Petr Kutsenogiy, deputy responsible for innovation at the SB RAS Institute of Cytology and Genetics, told socialbites.ca that the cellulose obtained from the new Russian miscanthus variety Soranovsky can be used to produce carbon fiber needed in aircraft construction.
“Cellulose is a basic raw material that can be used in various applications, such as steel or coal. In particular, we can burn oxygen and hydrogen from cellulose, then we are left with carbon fiber. The expert said that it can already be used, for example, in the construction of an aircraft wing.”
In addition, cellulose can also be used to produce biodegradable cellophane, cardboard, paper, cellulose yarn; This replaces slabs and blocks used for viscose, bioconcrete, construction, plate, fertilizer and biofuel.
“Countries hostile to Russia are trying to separate us from pulp. Our main source of cellulose was cotton, and our second source was bamboo. We wanted to buy from Brazil, but they are stopping us. Therefore, it is important to find alternative sources of raw materials,” said Kutsenogy.
The expert noted that one miscanthus plantation has already been established in Russia and two more are planned. The first miscanthus plantation appeared in the Moscow region in 2020. Later, we managed to plant an area of approximately 100 hectares. Now their number is more than 300.
“We harvest 10 tons from one hectare, 40-44% of which is cellulose. This is around 4 tonnes in a bad year and around 6-7 tonnes in a good year. Another plantation will appear in Siberia and Kaliningrad in the near future. “There will be approximately 2 thousand hectares of miscanthus in each plantation,” shared the expert.
Read more about the properties of new miscanthus and the applications of cellulose. material “socialbites.ca”.
Formerly a scientist in the name The main advantages of the Russian miscanthus variety.