Utilizing and Valorizing Oat and Barley Straw as an Alternative Source of Lignocellulosic Fibers

The transition to sustainable, biodegradable, and recyclable materials requires new sources of cellulose fibers that are already used in large volumes by forest industries. Oat and barley straws provide interesting alternatives to wood fibers in lightweight material applications because of their sim...

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Main Authors: Marc Borrega, Ville Hinkka, Hanna Hörhammer, Kirsi Kataja, Eija Kenttä, Jukka A. Ketoja, Rosa Palmgren, Minna Salo, Henna Sundqvist-Andberg, Atsushi Tanaka
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-11-01
Series:Materials
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/15/21/7826
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author Marc Borrega
Ville Hinkka
Hanna Hörhammer
Kirsi Kataja
Eija Kenttä
Jukka A. Ketoja
Rosa Palmgren
Minna Salo
Henna Sundqvist-Andberg
Atsushi Tanaka
author_facet Marc Borrega
Ville Hinkka
Hanna Hörhammer
Kirsi Kataja
Eija Kenttä
Jukka A. Ketoja
Rosa Palmgren
Minna Salo
Henna Sundqvist-Andberg
Atsushi Tanaka
author_sort Marc Borrega
collection DOAJ
description The transition to sustainable, biodegradable, and recyclable materials requires new sources of cellulose fibers that are already used in large volumes by forest industries. Oat and barley straws provide interesting alternatives to wood fibers in lightweight material applications because of their similar chemical composition. Here we investigate processing and material forming concepts, which would enable strong fiber network structures for various applications. The idea is to apply mild pretreatment processing that could be distributed locally so that the logistics of the raw material collection could be made efficient. The actual material production would then combine foam-forming and hot-pressing operations that allow using all fractions of fiber materials with minimal waste. We aimed to study the technical features of this type of processing on a laboratory scale. The homogeneity of the sheet samples was very much affected by whether the raw material was mechanically refined or not. Straw fibers did not form a bond spontaneously with one another after drying the sheets, but their effective bonding required a subsequent hot pressing operation. The mechanical properties of the formed materials were at a similar level as those of the conventional wood-fiber webs. In addition to the technical aspects of materials, we also discuss the business opportunities and system-level requirements of using straw as an alternative source of lignocellulosic fibers.
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spelling doaj.art-a2747bd77a3748d19821f496567094602023-11-24T05:41:28ZengMDPI AGMaterials1996-19442022-11-011521782610.3390/ma15217826Utilizing and Valorizing Oat and Barley Straw as an Alternative Source of Lignocellulosic FibersMarc Borrega0Ville Hinkka1Hanna Hörhammer2Kirsi Kataja3Eija Kenttä4Jukka A. Ketoja5Rosa Palmgren6Minna Salo7Henna Sundqvist-Andberg8Atsushi Tanaka9VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., FI-02044 Espoo, FinlandVTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., FI-02044 Espoo, FinlandVTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., FI-02044 Espoo, FinlandVTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., FI-02044 Espoo, FinlandVTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., FI-02044 Espoo, FinlandVTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., FI-02044 Espoo, FinlandSupply Chain Management and Social Responsibility, Hanken School of Economics, FI-00101 Helsinki, FinlandVTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., FI-02044 Espoo, FinlandVTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., FI-02044 Espoo, FinlandVTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., FI-02044 Espoo, FinlandThe transition to sustainable, biodegradable, and recyclable materials requires new sources of cellulose fibers that are already used in large volumes by forest industries. Oat and barley straws provide interesting alternatives to wood fibers in lightweight material applications because of their similar chemical composition. Here we investigate processing and material forming concepts, which would enable strong fiber network structures for various applications. The idea is to apply mild pretreatment processing that could be distributed locally so that the logistics of the raw material collection could be made efficient. The actual material production would then combine foam-forming and hot-pressing operations that allow using all fractions of fiber materials with minimal waste. We aimed to study the technical features of this type of processing on a laboratory scale. The homogeneity of the sheet samples was very much affected by whether the raw material was mechanically refined or not. Straw fibers did not form a bond spontaneously with one another after drying the sheets, but their effective bonding required a subsequent hot pressing operation. The mechanical properties of the formed materials were at a similar level as those of the conventional wood-fiber webs. In addition to the technical aspects of materials, we also discuss the business opportunities and system-level requirements of using straw as an alternative source of lignocellulosic fibers.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/15/21/7826strawcellulosefibermaterialpretreatmentbonding
spellingShingle Marc Borrega
Ville Hinkka
Hanna Hörhammer
Kirsi Kataja
Eija Kenttä
Jukka A. Ketoja
Rosa Palmgren
Minna Salo
Henna Sundqvist-Andberg
Atsushi Tanaka
Utilizing and Valorizing Oat and Barley Straw as an Alternative Source of Lignocellulosic Fibers
Materials
straw
cellulose
fiber
material
pretreatment
bonding
title Utilizing and Valorizing Oat and Barley Straw as an Alternative Source of Lignocellulosic Fibers
title_full Utilizing and Valorizing Oat and Barley Straw as an Alternative Source of Lignocellulosic Fibers
title_fullStr Utilizing and Valorizing Oat and Barley Straw as an Alternative Source of Lignocellulosic Fibers
title_full_unstemmed Utilizing and Valorizing Oat and Barley Straw as an Alternative Source of Lignocellulosic Fibers
title_short Utilizing and Valorizing Oat and Barley Straw as an Alternative Source of Lignocellulosic Fibers
title_sort utilizing and valorizing oat and barley straw as an alternative source of lignocellulosic fibers
topic straw
cellulose
fiber
material
pretreatment
bonding
url https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/15/21/7826
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