At the Laboratory of Natural Materials Technology, the resarch topics include producing and processing biomass and the use of it in production of wood based fibres, biopolymers, biocomposites and biofuels as well as coating of materials based on natural fibres. Other research activities in this area include embedding functionality into fiber-based substrates and making them compatible with potential future value-added applications such as printed sensors, electronics, and photonics. One of the major research areas, controlling printability of traditional graphic paper grades, is today expanded to include coating and printing of functional materials.
The research is done within the following research groups:
Fibre and Cellulose Technology
- Biomass engineering
- Smart fibres, functional cellulosic beads, cellulosic bioplastics, bioactive materials based on hemicelluloses, and hydrotropic lignin
- Surface engineering of natural fibre-based materials such as paper and board
- Use of coating and printing technologies as fabrication methods for novel value-added products
- Wood, pulping, and papermaking chemistry
- Biorefinery and biobased materials
Laboratory of Natural Materials Technology is a part of the subject cluster Chemistry and Chemical Technology that is headed by professor Johan Bobacka.
Research personnel
Teachers
Jan Gustafsson, Senior Lecturer, Fibre and Cellulose Technology
Research profile and publications
Mari Nurmi, Senior Lecturer, Paper Coating and Converting
Research profile and publications
Anna Sundberg, Senior Lecturer, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Martti Toivakka, Professor, Paper Coating and Converting, Head of Laboratory
Research profile and publications
Chunlin Xu, Professor, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Stefan Willför, Professor, Vice-rector for Research Affairs
Research profile and publications
Researchers and Doctoral Students
Yury Brusentsev, Project Researcher, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Jarl Hemming, Researcher, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Liqiu Hu, Doctoral Student, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Jani Kniivilä, Research Assistant, Paper Coating and Converting
Research profile and publications
Rajesh Koppolu, Doctoral Student, Paper Coating and Converting
Research profile and publications
Ekaterina Korotkova, Coordinator for analytical services, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Ruut Kummala, Doctoral Student, Paper Coating and Converting
Research profile and publications
Rui Liu, Doctoral Student, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Kyudeok (Kevin) Oh, Post-doctoral Researcher, Paper Coating and Converting
Research profile and publications
Fuaad Panikaveetil Ahamed Kutty, Postdoctoral researcher, Paper Coating and Converting
Research profile and publications
Andrey Pranovich, Senior Researcher, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Annika Smeds, Laboratory Technician, docent, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Amit Tewari, Postdoctoral Researcher, Paper Coating and Converting
Research profile and publications
Diosángeles Soto Véliz, Doctoral Student, Paper Coating and Converting
Research profile and publications
Luyao Wang, Doctoral Student, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Qingbo Wang, Doctoral Student, Wood and Paper Chemistry
Research profile and publications
Xiaoju Wang, Academy Research Fellow, Wood and Paper Chemistry (jointly affiliated 80% with Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Sciences)
Research profile and publications
Wenyang Xu, Senior Researcher
Address:
Åbo Akademi University
Natural Materials Technology
Porthaninkatu 3
20500 Turku