In a groundbreaking development from Maryland, University of Maryland scientist Liangbing Hu has created a method to transform regular wood into a remarkably strong material dubbed Superwood, which is stronger than steel. After years of refinement, the technology is now ready for commercial application through the startup InventWood. Their commercial plant is set to produce Superwood aimed at reducing the carbon impact of building materials, which predominantly come from concrete and steel. With a successful Series A funding round, the future looks promising for this innovative solution in sustainable building materials.
"Right now, coming out of this first-of-a-kind commercial plant - so it's a smaller plant - we're focused on skin applications. Eventually we want to get to the bones of the building. Ninety percent of the carbon impact from buildings is concrete and steel in the construction of the building."
"The cellulose nanocrystal is actually stronger than a carbon fiber," Lau said.
"The goal is to strengthen the cellulose already present in the wood. We might densify the material by 4x and you might thin it down to a very thin layer."
"All these people came to him. He's like, OK, this is amazing, but I'm a university professor. I don't know quite what to do about it."
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