Project leader: Geoffrey Daniel
Ph.D student: Isabelle Duchesne
Tel.: +46 18 67 10 00
Fax: +46 18 67 34 89
The ultrastructure of wood fibre surfaces
CONCLUDED
Aim: The project's overall aim is to characterise the surface ultrastructure of "wood fibres" and investigate how this changes after various enzymatic, mechanical and chemical treatments.
Background: The surface structure of wood fibres has been insufficiently characterised previously, partly because of the unavailability of good analytical techniques and partly because of a lack of information on the native ultrastructure of wood fibres.
Project description: In the present project the surface characteristics of wood fibres will be studied using a variety of complementary microscopical methods including: high resolution scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), high resolution SEM in conjunction with cryo-techniques, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Emphasis will be placed on spruce wood fibres which will be used to develop a model representing a "reference surface structure of softwood fibres". This reference wood fibre structure will then be compared with standard fibres subjected to prior enzymatic, mechanical or chemical treatments.
Gallery:
Frozen hydrated fibre surface (FE-SEM)
Freeze dried fibre surface (FE-SEM)
Air dried fibre surfaces (FE-SEM)
Project group:
Geoffrey Daniel, SLU
lsabelle Duchesne, SLU
Thomas Nilsson, SLU
Bert Pettersson, STFI
Industrial mentors:
Inger Eriksson, SCA
Lars Wågberg, SCA