Press | Media

Researchers at the Fraunhofer WKI, in collaboration with their partner Protohaus gGmbH, have constructed a stage set for the Braunschweig State Theater using an innovative forward-looking material. The surface of the mountain landscape in the play “Funken” was created with the help of fungal mycelium. The ecological and recyclable building material consists of elephant-grass fibers, which are grown through with mycelium. The stage set creatively illustrates the potential of building with fungal mycelium for the general public. The lampshades that can be seen on stage have also been produced using mycelium that has been hot-pressed in an innovative process.

During LIGNA 2023, researchers from the Fraunhofer WKI will be presenting possibilities for utilizing renewable raw materials – such as balsa wood, hardwood or natural fibers – in future-oriented applications. The application possibilities will be demonstrated by means of a laminated-material bridge and an eco stand-up paddleboard.

By means of a wood-based panel for interior construction, researchers from the Fraunhofer WKI will be demonstrating the application possibilities for a newly developed, formaldehyde-free bio-adhesive at LIGNA 2023. Compared to the phenol-formaldehyde resins often used until now, the new lignin-HMF resin is harmless to health and free from petrochemical raw materials. The researchers are presenting a 100 percent bio-based condensation resin for the wood-based materials industry that can be manufactured and processed using conventional process and equipment technology.

By means of a wall made from a multi-layer composite material as well as a ceiling beam, researchers from the Fraunhofer WKI will be demonstrating utilization possibilities for pine wood at LIGNA 2023. The demonstrators are the result of two current research projects at the Fraunhofer WKI. The “wood of the future” pine is one of the most important tree species in Northern Germany in terms of area covered and copes relatively well with climate change. As pine wood will be available in greater quantities in the future, the researchers are working on the development of application fields with high revenue potential for the construction and automotive industries.

In a current research project, researchers at the Fraunhofer WKI are determining how beech wood, which will be increasingly available in the future, can be used as wood-fiber insulation material in the form of mats or foams. At LIGNA 2023, the researchers will present one possibility: a thermal-insulation wall made from hollow bricks filled with insulation mats composed of beech-wood fibers. The brick wall is part of the “Multi-material model Wall I Ceiling I Roof”. Industrial partners will test the insulating materials developed at the Fraunhofer WKI to ensure their practical suitability. The project team is working on an economically attractive solution for the production of wood-fiber insulation materials from beech wood for the construction industry.

With the ceiling-system module for the modernization of suspended ceilings in buildings, researchers at the Fraunhofer WKI are demonstrating at LIGNA 2023 an ecological possibility for the renovation of old buildings. With the prefabricated small panels in modular construction, renovations will be easier and faster to carry out in the future.

With the highlight “Multi-material model Wall I Ceiling I Roof”, the researchers from the Fraunhofer WKI are presenting no less than eight innovations for the construction industry. At LIGNA 2023, they will furthermore be demonstrating additional possibilities for incorporating renewable raw materials into future-oriented applications.

The “Application Center HOFZET^®” of the Fraunhofer WKI and the “IfBB - Institute for Bioplastics and Biocomposites” of the Hochschule Hannover - University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HsH) are moving even closer together. A new office building at the Ahlem campus was officially inaugurated on April 24, 2023. Together with the jointly operated pilot plant for bioplastics and composites, it provides an excellent infrastructure for further innovative research.

At the Hannover Messe from April 17 to 21, the Fraunhofer WKI is exhibiting a sustainable crash-barrier system made from highly stress-resistant wood-composite elements as well as efficient and resource-saving building products from construction waste and plant residues.

Textile-reinforced concrete components with a sustainable natural-fiber reinforcement possess sufficient bond and tensile load-bearing behavior for the utilization in construction. This has been verified by researchers at the Fraunhofer WKI in collaboration with Biberach University of Applied Sciences and the industrial partner FABRINO. In the future, textile-reinforced components with natural-fiber reinforcement could therefore replace conventionally reinforced concrete components and improve the environmental balance in the construction industry.