Traditional wood composite panels rely heavily on formaldehyde-based adhesives, which are effective but release hazardous volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during production and use 1. Considering increasing environmental and health concerns, the industry is moving toward safer and sustainable alternatives. Bio-based adhesives made from lignin, tannin, and protein have been proposed, yet they often exhibit limited mechanical strength and high moisture sensitivity barriers to full industrial adoption 2–4. Humin, a byproduct of sugar conversion, offer a promising renewable base but require modification to enhance bonding performance 5. Advanced nanomaterials such as graphene and its derivatives have attracted considerable attention for use in adhesives due to their exceptional mechanical, electrical, and thermal properties. In some recent studies, graphene has been used as an additive in adhesives to improve its mechanical strength, thermal stability, atmospheric barrier and overall performance 6,7. These benefits could help mitigate challenges such as weak bonding and poor water swelling properties in current bioadhesives systems 8. Incorporating graphene into humin-based adhesives, especially with the addition of a natural and formaldehyde-free crosslinker, has the potential to drastically improve mechanical integrity and water resistance of the finished products 7. This study addresses the current performance gap by developing and evaluating graphene-enhanced humin bioadhesives for single-layer particleboard manufacturing.
Keywords: Green particleboard, bioadhesives, biocrosslinker, 2D nanoparticle, VOC
Authors
Papiya Bhowmik
Department of Forestry and Wood Technology, Linnaeus University, Vaxjo, Sweden
Reza Hosseinpourpia
Department of Forestry and Wood Technology, Linnaeus University, Sweden
College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, United States
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