In an effort to boost the biomass waste sector the Department of Science and Technology has established a biorefinery research consortium (BRC).

The consortium is a partnership between the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the Tshwane University of Technology, the University of the Witwatersrand, and Sekolong Sa Dimelana, a rural-based bioenterprise.

The BRC will use the recently launched Biorefinery Industry Development Facility (BIDF) at the CSIR’s Durban campus to investigate opportunities for the beneficiation of waste by-products from forestry, timber, pulp and paper industries, such as sawdust, finding alternative and innovative uses for the waste and diverting it from landfills.

Ben Durham,Chief Director: Bioinnovation at the DST, says the consortium was conceptualised with a strong emphasis on the full value chain approach, coordination and technology transfer, by providing broad access to technical expertise and the biorefinery demonstration infrastructure that the BIDF provides.

BIDF success

The BIDF has developed a novel process to produce cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) directly from wood sawdust, without the need for the conventional pulping and bleaching processes that are currently used to isolate CNC from wood.

Cellulose nanocrystals are nanoparticles that have impressive optical, rheological and mechanical properties comparable with stainless steel, and have widespread applications in the automotive, construction, paper, medical, food, environmental and industrial sectors, among others.

According to the CSIR chief scientist at the BRC, Prof. Bruce Sithole, CNCs are high-value materials that currently sell for approximately US$1 000 per kilogram.  They are typically produced from high-purity wood-derived cellulose products such as microcrystalline cellulose, so producing CNC from wood sawdust is an achievement.

The CNCs produced at the BIDF will be used by other consortium members for downstream development of various CNC-based products, such as high-performance composites for packaging and construction applications, biopolymers for water filtration and biomedical applications, as well as biobinders produced fromsawdust and castor oil.