An Innovative Circular Solution for Waste MDF

每年生产的中密度纤维板超过8000万吨，仅在英国就消耗了100多万吨。在过去的20年里，中密度纤维板供应给家具、细木工和零售行业的数量急剧增加。因此，我们现在看到大量的废弃中密度纤维板进入供应链，估计在英国每年有60万吨左右（15%的木材废料被认为是中密度纤维板，木材回收协会表示，英国每年生产400万吨废木材）。与其他木材废料不同，目前没有中密度纤维板被回收利用。对于如此常用的产品来说，这显然是不可持续的。中密度纤维板回收（MDFR）是一家英国技术公司，该公司开发了一种工艺，可以分解将中密度纤维板粘合在一起的胶水，在不损坏中密度纤维板的情况下释放出高质量的木纤维。该项目将探索如何将这项技术扩大到工业相关规模。从该过程中回收的纤维将在建筑行业的潜在客户中进行测试和试验，特别是那些活跃于不断增长的非现场模块化面板行业的企业。将产生松散的纤维绝缘产品，由目前不存在的天然纤维原料来源制成。该项目是MDFR与其工业合作伙伴普氏农业的合作项目。普氏是一家成功的制造企业，也是动物床上用品市场的领导者。普氏能源资讯可以从现有的供应商网络中获得大量废弃的中密度纤维板，并寻求为这种材料增加价值。普氏能源将在其位于雷克瑟姆的总部主办示范工厂，并与MDFR合作，证明这种创新的“循环”方法的技术和经济可行性。长期目标是在商业规模上推广这项技术，生产和销售一种新型的、可持续的天然纤维绝缘材料。这种松散的填充产品将被“吹”到阁楼空间和墙板上，以改善新建和现有建筑的热工性能——在冬天保持温暖，更重要的是，在夏天保持凉爽。

Over 80 million tonnes of MDF are produced every year with over 1 million tonnes being consumed in the UK alone. The volumes of MDF supplied into the furniture, joinery and retail sectors have increased dramatically in the last 20 years. As such, we are now seeing huge volumes of waste MDF enter the supply chain, estimated to be in the region of 600k tonnes per year in the UK (15% of all wood waste is thought to be MDF based and the Wood Recyclers Association states that 4 million tonnes of waste wood are produced yearly in the UK).Unlike other wood waste streams, no MDF is currently recycled. This is clearly unsustainable for such a commonly used product. MDF Recovery (MDFR) is a UK technology business that has developed a process which can break down the glue bonds holding MDF boards together, freeing up the high-quality wood fibres within without damaging them. This project will explore how this technology might be scaled up to be demonstrated at an industrially relevant scale.The fibres recovered from the process will be tested and used in trials with potential customers from the construction sector, particularly businesses that are active in the growing offsite, modular panel sector. A loose fibre insulation product will result, created from a natural fibre raw material source that doesn't currently exist.This project is a collaboration between MDFR and its industrial partner - Platts Agriculture. Platts is a successful manufacturing business and a market leader in the animal bedding market. Platts has access to large volumes of waste MDF from its existing supplier network and seeks to add value to this material. Platts will host the demonstration plant at its headquarters in Wrexham and work with MDFR to prove the technical and economic viability of this innovative 'circular' approach.The longer-term goal is to roll out the technology at commercial scale, producing and marketing a novel and sustainable source of natural fibre insulation. This loose fill product will be 'blown' into loft spaces and wall panels to improve the thermal performance of new and existing buildings - keeping them warm in the winter and, importantly, cool in the summer.