer period),” and in terms of Roundwood volume, “the projected increase to 2050 ranges between 240 million cubic metres and 1,200 million cubic metres, depending on the scenario.”
Suffice to say…that’s a lot of fibre!
- To find out more about global demand for forest products, click here for Wood Central’s special feature on the FAO – The State of the World’s Forests 2024: Forest-sector Innovations Towards a More Sustainable Future
