Company creates 'Superwood' from wood, 10 times stronger than steel, no rotting

It is made from wood.
Now how about making a Superwood boat from this. Pest resistant likely mean worms wont eat it. This engineered wood product will be buyable this year.

‘Superwood’: US firm creates timber 10 times tougher than steel, resists water, fire

A biotech startup from the U.S. is aiming to reshape the construction industry with the launch of a groundbreaking new material that mimics the look and feel of natural wood while outperforming high-grade steel in strength and durability.

Maryland-based firm InventWood, revealed that their engineering wood product called Superwood is a result of molecular-level transformation that turns natural wood into a material up to a dozen times stronger and 10 times tougher than its original form.

According to the company, which recently closed a USD 15 million Series A funding round to begin commercial shipments from its production facility in Frederick between July and September 2025, the material boasts a strength-to-weight ratio nearly 10 times greater the steel.



The fire-resistant, water-repellent, rot-proof and pest-resistant tech reportedly emerged from research led by Liangbing Hu, PhD, a materials scientist and distinguished professor at the University of Maryland, whose former work focused on carbon nanotube innovation.

 

Here is how the wood is converted into superwood, it is not a glue resin process. The wood is modified by removing lignin and forcing the wood fibers to compress and form hydrogen bonds.

The wood takes on the appearance of tropical hardwood.

What Is 'Super Wood'? New Material Strong as Steel Nears Mass Production

A new kind of wood, stronger than steel and created from ordinary timber, is approaching full-scale production.

The material, named "Super Wood," by creators InventWood, could provide an alternative to using tropical hardwoods from forests at risk of deforestation.

Why It Matters
Buildings and infrastructure are major contributors to global carbon emissions, primarily through the use of concrete and steel. By replacing these with a renewable and significantly less carbon-intensive material like Super Wood, it could be possible to make construction both more sustainable and cost-effective.

What To Know
In 2018, Liangbing Hu, a materials scientist at the university, discovered a way to transform regular wood into a high-performance structural material by altering its molecular composition.

Hu then licensed the technology to InventWood, a startup now preparing for its first commercial production run.

Superwood starts with regular timber, which is mostly composed of two compounds, cellulose and lignin. The goal is to strengthen the cellulose already present in the wood, according to an interview with Tech Crunch.

Superwood is created by chemically treating wood with food-industry chemicals to remove most of its lignin and then compressing the material to strengthen the hydrogen bonds between cellulose molecules.

The final product has 50 percent more tensile strength than steel and a strength-to-weight ratio 10 times greater. It is also Class A fire-rated and resistant to rot and pests, according to InventWood's factfile.

Super Wood is set to be produced in a $15 million factory backed by top construction investors, including Baruch Future Ventures, Builders VC, and Muus Climate Partners.

What People Are Saying
In a statement on their website, InventWood said: "Our patented molecular-level transformation process works by bringing out the incredible strength hidden in every tree to achieve up to 10-20x strength improvements, ultimately providing a strength-to-weight ratio up to 10x that of steel.

InventWood CEO Alex Lau said in a statement on LinkedIn: "We're not gluing or mixing wood with synthetic polymers. We're fundamentally restructuring and compressing it to create incredibly strong hydrogen bonding between the cellulose fibers.

"The results are remarkable: a natural material with up to 50 percent greater tensile strength than steel and 10 times the strength-to-weight ratio. It's Class A fire-rated and naturally resistant to rot and pests, while displaying the rich, lustrous beauty of tropical hardwoods—all sourced from undervalued domestic reclaimed trees.

What's Next
InventWood plans to launch its first commercial products this summer. The aim for production is to use low-value wood chips to manufacture structural-grade beams of any dimension that will not require finishing.

 

how can they say it lasts longer than steel which can last 50 years ,when they dont know if it will last 1 year, more lies

 

Well, they are going to be selling it soon enough to find out what it can or can't do.

I like the idea, and I like new technology, so I give them the benefit of the doubt, for now.

It seems to be mostly cellulose that is put under huge pressure, and the cellulose forms new molecular bonding.
Means it becomes denser and stronger.

I looked, a website is up.
InventWood

They are making some big claims, the process makes it look like tropical hardwood.
****************
Our patented molecular-level transformation process works by bringing out the incredible strength hidden in every tree to achieve up to 10-20x strength improvements, ultimately providing a strength-to-weight ratio up to 10x that of steel.

We’re bringing SUPERWOOD to market in early 2025. Be among the first to benefit from SUPERWOOD that is:

• Unmatched in its strength-to-weight ratio
  
  
• As beautiful as any tropical wood
  
  
• Highly workable

 

Found couple of articles on the process from years ago, the first one says it can even make transparent wood

Stronger Than Steel, Able to Stop a Speeding Bullet--It's Super Wood! | Scientific American

"Some varieties of wood, such as oak and maple, are renowned for their strength. But scientists say a simple and inexpensive new process can transform any type of wood into a material stronger than steel, and even some high-tech titanium alloys. Besides taking a star turn in buildings and vehicles, the substance could even be used to make bullet-resistant armor plates."


New Chemical Treatment Makes 'Super Wood' That Could Replace Steel

"Scientists at the University of Maryland have, through chemical treatments and crushed polymers, found a way to make soft woods over 10 times as strong as their natural form. They're calling it "super wood."

Lightweight woods, like pine or balsa, already have a number of common uses in woodworking but they're just not fit for applications in industrial strength projects. The research team is hopeful that their chemical treatments could change that."

 

It will likely be the Titanium of woods.
The cost will ultimately decide whether or not this material will be useful in ordinary marine applications.
I see nothing regarding structural shapes, so assuming that it will be dimensional lumber?
Promises to be hell on bits and blades!

 

I saw that it crushes wood down so if it is 5" thick, the process crushes it to 1" thick.

"One of the things that makes wood wood is a polymer known as lignin which forms support structures in trees and plants. The second most abundant naturally-occurring polymer on Earth, lignin is what makes wood rigid and brown. Somewhat counterintuitively, Hu and his team removed the wood's lignin polymers in order to make their wood even stronger.

The lingin removal allowed the team to compress the wood under a mild heat of around 150 degrees Fahrenheit. Without the lignin binding together the wood's cells, the scientists were able to make its cellulose fibers very tightly packed.

When the fibers are jammed together, any defects in the wood like knots or holes are crushed. The wood's fibers begin to form hydrogen bonds, which the scientists compare to "a crowd of people who can’t budge–who are also holding hands." The compression also shrinks down the size of the wood, making it five times thinner than before it was treated."

 

Some of the wording is inconsistent and certainly being "10 times as strong as steel" does catch ones imagination

But it appears that it is the "strength-to-weight ratio 10 times greater than steel"

Myself, I am a little skeptical as to with only pure compression that new molecular bonds can be formed. In order for this to happen, existing bonds have to be broken. This is difficult without energy being dissipated. I am sure another contributor will offer how this is done.

 

Went looking and found it happens
A supramolecular structure insight for conversion property of cellulose in hot compressed water: Polymorphs and hydrogen bonds changes - ScienceDirect

 

Compressed laminated wood isn't exactly new,although the details of this particular process may be a little different.See these links for more; Permali Deho | Producers of Compressed Laminated Wood https://permalideho.co.uk/ Delignit https://www.delignit.de/en/brands.html#c4451 . What may prove to be a bit of an obstacle to widespread adoption of the new version may be the very thing that makes it unique,the gain in density that comes from being considerably compressed.I didn't see any figures for this property in evidence and if anybody else did,I'd like a link to the page for my curiosity.I'd also be interested in learning how it affects cutting tools and whether there is movement when it is machined.I've seen various sheet materials curl up when material is removed from one side as the forces within the laminate are no longer balanced and a new equilibrium comes into effect.Once clarity on these factors is established and if cost isn't prohibitive,the new material may have interesting applications.

 

More info
And I was wondering if other companies will produce competing wood products using similar methods. Concrete structures with rebar fall apart in a few decades, maybe this could be used instead.

InventWood is about to mass-produce wood that’s stronger than steel | TechCrunch

InventWood’s Superwood product starts with regular timber, which is mostly composed of two compounds, cellulose and lignin. The goal is to strengthen the cellulose already present in the wood. “The cellulose nanocrystal is actually stronger than a carbon fiber,” Lau said.

The company treats it with “food industry” chemicals to modify the molecular structure of the wood, he said, and then compresses the result to increase the hydrogen bonds between cellulose molecules.

“We might densify the material by 4x and you might think, ‘Oh, it’ll be four times strong, because it has four times the fiber.’ But it’s actually more like 10 times stronger because of all these extra bonds that get created,” Lau said.

The result is a material that has 50% more tensile strength than steel with a strength-to-weight ratio that’s 10 times better, the company said. It’s also Class A fire rated, or highly resistant to flame, and resistant to rot and pests. With some polymer impregnated, it can be stabilized for outdoor use like siding, decking, or roofing. InventWood’s first products will be facade materials for commercial and high-end residential buildings, Lau said.

Compressing the material also concentrates the colors. “You end up with something that looks like these richer, tropical hardwoods,” he added.

Ultimately, InventWood is planning to use wood chips to create structural beams of any dimension that won’t need finishing. “Imagine your I-beams look like this,” Lau said, holding up a sample of Superwood. “They’re beautiful, like walnut, ipe. These are the natural colors. We haven’t stained any of this.”

 

Strength has no meaning unless it is qualified. For example, tensile strength/weight may be higher. However, compression is less, which would fail at the fastener attachments at lesser stress than steel. Also, for many applications volume to strength is more important. Wording like "highly resistant to flame" is great on sales brochures, but they are not giving an actual fire rating. Wood is fire resistant to a degree, which is why there are fire rated wood doors already. Is this higher or lower, has it been rated by UL or other organization?

 

I thought I knew what this was and it didn't interest me due to its issues. Finally decided to read it and yep, just repackaging the same process as all the same suspects and buzz words are comming up. This is a wood to composite process funded by DOE for wind turbine blades using the natural crosslinking for improved fatuige resistance and the ability to recycle eol blades (something which can't be done with present composite blades.)

https://ktxs.com/news/local/old-windfarm-blades-causing-problems-in-nolan-county

 

... so I need to be designing a superwood chipper? That sounds fun - and loud - but mostly fun. Maybe use a pavement grinder or rotary rock trencher for the front end. Recycling isn't going to be cheap, though.

$75,800
2022 KEMROC EKT110 ROCK TRENCHER CUTTER For Sale in Louisville, Kentucky https://www.cmcky.com/Inventory/?/listing/for-sale/236698909/2022-kemroc-ekt110-rock-trencher-cutter-trencher?dlr=1&dscompanyid=754&settingscrmid=6266&recsys=similaritems_225219995&gQT=1

 

It is talking about fiberglass blades?
I have not read this wood product is used for that.