Wood has been the most preferred material in the construction of environmental buildings from the past to the present. Wood encountered in many areas such as structural structures, walls, doors and roofs, is also used as a window frame to determine the facade openings of buildings. This glass has also been the most common material used in window construction.
The glass in the windows seems to be replaced by the "Translucent Wood" material soon. A new ecological material, "Translucent Wood," was developed in collaboration with Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) researchers from the University of Maryland and the University of Colorado. This is an exciting development for architects who work in materials science and those who follow sustainable studies.
Today's problem of uncontrolled production and subsequent rapid consumption has led to the climate crisis. This ecological change forces us to add and develop new sustainable solutions in all areas of life. The construction industry also has a great impact on carbon emissions that cause climate change. For this reason, there is a growing need for sustainable solutions in the building and construction industry. Translucent Wood is an exemplary work on this subject and has also attracted attention with its carbon footprint rate, it has a very low rate compared to the emission released in glass production.
Production of Translucent Wood
Lignin is the pigment that gives wood its opaque appearance. The cut-way trees are very important to be able to decompose to the lignin pigment more easily in the production of the new material. Dead wall cells (lignin) of the xylem, responsible for carrying water up to the leaves, are less common in trees cut perpendicular to their veins. This helps the lignin to be more easily decomposed for the decomposing translucent wood production.
Additives are also used in pulp for the use to separate the lignin from the mortar prepared with the advantage of the cutting shape of the tree. Separating the lignin material from the wood replaces it with polymer materials. In this way, the opaque appearance of natural wood is reduced by 85%. In addition, it was stated that the transparency rate will increase in the future.
New Material Candidate to Compete With Glass
Translucent wood is structurally similar to natural wood and does not leak water on the other side thanks to its polymer component. Translucent wood has a structure that distributes light more evenly in lighting than glass.
Natural wood, which is preferred for its aesthetic appearance, becomes an interesting material when it turns into a translucent material with its strength, thermal permeability, and aesthetic appearance. Translucent wood, whose physical properties are similar to glass, does not show sudden breaking and cracking deformations like glass. Translucent wood, which has the characteristics of solid wood to a large extent, maintains its structural integrity against external factors such as impact for a longer time than glass. These features offer a safer use to the user compared to translucent wooden glass.
Considering all these aspects, it can be seen that the physical properties required from a window can be met from translucent wood. Translucent wood offers innovation in design as well as its environmental advantages is a remarkable material in the creation of more modern and aesthetic spaces. As Berglund, who has developed the material, stated "Translucent Wood" seems to be more preferred by architects in the future.
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References:
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