Cellulose instead of crude oil: Researchers develop sustainable forms

Forms have many potential applications ranging from the automotive, home and mechanical engineering departments to leisure and sports applications, for example.

Until now, it has been a common practice to produce these materials from crude oil that adversely affects the ecological footprint. At EU project Breadcell, an international consortium develops cellulose-based foams and is produced using a process similar to bake bread. These foams are completely biodegradable and recyclable.

This work is featured in the Tappi Journal.

Two laboratories, the Graz University of Technology (Tu Graz), Bioproducts, Paper Technology Research Institute and Vehicle Safety Research Institute, played an important role in the development of technology.

Many potential areas of the application

“It’s important to implement sustainability initiatives in as many areas as possible,” says Stefan Spirk of the Institute for Biological and Paper Technology at Tu Graz.

“Cellulose is plant-based and available in large quantities. The goal is to replace oil-based products with products made from cellulose materials, and the forms developed in the Breadcell project have a wide range of potential uses.”

Researchers have identified the following application areas as highly suitable for eco-friendly forms, among other things: The automotive sector for crash impact energy management, the construction sector as insulation, the sports industry for the manufacture of sports goods and shoe shoes. This material also offers potential benefits in terms of moisture management and acoustics.

Fiber Design and Simulation Models

An important aspect of the project was to establish a correlation between foam strength and fiber design using advanced simulation models. Materials were comprehensively characterized to obtain the material input data required for these simulations.

This included testing under various loads. This was done using a dedicated Tu Graz test rig that characterizes the behavior of the material under dynamic and rapid loading. Based on the data and developed models, bubbles with different densities and mechanical properties were generated and applied to various demonstrators.

For example, researchers produced and tested insoles for skateboards, bodyboards, bicycle helmets and shoe.

“The development of foam also revealed interesting properties. Keeping the density perfectly uniform across the foam thickness was a challenge,” says Florian Feist of Tu Graz’s Vehicle Safety Institute.

“However, this non-uniformity has proven advantageous in one particular application: bicycle helmets. The softer central layer allows for a kind of shear between the outer and inner helmet layers.

In addition to Chalmers University (Project Coordinator) and Tu Graz, three other institutions were involved in Bledcel. The University of Vienna worked on a sandwich construction with lightweight components.

The project also came to Foamo, a spinoff company that manufactures lightweight, cushioned insoles based on developed foam.