Concern “Latvian Veneer“Over the next three years, the construction of a new synthetic resin plant will start at the Bolderaja industrial unit in Riga. It will be equipped with a world-unique technology that will significantly reduce the share of fossil phenol in the production of this widely used adhesive, replacing it with renewable lignin, a natural biopolymer found in wood, informs the company’s representative Pauls Beķeris.
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The construction of the plant is part of the international consortium project VIOBOND, which unites nine partners out of five under the leadership of Latvijas Finiers. European Union Member States. Within five years, the project aims to develop a formula and create the world’s first industrial production technology for “greener”, more environmentally and human-friendly synthetic phenolic formaldehyde resins currently used in Europe and elsewhere in plywood, insulation, furniture, flooring, sandpaper and many other everyday production of products.
“The VIOBOND team is united by a common understanding of scientific advances and sustainable performance in the sectors represented. These are important preconditions for the project to make a significant contribution to the gradual transition to renewable, sustainably exploited resources, one of the objectives of the European Green Course. , which also fulfills the commitment of “Latvijas Finieris” – to look for opportunities to completely abandon the use of fossil resources in the company’s economic activities by 2050, “explains Māris Būmanis, a member of the board of the company” Latvijas Finieris “.
The cross-sectoral project combines knowledge and experience in wood processing, energy, engineering technologies and other fields of scientific research and industrial production: “Latvijas Finieris” (Latvia) – birch plywood production, chemical industry, “Graanul Biotech” (Estonia) – biorefining, lignin production, “ST1” (Finland) – biorefining, lignin production, Chempolis (Finland) – biorefining, lignin production, Saint-Gobain Finland (Finland) – engineering technology, resin use, Mirka (Finland) – engineering technology, resin use, Pörner Ingenieurgesellshaft (Germany) – inženiertehnoloģijas, “Fundacio Universitaria Balmes” (Spain) – sustainability assessment, Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry (Latvia) – scientific research, analytics.
The total amount of the VIOBOND project is 35 million euros, of which 16 million are European Commission a grant from Horizon Europe, a research and innovation investment program, and a contribution from the other companies involved in the project. “Latvijas Finieris” as the leading partner of the project plans to invest up to 20 million euros in its implementation, of which 8 million will be co-financing by “Horizon Europe”. The process of signing the grant agreement was fully completed on 18 May 2021, officially marking the beginning of the cooperation. The implementation of the project is planned from September 1 of this year to August 31, 2026.
“The main goal of VIOBOND is to develop the use of natural polymer lignin in high value-added products, partially or completely replacing fossil phenol, which is a petroleum product, with this renewable raw material,” explains Māris Būmanis. “Latvijas Finieris” as the leading partner of the project has already taken a wide step in this direction. In cooperation with the chemical and mechanical wood processing company Stora Enso, a birch plywood adhesive has been developed in which lignin partially replaces phenol, and birch plywood products RIGA ECOlogical have been available on the market for several years.
“Within the framework of the VIOBOND project, by building a new synthetic resin plant, this experience will be scaled up to the industrial level. As a result, more environmentally friendly lignin-phenol-formaldehyde resins will be able to provide absolutely all” Latvijas Finiers “plywood products,” Māris Būmanis emphasizes. In turn, VIOBOND’s industrial partners Saint-Gobain Finland and Mirka will adapt the use of lignin resin in the production of their products. In addition, the implementation of the project will open opportunities to diversify the portfolio of lignin suppliers.
In recent years, technological developments have made it possible to separate lignin as a result of the chemical decomposition of wood, which is why three wood biorefineries – Graanul Biotech, ST1 and Chempolis – have been involved in the VIOBOND project. There is reason to believe that together with the scientific partners of the project it will be possible to develop a resin formula in which the natural polymer lignin will replace phenol in an even greater amount than has been achieved at present, “Latvijas Finieris” points out.
Most plants, including trees of all species, contain 20-30% lignin – a natural biopolymer that, together with cellulose, forms the shells of wood cells and provides close bonds between them.
Historically, lignin was obtained as a by-product in the pulp industry, where it, together with other by-products, was mainly used as a fuel for energy production. In recent years, the development of wood biorefining technologies has made it possible to separate lignin as a result of a high yield of chemical decomposition of wood. Research on lignin in various industries around the world today has a promising future.
The core business of the Latvijas Finieris Group is the production, sale, product development and provision of related services to customers in birch plywood. Other significant activities of the group are the production of synthetic resins and impregnated paper, trade in board materials, forestry and logging, as well as metal processing.
“Latvijas Finieris” exports about 95% of the produced plywood, which is sold in more than 60 countries (the most important – Great Britain, Germany, In France, Italy, The Netherlands).
Birch plywood is used in various fields: in construction – for floors, scaffolding, platforms, concreting formwork, as well as as an interior decoration material; in the transport industry – for the floors of trailers, buses and minibuses, for the wall and ceiling cladding of commercial vehicles; shipbuilding; in the manufacture of packaging.
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