PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
The LIFE WOODTECH project aims to offer a solution for improving the performance of EU timber through the use of a new technology combining the well-known process of acetylation with supercritical CO2. Researchers at CEA’s laboratories have developed a molecular modification process which renders acetylated fir and spruce wood samples as resistant as exotic woods, but with a better economic and environmental balance. The LIFE WOODTECH project will develop this technology further and take it to industrial scale.
Each year in Europe, the consumption of exotic wood represents an average of 84 football fields every day. This timber, mostly imported from South America, Africa and Asia, comes with high environmental impacts - as most forests in these areas are not sustainably managed, importing exotic wood feeds deforestation and change in land use. In addition, the overseas transportation from where it is produced to where it is used by end consumers significantly increases the carbon footprint of exotic wood products used in Europe.
However, exotic wood fulfils tougher criteria in terms of resistance and durability than European fast-growing wood species such as fir or spruce, making it suitable for specific use in outdoor conditions (decking, cladding, etc). The LIFE WOODTECH project aimed to further develop and industrialise a technology to enable the treatment of European wood to reach a greater durability, making it a viable alternative to exotic timber.
LIFE WOODTECH proposed to improve the concept developed under the LIFE WOOD project (LIFE12 ENV/NL/000573) by combining the acetylation process with supercritical CO2. Promising results were obtained from previous technical and research preparatory work performed during the last few years, investigating the efficiency of acetylation combined with supercritical CO2. During the project lifespan, LIFE WOODTECH aimed to reach full validation of the developed technology on timber beams four metres in length.
The project aimed to a potential market of several million cubic metres of wood per year, thus decreasing the deforestation and carbon footprint linked to EU exotic wood consumption and helping to Europe’s sovereignty in the timber trade. The project outcomes should contribute to the EU forestry sector and to the Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 on deforestation-free products.
OBJECTIVES
LIFE WOODTECH aimed to stimulate the wood sector to develop a more sustainable industry that should reduce its dependency on imported exotic wood. This should be done by enhancing a strong value chain of European woods thanks to technological and industrial developments. More specifically, the project goals were:
- To validate the WOODTECH technology on four-metre long timber beams;
- To bring the combined acetylation and supercritical CO2 technology for wood treatment up to technology readiness level 9 (TRL9);
- To establish the industrial production units necessary to reach the project’s market objectives and related long-term environmental impact.
RESULTS
The project was terminated as of 13 February 2024 and did not achieve its expected results.
