PhosBoard: High-end fibreboards produced with renewable resources and a low energy process.

PhosBoard is a new environmentally friendly low-density fibreboard developed from low-value residual materials from the wood industry. Novel component combinations and processing methods to produce PhosBoards with different attributes and potential applications will be explored in this project. Conventional fibreboard production relies heavily on fossil-derived glues including formaldehyde and energy-intensive processes, which contribute to environmental degradation and greenhouse gases emissions. This project prioritizes the utilization of sustainable and renewable materials in a low-energy process to minimize environmental impacts associated with conventional fibreboard production. In the absence of formaldehyde emission, PhosBoard will contribute to improved indoor air quality and safe working environment. The selection of the components used in PhosBoard offers several beneficial properties including physical, mechanical, and fire-retardance. In addition, all the components are benign to the ecosystem and thus, end-of-life products will not have any potential negative impact on the environment. The project embraces the principle of circular economy by incorporating recycled wood fibres from industrial and post-consumer waste to promote resource efficiency and material circularity. This will be achieved through integration of waste streams into the production process, thereby promoting closed loop material flows and reducing waste generation in producing new environmentally friendly products.