Highly Anisotropic, Highly Transparent Wood Composites

Adv Mater. 2016 Jul;28(26):5181-7. doi: 10.1002/adma.201600427. Epub 2016 May 4.

Abstract

For the first time, two types of highly anisotropic, highly transparent wood composites are demonstrated by taking advantage of the macro-structures in original wood. These wood composites are highly transparent with a total transmittance up to 90% but exhibit dramatically different optical and mechanical properties.

Keywords: alignment; anisotropic structures; light scattering; lignin removal; structural materials; transparent wood.