Transparent Wood Composites [1] "are novel wood materials which have up to 90% transparency and higher mechanical properties than wood itself". This latest pape

Transparent Wood Composites [1] "are novel wood materials which have up to 90% transparency and higher mechanical properties than wood itself". This latest paper Solar-assisted fabrication of large-scale, patternable transparent wood [2] describes a technique that brings this material one step closer to production scale: > Here, we report a method to produce optically transparent wood by modifying the wood’s lignin structure using a solar-assisted chemical brushing approach. This method preserves most of the lignin to act as a binder, providing a robust wood scaffold for polymer infiltration while greatly reducing the chemical and energy consumption as well as processing time. The obtained transparent wood (~1 mm in thickness) demonstrates a high transmittance (>90%), high haze (>60%), and excellent light-guiding effect over visible wavelength. Furthermore, we can achieve diverse patterns directly on wood surfaces using this approach, which endows transparent wood with excellent patternability. Combining its efficient, patternable, and scalable production, this transparent wood is a promising candidate for applications in energy-efficient buildings. This same group has previously described A Clear, Strong, and Thermally Insulated Transparent Wood for Energy Efficient Windows [3]. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transparent_wood_composites https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transparent_wood_composites [2] https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/7/5/eabd7342 https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/7/5/eabd7342 [3] https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/adfm.201907511 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/adfm.2019075...