The applications for wood and wood-derived products both as a material and a source of energy are nearly boundless. Bioeconomy research in forest products is based on the deconstruction of woody biomass to create high-performance biomaterials and high-value chemicals. This research aims to deliver maximum value from forest resources.

With continued advances in this research, wood-based products may be able to meet virtually all society’s needs, including food products, buildings, fuels, cars, electronic devices, clothes, packaging materials, medicine, and even aerospace materials. Specific topic areas in bioeconomy research include biofuels, renewable polymers and high-value products from wood, carbon-based materials from forests, biotechnology, and life-cycle and techno-economic analysis of renewable materials from wood.

The Forest Service invests in this research because:

• Bioeconomy research can set the scientific and practical foundations for replacing petroleum-based materials with wood-derived alternatives, moving for our society to become circular and more sustainable.

• Woody biochar applications show great promise for waste management, renewable energy, greenhouse gas emission reduction, mine site reclamation, soil and water remediation, and enhancing soil health and crop productivity.

• Advanced high-value carbon-based materials made from woody biomass may offer solutions for current and future technology needs. For example, graphene oxide has applications for biomedical material, solar cells, batteries, super capacitors, and other advanced technologies. Forest Service scientists have successfully produced graphene oxide from kraft lignin, a by-product from kraft pulping. The graphene oxide was produced at a much shorter production time than conventional graphene oxide production methods.

Featured Work

• A Forest Service scientist was part of the Northwest Advanced Renewable Alliance (NARA) that produced approximately 1,050 gal of certified bio-jet fuel utilizing feedstocks of softwood forest slash from a pulp mill.  This investigation found these feedstocks to be economically sustainable for bio-jet fuel production.

• Forest Service scientists and partners are finding solutions to hurdles for upscaling biochar production to make it more economically viable. Since transportation and storage of biomass to a centralized facility are often cost-prohibitive, Forest Service scientists and partners conducted a life-cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis of biochar produced from forest residues using portable systems.

• Forest Service scientists and partners have teamed up to unlock the basic properties of wood and renewable polymers from wood. A few examples include understanding wood-rotting fungi to better protect wood and mimic their action to produce polymers from wood, characterizing cellulose nanocrystal structure to optimize application, characterizing chemical bonds in wood when exposed to fire with x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and a review of the main factors governing the oxidation of lignin into aromatic aldehydes and acids with hydrogen peroxide.