On Tue, Apr 10, 2018 at 6:44 AM, Timothy Collinson <xxxxxx@port.ac.uk> wrote:
Found an article on 'Nanowood is the new styrofoam browsing through a current _New Scientist_.  This is my precis:

nanowood – wood exposed to sodium hydroxide, sodium sulphite and hydrogen peroxide which strip out the cell walls (made up of lignin and hemicellulose) and help prevent heat travelling across the surviving cellulose nanofibers (on a par with Styrofoam and 100s of times better at blocking heat than epoxy or glass).  Also strong, able to withstand up to 13 megapascals – 2000 lbs/sq inch

New Scientist, 17.3.18, p.18

based on http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/4/3/eaar3724


Thought it might be useful as a cargo, building material or maybe even some kind of ablative armour?



This would be perfect for insulating cast concrete structures. Companies currently use styrofoam for their remain-in-place casting forms, but this would be much better.
 
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