A new startup claims it can mass-produce "Superwood," a material that's stronger and lighter than steel, with 90 percent lower carbon emissions compared to the widely used alloy.InventWood, the company behind the material, says its new product "has the capacity to substitute up to 80 percent of steel used globally," and "reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 2 gigatons."According to the firm, its Superwood has up to 50 percent more tensile strength compared to steel, has "minimal expansion and contraction," and a Class A fire rating — all crucial details for architects who might someday use Superwood in their buildings.As TechCrunch reports, the startup has already secured $15 million in a Series A funding round, which its founder, materials scientist Liangbing Hu, says will go toward the company's first factory.The whole thing came about in 2018, when Hu published a landmark research paper detailing how to "transform bulk natural wood directly into a high-performance structural material."It's a relatively simple process that involves boiling wood in a mixture of lye and sodium sulfite — widely available compounds often used as additives in industrial food operations.Lu's paper says the strategy has been found to be "universally effective" for all species of lumber.The research has been used to launch startups like Cambium, a "global tech platform for recycled wood," as Lu worked to refine the process and launch his own commercial venture.But whether Superwood lives up to its founders claims is another story.The materials science industry moves at a snail's pace, thanks to the many factors involved in approving new products for use in buildings. The caution only increases with lumber, which could suffer unforeseen changes due to time, moisture, heat, stress, and transportation, according to the Construction Specifier, a trade publication.Cross-laminated timber (CLT), for example, while used in Europe for decades, has had a tough time catching on in the US, as untested American manufacturers rush their products to market and architects struggle to find construction firms with CLT experience.That's led to incidents like the Peavy Hall collapse at Oregon State University, where a 1,000-pound section of a newly constructed CLT building caved in on a lower floor.Prior to the collapse, manufacturers charmed regulators and project managers with similar promises of their product's strength and environmental impact.At the moment, it seems like InventWood is taking it slow and building out its enterprise selling Superwood as a decorative material, rather than structural beams."Right now, coming out of this first-of-a-kind commercial plant — so it’s a smaller plant — we're focused on skin applications," the company's CEO Alex Lau told TechCrunch, referencing building skins. "Eventually we want to get to the bones of the building."Whether they do will depend on it gaining the confidence of architects and engineers, a process which will require years of patience. As with all startups, it's one thing to build it out on paper — now they have to do it for real.Share This Article

Forward-looking: As InventWood prepares to bring its first batches of Superwood to market, it stands as a testament to what can happen when scientific innovation meets entrepreneurial determination. If successful, Superwood could mark a turning point in the quest for greener, stronger, and more beautiful buildings. What began as a laboratory experiment at the University of Maryland is now poised to significantly influence construction practices. InventWood, a startup spun out of the university, is preparing to launch a new material known as Superwood – a wood-based product engineered to have a strength-to-weight ratio nearly ten times greater than steel, yet lighter and more sustainable. The story began in 2018, when Dr. Liangbing Hu, a materials scientist at the University of Maryland, developed a patented technique that transforms ordinary timber into a material up to 12 times stronger and 10 times tougher than its original form. Instead of letting the discovery languish in academic obscurity, Dr. Hu further refined his technique, dramatically reducing the production time from over a week to just a few hours. Recognizing its commercial potential, Dr. Hu licensed the technology to InventWood, which is now led by CEO Alex Lau. With $15 million recently secured in a Series A funding round (part of more than $50 million raised to date), the company is preparing to open its first commercial production facility in Frederick, Maryland. Shipments of Superwood are scheduled to begin in the third quarter of 2025. Superwood's innovation lies in its molecular engineering. The process starts with ordinary wood, which is mostly composed of cellulose and lignin. By selectively removing certain components and applying "food industry" chemicals, InventWood strengthens the cellulose fibers, then compresses the material to increase the hydrogen bonds between molecules. // Related Stories This new material is not just strong, it's also highly functional. Superwood is resistant to fire, water, rot, and pests. It retains the natural warmth, texture, and beauty of wood, and with some polymer treatment, can be used for outdoor applications like siding, decking, and roofing. Initially, InventWood will focus on producing facade materials for commercial and high-end residential buildings. But the company's ambitions go further. Lau envisions a future where structural beams and other building components are made from Superwood, offering architects and builders a material that is not only high-performing but also environmentally responsible. The environmental benefits are significant. The construction industry is a major contributor to global carbon emissions, largely due to its reliance on concrete and steel. By offering a domestically sourced, sustainable alternative, InventWood aims to reduce the industry's carbon footprint while supporting American manufacturing and local economies. The company has also formed a strategic partnership with Intectural, a leading distributor of architectural materials, to accelerate Superwood's adoption across North America. InventWood's progress has attracted support from both public and private sectors, including the US Department of Energy, the Department of Defense, and several climate-focused investment groups. Environmentalist and entrepreneur Paul Hawken has called Superwood "an extraordinary breakthrough that exalts the genius of the natural world," predicting it will play a pivotal role in the future of global construction.

Longtime Slashdot reader ndsurvivor shares a report from TechCrunch: In 2018, Liangbing Hu, a materials scientist at the University of Maryland, devised a way to turn ordinary wood into a material stronger than steel. It seemed like yet another headline-grabbing discovery that wouldn't make it out of the lab. "All these people came to him," said Alex Lau, CEO of InventWood, "He's like, OK, this is amazing, but I'm a university professor. I don't know quite what to do about it." Rather than give up, Hu spent the next few years refining the technology, reducing the time it took to make the material from more than a week to a few hours. Soon, it was ready to commercialize, and he licensed the technology to InventWood. Now, the startup's first batches of Superwood will be produced starting this summer. "Right now, coming out of this first-of-a-kind commercial plant -- so it's a smaller plant -- we're focused on skin applications," Lau said. "Eventually we want to get to the bones of the building. Ninety percent of the carbon impact from buildings is concrete and steel in the construction of the building." To build the factory, InventWood has raised $15 million in the first close of a Series A round. The round was led by the Grantham Foundation with participation from Baruch Future Ventures, Builders Vision, and Muus Climate Partners, the company exclusively told TechCrunch. How do they do it? According to TechCrunch, InventWood's Superwood is made by treating regular timber with "food industry" chemicals to remove lignin and modify its structure, then compressing it to increase hydrogen bonding between cellulose fibers. This densification makes the wood up to 10 times stronger than natural wood, with a higher strength-to-weight ratio than steel. "You end up with something that looks like these richer, tropical hardwoods," Lau added. Read more of this story at Slashdot.