Tuesday Jul 06, 2004
Forest Products R & D Solicitation Awards Announced
DOE recently selected eight R&D projects to develop new technologies for saving energy in the Forest Products industry. DOE plans to contribute approximately $12 million toward the projects, which specifically address new or improved wood/composite and fiber recycling technologies and new forest-based materials. Technology needs in these areas have been identified in the Forest Products Roadmap, Agenda 2020: The Path Forward, An Implementation Plan (PDF 203 KB) Download Acrobat Reader, and Vision document, Agenda 2020: A Technology Vision and Research Agenda for America’s Forest, Wood, and Paper Industry (PDF 94 KB) Download Acrobat Reader.
Development and implementation of high risk, new technology is a continuing goal of ITP. Through open, competitive solicitations, DOE offers opportunities for industries to participate in cost-shared research and development projects that advance technologies both technically and economically, and show significant potential for successful commercialization. Following is the key information on the selected Forest projects:
Port Townsend Paper Corporation
DOE Funding Level: $2 million
Steam Cycle Washer for Unbleached Pulp: This project seeks to develop a pressure vessel for washing that can reduce water consumption for pulp washing by 40%-50%. This reduced washing load means that less water needs to be evaporated in the concentration of weak black liquor.
Technical Contact: Reijo Salminen, 360-714-8416
PureVision Technology, Inc.
DOE Funding Level: $4 million
A Novel Alkali Fractionation Technology to Separate Wood Components: This project seeks to develop a novel low-capital cost and highly energy-efficient pulping process, which will recover undegraded hemicelluloses. The recovered lignin and hemicellulose will be used for novel value-added products.
Technical Contact: Paul Mann, 303-857-4530
University of Maine
DOE Funding Level: $985,373
Hemicellulose Extraction and its Integration in Pulp Production: This project will develop a novel pulping technology to non-destructively extract hemicelluloses and re-add them to the pulp after delignification (yield improvement). The project also plans to develop novel uses for hemicelluloses.
Technical Contact: Adriaan van Heiningen, 207-581-2278
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
DOE Funding Level: $479,053
Novel Isocyanate-Reactive Adhesives for Structural Wood-Based Composites: This project will develop a novel cold-setting adhesive for the manufacture of laminated veneer lumber. Current adhesives often require the use of elevated temperatures to set. The low temperature adhesives will require less energy to be used in wood processing.
Technical Contact: Charles E. Frazier, 540-231-8318
Georgia Tech Research Corporation
DOE Funding Level: $2.6 million
Highly Energy Efficient D-GLU (Directed Green Liquor Utilization) Pulping: This project developed from a previous ITP project that increases yield and reduces energy consumption during pulping by pretreating wood chips with green liquor.
Technical Contact: Lucian A. Lucia, 404-894-9712
Regents of the University of Minnesota
DOE Funding Level: $793,126
Development of Screenable Wax Coatings and Water-Based Pressure Sensitive Adhesives: This project expands on the previous ITP funded project, which reformulated the thermoplastic glue used for stickies which hinder paper recycling. This project seeks to reformulate water-based adhesives and the wax coatings on corrugated cardboard containers to make them easily screenable.
Technical Contact: Steven J. Severtson, 612-625-5265
Texas A&M University – Kingsville
DOE Funding Level: $192,729
Biological Air Emissions Control for an Energy Efficient Forest Products Industry of the Future: This project seeks to use bacteria-packed columns to remove volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from air emissions. The technology could be an alternative to the energy-intensive regenerative thermal oxidizers (RTOs).
Technical Contact: Kim D. Jones, 361-593-2187
Mississippi State University
DOE Funding Level: $244,266
On-Line Oxidation of Volatile Compounds Generated by Sawmill Wood Kilns: This project seeks to control VOC emissions from sawmill kilns by using hydroxide radicals generated from UV light and hydrogen peroxide. The technology could be an alternative to the energy intensive RTOs (regenerative thermal oxidizers)
Technical Contact: William Gene Ramsey, 662-325-8242
For more information on solicitation opportunities, see the ITP Financial opportunities Web page.
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