Wood with additional functions

Wood is robust and versatile. But even the best material has its limits. Empa researchers are thus looking to transform wood into a high-tech material and broaden the range of applications for this natural resource. The trick: they give wood additional, unexpected properties. Over the millennia, our ancestors have improved the properties of wood by developing varnishes, paints or other methods. A team of Empa researchers headed by Ingo Burgert is now taking it one step further: the "drug" for wood is supposed to penetrate deep inside the faithful old material and bind firmly to the wood components. This not only changes the properties on the surface, but also inside the material.