Abstract: The rapid increase in the temperature of the Earth's atmosphere, caused by man-made factors, is one of the most serious threats of our time. The most important measure to mitigate this threat is to reduce carbon emissions through an energy transition, i.e. switching from fossil fuel energy sources to renewable energy sources that produce very limited, if not zero, carbon emissions. However, the transition to a low-carbon economy also means a significant increase in demand for the introduction of completely new “green” technologies for the production of various materials. These new materials should replace existing ones that require too much energy to produce, or are not environmentally friendly in nature. In this work, we discuss the production process for one of such environmentally friendly material - nanowood. As a basis for obtaining nanowood, natural hardwood is used, which is a waste by-product from the timber industry. As a result of a low temperature chemical process, the hierarchical cellulose base of wood is separated from other components (such as lignin and hemicellulose) to form nanowood. As an inexpensive, fully renewable, biodegradable, environmentally friendly and natural material, nanowood can form the basis for producing a range of materials for electronics, sensors, energy production and storage. I will describe technologies related to the extraction and functionalisation of the hierarchical structure, as well as to the practical use of nanowood for the production of next generation thermoelectric materials.

TRANSLATE project team member Ievgen Nedrygailov presented this research at the Environ 2023 Conference at Donegal. TRANSLATE is a €3.4 million EU-funded research project that aims to develop a new nanofluidic platform technology to effectively convert waste heat to electricity. This technology has the potential to improve the energy efficiency of many devices and systems, and provide a radically new zero-emission power source. The TRANSLATE project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement number 964251, for the action of 'The Recycling of waste heat through the Application of Nanofluidic ChannelS: Advances in the Conversion of Thermal to Electrical energy'. More information can be be found on the TRANSLATE project website: https://translate-energy.eu/