Scientists have learned how to make transparent glass from wood
A transparent tree is not the fruit of a wild fantasy, but a very real object that in the future can replace classic glass from silicon, as it has all the strengths of a classic wood, and even much cheaper and more environmentally friendly in production.
Interested in learning about a unique technology? Then I'll tell you everything now.
Who developed the transparent tree
This unique material was developed at the Forest Products Research Laboratory with the active assistance of staff from the Universities of Maryland and Colorado. The material obtained during the experiments showed that it is quite capable of completely replacing classic glass in our homes.
Scientists have shared the results of their work in a prestigious journal Advanced Functional Materials.
How a transparent tree is obtained
The translucent tree was obtained through the use of a basalt tree (refers to fast growing), which has a fairly low density.
Initially, the wood goes through a process of "clarification" at room temperature in a special solution. After the "bleaching" process is completed, the wood fibers are impregnated with a special synthetic polymer called polyvinyl alcohol (PVA).
As a result of this impregnation, an almost transparent material is obtained, which has the following technical parameters:
- Optical transmission remains at 91%.
- Increased strength of 3.03 MJ m-3. This parameter is immediately three orders of magnitude higher than that of ordinary glass with a strength of 0.003 MJ m-3.
- Reduced thermal conductivity of 0.19 W m-1k-1. This parameter is almost 5 times less than that of standard glass, which is also an excellent result.
In addition, there is practically no so-called carbon footprint in the production of such wood, which is another important advantage of the new technology.
And the ability to easily scale production and the ability to establish the production of transparent glass from wood on existing facilities (with minimal alterations) opens up very broad prospects for a new development.
Perspectives of glass from wood
Due to the increased strength and high thermal efficiency (it is five times higher for the new material), glass from transparent wood in the very near future will be able to completely replace the classic glass.
Well, let's see if the era of wooden glass will come and how they will show themselves during long-term use.
If you liked the material, then put your thumbs up, subscribe and write your opinion in the comments. Thank you for reading to the end.