University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU) - Research portal
Bio-based adhesives for floor coverings
- Project Leader
- Bischof Sabrina, Project Leader
- Duration:
- 01.05.2019-30.04.2022
- Programme:
- Produktion der Zukunft - Leitprojekte - Industrielle Forschung
- Type of Research
- Applied Research
- Project partners
-
Murexin GmbH, Franz von Furtenbachstraße 1, 2700 Wiener Neustadt, Austria.
Contact person: Dr. Rudolf Jedlicka;
Function of the Project Partner: Partner
-
Sappi Austria Produktions-GmbH & Co. KG, Brucker Straße 21, 8101 Gratkorn, Austria.
Contact person: Dr. Hedda Weber;
Function of the Project Partner: Partner
- Staff
- Gübitz Georg, Project Staff
- Bischof Sabrina, Project Staff
- Wühl Jasmin, Project Staff
- BOKU Research Units
-
Institute for Environmental Biotechnology
- Funded by
-
Austrian Research Promotion Agency, Sensengasse 1, 1090 Wien, Austria
-
University of Agricultural Sciences, Vienna, Gregor Mendel-Strasse 33, 1180 Wien, Austria
- Abstract
- BioGlue aims to investigate the possibility of synthesizing lignin-based adhesives using 100 % green chemistry technology (laccases) tailored for application in floor tile laying with the overall goal of replacing currently used none renewable depleting fossil-based adhesives. Although lignin has been extensively studied for the synthesis of adhesive for making wood fiber boards, particle boards, flake boards or other similar wood-based products, lignin as an adhesives tailored towards floor tile laying has not yet been described to the best of our knowledge. BioGlue brings together three partners with complementary competences along the whole biorefinery value chain ranging from lignin production and fractionation (SAPPI), bioconversion (BOKU-UT) to formulation, production, application, performance evaluation and marketing of floor tile adhesives (Murexin). BioGlue is building on the two novel preliminary combination of processes developed by SAPPI and BOKU-UT namely; lignin fractionation and laccase polymerization while continually supplying oxygen that showed the possibility of obtaining highly reactive lignin fraction that could be tailored by laccases. Based on these preliminary studies, BioGlue also aims at developing a combination of processes namely for; (1) fractionating lignosulfonates aimed at obtaining highly reactive lignin fractions, (2) developing laccase bioreactor reaction conditions for effective polymerization of the obtained highly reactive lignosulfonate fractions into insoluble high molecular weight polymers, (3) while tailoring the lignosulfonates properties towards the synthesis of adhesives through the grafting of functional molecules. Thus, lignosulfonate filtration processes combining macro, micro, ultrafiltration will be investigated in order to obtain highly reactive fully characterized lignin fractions. The obtained highly reactive fractions will then be enzymatically polymerized and modified by grafting adhesive enhancing molecules such as tannins, oligopeptides, soya bean proteins) as well as incorporating appropriate biobased plasticizers such as xylitol, sorbitol, glycerol etc. tailored towards the synthesis of tile adhesives. The properties of the obtained lignin adhesives will be assessed in vitro and the feedback used to optimize the fractionation, polymerization, grafting and formulation processes. The successfully synthesized floor tile laying lignin adhesives will be tested at laboratory scale using real material and fully characterized.
- Keywords
-
Environmental biotechnology;
Biocatalysis;
Enzyme technology;
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glues;
lignin;
