Lignin-Based Adhesives for Engineered Wood Products and Cross Laminated Timber (CLT)

Project Lead: Roseburg Forest Products

Consortium Members: Roseburg Forest Products, Michigan State University (Prof. Mojgan Nejad), West Fraser, Fortum, Element 5, Henkel and Hexion.

Project Goal

This project aims to increase the commercial readiness of lignin-based adhesives by replacing 80-100% of phenol with lignin in phenolic adhesives and replacing 100% of the petroleum-based polyol with lignin in polyurethane (PU) adhesive formulations. The produced lignin-based phenolic and PU adhesives will be tested at the manufacturing facilities of Roseburg (Plywood and MDF), and Element 5 (CLT) in Ontario. The consortium will work closely to achieve this by:

• Formulating lignin-based phenolic and PU adhesives using Fortum’s biorefinery and West Fraser’s kraft softwood lignin.
• Evaluating the performance of developed lignin-based phenolic and PU adhesives on plywood and CLT.
• Scaling-up the production of new adhesives.
• Running trials at the manufacturing facilities of Roseburg and Element 5.
• Communicating the outcomes of this project throughout the project’s duration via conferences, technical reports, journal papers, industry meetings and social media.

Consortium Members: