Monday, June 17, 2024
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EPF (European Panel Federation) and Unilin have joined forces under the Horizon 2020 European project, CISUFLO (CIrcular SUstainable FlOor coverings), with the aim of transitioning towards a sustainable circular flooring sector. Supported by innovation funds from the European Union, the project brings together a consortium of 19 partners, including industrial entities, research centers, and associations, covering laminate, textile, and vinyl floor coverings.
As the world grapples with the depletion of finite resources, product circularity becomes crucial to preserving our planet. The CISUFLO project addresses this by developing solutions to make current flooring materials circular, either through design or by creating recycling technologies that transform these products into new, similar ones.
Laminate flooring, along with other products containing MDF (Medium-Density Fiberboard) or HDF (High-Density Fiberboard), is often deemed difficult to recycle, typically ending up in landfills or incineration at the end of their lifecycle. This is a challenge the CISUFLO project aims to overcome.
Unilin has pioneered a groundbreaking technology to close the recycling loop for these materials. Their innovative steam explosion process extracts valuable wood fibers from MDF/HDF-based products, particularly laminate flooring. These fibers are then repurposed, replacing virgin fibers in the HDF production process, allowing the core component of laminate flooring to be recycled efficiently.
Since 2021, Unilin has been refining this technology at their pilot line in Bazeilles, France. The line now produces over one ton of recycled fibers per hour, which are immediately reintegrated into the production of new MDF/HDF products. This pilot unit not only showcases the enormous potential of the technology by ensuring the quality of the recycled fibers matches that of virgin fibers but also proves the process to be economically viable and energy-efficient, saving both electrical and thermal energy compared to traditional fiber production methods.
This achievement challenges the perception of MDF/HDF as non-recyclable materials and underscores their potential for circularity, a trait for which European wood-based panels are renowned.
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Tags: woodworking, woodworking and manufacturing, woodworking industry
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