Emerging technologies for the development of wood products towards extended carbon storage and CO2 capture

Abstract

Forests have an important role in mitigating greenhouse gasses and global climate warming by storing carbon. Carbon is locked in trees through photosynthesis, which contributes around 50% of the dry mass of wood. Therefore, wood is critical for maximizing the carbon capture and storage of nature. In this mini-review, emerging technologies for the development of wood products toward extended carbon storage and capture are overviewed. Novel functional wood-based materials for capturing CO2 are discussed including wood-based and biochar membranes/adsorbents. The emerging wood nanotechnologies are highlighted for manufacturing high-performance products, which have great potential to substitute fossil-based plastics. The developing technologies of engineered wood products, such as densification, chemical modification, and mineralization of wood, are also summarized with the objective of extending wood carbon storage. The impact of woody biomass on the economy and carbon mitigation is briefly studied in this review. This could help us with the sustainable economic management of forests and wood targeting reducing the negative impact of greenhouse gas emission and global climate warming. The outlook for functional wood products are described along with the potential for the development of new technologies in carbon storage and capture.