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For my university project im trying to create a food dehydrator using a sustainable material such as ie paper/newspaper.
Is there a way to turn paper in to a material which has similar characteristics such as wood: for example newspaper wood:
http://kristenbaumlier.com/wp-content/u … erwood.jpg
But this material is fairly new and they do not disclose the manufacturing process.
I need the material to be hard, that it can be coated, cut and sanded such as the above, is it even possible?
Thanks
Last edited by Lokaa (2013-02-05 22:57:28)
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The process is mentioned at http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/design- … -wood/4876
"NewspaperWood is made by coating individual sheets of old newspaper with glue and then tightly rolling the glued sheets into logs. The glue used is solvent and plasticizers-free. The material can be treated like most other wood products by cutting, milling, sanding, and finishing with paint or varnish. When cut into planks, the layers of paper reveal wood grain-like patterns of ink. Sanding the material roughens up the fibers of the newspapers and provides a soft texture that can be left unfinished."
This link http://crispgreen.com/2012/01/wood-like … ewspapers/ says that it is a "water based glue that is free of solvents and plasticizers".
I'm thinking that it would be a plant- or animal-based glue with a brittle nature.
If I were to try doing this, these are some of the glues I would try:
An old glue commonly used in the first half of the previous century was mucilage, made from plant materials, a clear gold-brown glue used almost exclusively for binding paper. But I haven't seen it for sale for 40-50 years.
Another one would be hoof glue, now used rather exclusively in cabinetry. What makes it suitable for woodworking may also make it useful for newspaperwood.
Methyl cellulose adhesive (made from highly-processed wood) might be another one to try, but I'm not sure that it's strength would be adequate.
Gum arabic (lickable postage stamp glue) might be another. This is a food product. If you have a store that sells bulk spices from Frontier Foods (Fred Meyer/Kroger) or health foods, you can probably find it there.
Cooked food starches might be a possibility, if thin applications would be strong enough. Rice flour is probably the finest, wheat might be okay. But it has to be cooked for a minute or two until it gets kind of transparent.
Casein (milk-based) glues have a history of being used for laminating fireproof doors, and for the application of labels to glass bottles.
One more possibility, which isn't technically a glue, is true shellac, a resin produced by female lac bugs. It is mixed with ethyl alcohol to make a finish for wood (mostly, but not completely, superceded by modern solvent-based finishes). It is also used by pharmaceutical companies as a glazing agent on pills, since shellac is non-toxic after the alcohol in it evaporates.
Sue
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The binder is key... and manufacturers typically guard their ingredients closer than any other part of the process. Find out what Debbie Wijskamp or Domingos Totora use.... if you can; she has refused to talk- he might. There are a couple who use wheat paste glue for casting pulp furniture; I have a one sheet explainer from them, but can't find their names; I'll post the file to any who are interested.
The real crux comes from what you deem "sustainable". Is plaster? cement? animal glues? There are good arguments for and against all 3. Is it the energy requirements over the life time of the product? Is it the ease of recycling?
To Sue's list I would add clay, dextrine, cellodextrin, and possibly ethyl cellulose; dextrine sources included corn and tapioca- both commonly used as adhesives, with tapioca favoured by the Indian papier mache industry.
Last edited by mavigogun (2013-02-15 07:58:32)
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