Synthesis of transparent wood from lignin modification in Bombax ceiba

Abstract

The uncertainties present in the environment and climate change, and also the rapid non-renewable resource emissions, have driven mankind to create effective energy savers and environmentally friendly sustainable materials. Wood is one of the most abundant and versatile bio-based structural materials. There are several promising and significant benefits of wood, such as its high toughness, low thermal conductivity, low density, high young’s modulus, biodegradability, and non-toxic nature. Moreover, while wood has several ecological and structural benefits, it falls short of satisfying the need for optical transparency. High transparency and haze as well as environmental friendliness make transparent wood ideal for use in several important industries, including electronics, packaging, automotive, and construction. Therefore, current research on developing transparent wood is carried out using low-cost materials such as Bombax species, balsa and bamboo. Present research highlights the process of making transparent wood along with the change absorbed in the FTIR spectrum during Lignin Modification and polymerization. Later such fabricated transparent wood is subjected to different properties analysis such as density, weight gain, water absorption, flexural strength and transparency.