Kebony Technology

Kebony
Per Brynildsen
Karin Hjelmtvedt
Kebony ASA
September 2010

Contents
1. The principles
2. Product testing & documentation
3. Environmental performance
4. Summing up: Why Kebony?
2

Wood Modification Fundamentals
• Wood cells’ composition
makes the cell walls
capable of absorbing high
amounts of water.
• When the cell wall
structure absorbs water it
will swell.
This is a basic feature of
the wood cell wall.
G.I Vestøl www.umb.no
• The water content of the
wood affects its strength
and durability
• A permanent change of
the wood cell wall
structure is termed
WOOD MODIFICATION
G.I Vestøl www.umb.no
3

Wood Modification
concepts
Wood modification can be obtained by physical or chemical
methods :
• Heat applied to wood changes the cell walls’ chemistry.
Products:
ThermoWood; PlatoWood; Thermoholz;Perdure;
• Polymer “grafting” to cell walls
Kebonization => Kebony
• Chemical reactions with wood cell wall cellulose,
hemicellulose and lignins:
Acetylation = > Accoya (TitanWood)
Crosslinking with DMDHU => Belmadur (BASF)
4

Technology at the wood cell level
• The Kebony method is a
process where furan
polymers are “grafted” to
wood cell walls.
• These polymers are very
stable, and will not degrade or
leach out of the wood.
Furfuryl alcohol (FA) is a simple
liquid produced from furfural,
which again is derived from
hemicellulose, a plant
constituent.
In our case, the FA is produced
from bagasse, a waste
product from cane sugar
• Section of Radiata pine; cell walls
containing furan polymer, image through
fluorescence microscopy
(L. Garbrecht Thygesen, RVAU,
Copenhagen, 2006).
• Fluorescence caused by furan polymer
• Cell walls are invisible in this system
without the fluorescence from the
polymer
5

Background
1920s The principle of forming furan polymers
1950s Early attempts of wood furfurylation
1990s Prof. M. Schneider’s inventions
2004 Kebony production start in semiindustrial
plant
2007 Financing of new Kebony plant
2008 New plant with commercial scale
capacity
2009 Establishing representation in Spain,
Italy, UK
2010 Doubling sales from 2009
6

The process steps
READILY AVAILABLE WOOD
• Biodegradable
• Mostly soft (European
Species)
• Moisture sensitive
• Inconsistent quality
• Impregnation
• Curing
• Drying
• Extended lifetime
• Enhanced
mechanical
properties
• Consistent quality &
supply
• Environmentally
friendly
RENEWABLE CHEMICALS
processed from plant waste
• Sugar canes
• Corn cobs
• Wood
Technology
Chemical from Biomass
Customer
7

Fundamental Product Factors
Affected by the Kebony process
Decay resistance => Resistance to rot (fungi),
insects, larvae
Dimensional Stability => Stability against swelling
and shrinkage caused by
moisture variations
Hardness => Important for resistance to
wear
Bending Strength => Improved stiffness against
elastic bending
Increased density => Increased weight per volume
unit
Altered colour => The formed furan polymer is
dark brown
8

1. The principles
2. Product testing & documentation
3. Environmental performance
4. Summing up: Why Kebony?
9

Kebony product testing & documentation
• Durability against fungi and insects
SP (Sweden); SHR (Netherlands); BRE (UK); Forest & Landscape
Inst. (Norway); University of Gent (Belgium); Christian August
Universität (Germany); Louisiana State University (USA); Danish
Technological Institute.
• Weathering, coating and gluing
SP (Sweden); SHR (Netherlands); Dynea (Norway); Norwegian Inst.
Of Wood Technology; Jotun AS (Norway)
• Environmental Impact
- Smoke gas testing, fire testing, leaching, eco-tox,
emissions:
SP (Sweden); SHR (Netherlands); AnalyCen (Norway), Forest &
Landscape Inst. (Norway); Toxicon (Sweden); Danish
Technological Institute.
• Physical / Mechanical properties
SP (Sweden); SHR (Netherlands); Virginia Tech (USA); Norwegian
Inst. Of Wood Technology
• Human health – chemical risk assessment
IVAM (Netherlands)
10

11
Kebony Pine – Product Performance

Kebony Pine – Product Performance
EN 113,
Brown rot (Coniophora puteana; Gloeophyllum
trabeum; Poria placenta)
White rot (Coriolus versicolor)
Kebony SYP and Kebony Radiata: Durability
Class 1
EN 113,
Brown rot (Coniophora puteana; Gloeophyllum
trabeum; Poria placenta)
White rot (Coriolus versicolor)
Kebony SYP Durability Class 1 for all
fungi except Poria (DC 2)
12

Product performance
Hardness
Brinell hardness
(SP, Sweden):
Control
Kebony (M)
Kebony (H)
13

Kebony Pine - Product performance
Formosan Subterranean Termite Test AWPA E1-97
Independent Rating AWPA E1-97
8,6
9
Ranking 1- 10 by LSU
2,6
Untreated
Control SYP
ACQ .25
ACQ treated SYP
F30
Kebony SYP (M)
Sample Type
• Kebony pine was the only product ranked “excellent” and
ranked better than ACQ treated pine against Termites by
researchers at LSU
14

Product performance
Dimensional stability
Vol. swelling
@ 20% - 85% RH (SP, Sweden):
In general :
Anti-swelling efficiency (ASE)
between 40 and 60 %
15

Kebony Pine - Product Performance
Fastener withdrawal load
Fastener withdrawal load pine sapwood - Kebony Pine
2500
2000
Load (N)
1500
1000
Galvanized
nail
Deck screw
500
0
Untreated Radial Tangential
Treatment
Study by SP Trätek
• Hot dip galvanised, 2.3 * 60
• Decking screw, 3.0 * 50
16

Kebony Pine - Product performance
Modulus of Elasticity (MOE) ASTM D-143
MOE (psi)
Control Mean ACQ MEAN FA MEAN
3000000
2,704,338
2500000
2,229,847
2,382,782
2000000
MOE (ps)i
1500000
1000000
500000
0
Control Mean ACQ MEAN FA MEAN
Treatment
Control SYP ACQ treated SYP Kebony SYP (M)
• Kebony pine exhibited near the same rupture point as untreated and
copper treated pine.
• Kebony pine (yellow column) exhibited more stiffness (MOE) than
untreated and copper treated pine
• This MOE score means that Kebony pine will perform more consistently
under loads.
17

Kebony Pine - Product Performance
Fastener corrosion AWPA E12
Mils of Corrosion Compared to Control of untreated wood
1,312
Control
ACQ FA
SYP
ACQ
treated
SYP
Kebony SYP
1,08
0,961
0,873
mils corrosion
0,602
0,308
0,332
0,221
0,152
0,156
0,068 0,067
0,1
0 0 0 0
0
0
0
0
Screw Plain Steel
SAE1010
Screw Hot dip Zinc
Galv.
Screw 316 Stainless
Steel
Coupons Aluminum
2024-T3
Coupons Hot dip Zinc
galv.
Coupons 316
Stainless Steel
Coupons Copper
Fastener/Coupon Type
• Because of residues of minor amounts of organic acid, Kebony is weakly acidic.
• Still, Kebony pine is overall less corrosive than ACQ treated pine
18

19
Kebony Maple – Product Performance

Kebony Maple – Product Performance
AWPA E10,
Brown rot (Coniophora puteana; Irpex lacteus;
Poria placenta)
White rot (Coriolus versicolor)
Kebony SYP Durability Class 1
(calculated according to EN-350)
20

Product performance
Hardness
Brinell hardness
(SP, Sweden):
Control
Kebony (M)
Kebony (H)
21

Product performance
Dimensional stability
Vol. swelling @ 20% -
85% RH (SP, Sweden):
In general :
Anti-swelling efficiency (ASE)
between 40 and 60 %
22

Product Characteristics
Appearance
Before
exposure
•Kebony is patinated by sunshine, rain and wind
24

1. The principles
2. Product testing & documentation
3. Environmental performance
4. Summing up: Why Kebony?
25

Sustainability
● Certification of wood starting
material – sustainably managed
forests
(Pine, Southern Yellow Pine; Maple)
● Documentation of environmental
impacts :
- “Carbon Footprint” – Global
Warming Potential
- Other Environmental impacts
26

Sustainability – Carbon Footprint
Kebony Approach :
● EMPA Life Cycle Analysis of
Kebony Window Frame
● In-house research in combination
with other consultants, for
comparison of Kebony with teak
and ACQ treated pine
● Product certification
27

Sustainability – Carbon Footprint
EMPA Study:
● GWP of Kebony compared to
PVC and Aluminium
28

Sustainability – Carbon Footprint
Kebony Maple compared to teak
Estimated carbon release of Kebony
compared to Burma teak over their
entire life span
29

Sustainability – Carbon Footprint
Kebony SYP compared to ipê
Estimated carbon release of Kebony
compared to Burma teak over their
entire life span
30

Kebony v ThermoWood and Accoya
Parameter Kebony ThermoWood Accoya
Modification principle Furan polymer Heat treatment Acetylation
Appearance
Brown, greying on
weathering
Brown, greying on
weathering
Pale, good colour stability
on weathering but
vulnerable to staining fungi.
Strength parameters Improved stiffness. Reduced bending strength Bending strength
unchanged from parent
wood
Hardness
*** * **
Dimensional Stability
** ** ***
Fastener holding
strength
*** * **
Durability
*** ** ***
31

1. The principles
2. Product testing & documentation
3. Environmental performance
4. Summing up: Why Kebony?
32

Total economy
• Durability
• Dimensional stability
• Hardness
• Bending strength
• Low demands on maintenance
• Good service life economy
33

34
Kebony – projects

35
Kebony organisasjon

Hvorfor velger markedet Kebony?
• Kebony er tidsriktig
– Estetisk vakkert
– Brukt av mange ledende arkitektbyråer i Skandinavia, og internasjonalt
• Kebony er miljøvennlig
– Vår prosess har ingen miljømessige konsekvenser – ingen skadelige stoffer
– Impregneringsmassen som brukes er basert på bioavfall
– Kebony er Svane merket
– Kebony bruker bærekraftige råmaterialer som også kan erstatte truede
tropiske regnskog-arter, avhengig av applikasjon
• Minimalt vedlikehold, og varig
– Kebony krever minimalt med vedlikehold – lav livsløpskostnad
– Lang varighet – Kebony gir prosjektgaranti på 30 år
– Beskyttelse mot sopp, råte, innsekter, o.s.v.
36
– God formstabilitet, slitestyrke, stivhet, bruddstyrke, hardhet

Hvorfor velger markedet Kebony?
• Kebony Furu
– Største produkt i Norge (fasadekledning, dekke, tak).
Velges av byggherrer som vil ha et rustikt utseende, og ønsker seg vekk fra
store livsløpskostnader for periodisk vedlikehold (maling, beising).
– Investeringskostnaden for en ferdig Kebony Furu -kledning er konkurransedyktig
med tradisjonelle alternativer (gran, furu) som må grunnes og males.
• Kebony SYP
– Største produkt (primært dekke) i europeiske markeder som
UK, Spania, Italia og Tyskland.
– Velges av byggherrer som ønsker alternativ til tropiske treslag. Fordeler Kebony
SYP: lange leveringslengder, forutsigbare ledetider, konsistent fuktighet i
produktene, ”solide” produkter, ingen overflatebehandling nødvendig.
• Kebony Lønn
– Til båtdekk som substitutt for Burma-teak.
Velges av båt- og båtdekksprodusenter fordi det er hardere enn teak og utvikles
som teak utseendemessig.
37

Kebony har produkter som løser behov
Tropisk trevirke
under press
• Betydelig press til å redusere
avskoging av tropisk trevirke
• Produsenter og konsumenter
arbeider for å finne alternativer
Markedet for trebeskyttelse
er i endring
• Miljøfarlige og giftige
impregneringsmetoder forbys og vil
forsvinne
• Offentlig/priv. innkjøp beveger seg i
retning av miljøvennlige produkter
Markedet ønsker høy ytelse
og redusert vedlikehold
Modifisert trevirke med
forbedrede egenskaper
• Lang holdbarhet
• Formstabilt
• Fin estetikk
• Lite vedlikehold
• Styrke og hardhet
• Miljøvennlig
• Kombinasjonen av funksjonalitet,
miljø og estetikk skaper trivsel
38

Kebony blir lagt merke til
Extracts of recent media coverage
In total, Kebony has had ~50 articles
in international media since summer
2009, with coverage ranging from
business newspapers as The
Economist to branch magazines.
39

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Oppsummering