Phase II I/UCRC Virginia Polytechnic Institute: Center for Wood-Based Composites (WBC)

该项目推进了用于建造美国房屋和消费品的木材复合材料产品的实用性，性能和可持续性。木材衍生的复合材料这一主题往往被忽视，因为对于普通人来说，木材复合材料就像树木一样常见。然而，对于科学家来说，木材是一种非常复杂的生物材料，当代科学方法现在正在揭示这些见解，这些见解可以为房主带来更好的性能，提高行业效率，并为社会带来更大的可持续性。一个可持续的社会必须包括木材产品，未来需要这种古老的材料与最先进的科学和技术方法之间的结合。这是三个关键合作伙伴的团队努力：工业界、联邦政府和学术界。联邦政府与合作伙伴一起开展互利合作，利用资源和技能。该行业定义了不断变化的技术挑战，并指导所需的研究。 学术界与在实际背景下采用尖端方法的学生进行研究。在弗吉尼亚理工大学，我们提供聚合物合成，粘合剂表征和木材聚合物化学方面的专业知识。沿着我们的合作伙伴，俄勒冈州州立大学，我们提供行业导向的，竞争前的研究，并为学生成为未来的领导者在可持续的美国制造，创新和管理职位的途径。随着行业适应不断变化的经济周期，立法压力和原材料供应，木材复合材料的科学和技术不断发展。因此，我们的目标是提高胶粘剂，粘合，木材/胶粘剂的相互作用，木材化学知识，因为这些主题影响木材流变学，传热传质，断裂力学，同时加工木材，制造复合材料，并评估产品性能。一个并行的目标是识别基本现象，并将其减少到可定义的数量，这些数量可以用数字描述，用于建模，仿真和性能预测。在弗吉尼亚理工大学，我们专注于与复合材料生产相关的化学转化，其中包括粘合剂和木材的转化。在后一种情况下，木材转化包括生物源甲醛的产生，了解这一过程是影响遵守联邦排放法规的主要行业目标。

This project advances the utility, performance, and sustainability of the wood composite products used to build American homes and consumer products. The subject matter, composite materials derived from wood, is often overlooked because for the average person wood composites are as commonplace as trees themselves. However for the scientist, wood is an incredibly complex biomaterial for which contemporary scientific methods are now revealing insights that lead to better performance for the homeowner, improved efficiency for the industry, and greater sustainability for society. A sustainable society must include timber products and the future requires a marriage between this ancient material and the most sophisticated scientific and technological methods. This is a team effort among three critical partners: industry, federal government, and academia. The federal government joins the partners into a mutually beneficial collaboration that leverages resources and skills. The industry defines the ever-changing technological challenges, and guides the required research. Academia conducts the research with students that employ cutting edge methods within a practical context. At Virginia Tech, we provide expertise in polymer synthesis, adhesive characterization, and wood polymer chemistry. Along with our partner, Oregon State University, we provide industry-directed, pre-competitive research, and a pathway for students to become future leaders in sustainable U.S. manufacturing, innovation, and management positions.The science and technology of wood composites continually evolves as the industry adapts to changing economic cycles, legislative pressures, and raw material supplies. Consequently the goal is to advance knowledge in adhesives, adhesion, wood/adhesive interactions, and wood chemistry as these topics influence wood rheology, heat and mass transfer, and fracture mechanics while processing wood, manufacturing composites, and evaluating product performance. A parallel goal is to identify fundamental phenomena, and reduce them to definable quantities that may be described numerically for purposes of modeling, simulation, and performance prediction. At Virginia Tech, we focus on chemical transformations associated with composite production, which includes transformations of the adhesive and the wood. In the latter case, wood transformations include the generation of biogenic formaldehyde and understanding this process is a major industry goal that impacts compliance with federal emissions regulations.