With this major venture, Swedish research company Innventia is taking a decisive step towards the industrialisation of its energy efficient production process for the new super material nanocellulose.For the first time, nanocellulose will be able to be produced on a large scale, with the process being economically efficient. Previously, the homogenising stage in the process was much too demanding, when it comes to energy. Due to the process developments carried out by Innventia, the energy consumption has been reduced by a total of 98 percent.Innventia is making a major investment in this technology by constructing the first pilot plant in the world for producing on a larger scale.“This is a natural step in the investment we’re making in nanocellulose. In order to develop applications, such as paper and composite materials, the raw material produced in a lab is not sufficient. As the only company in the world, we’re extremely proud to be able to offer industry real opportunities to participate in this field, which is so important for the future,” said Mikael Ankerfors, a Research Manager at Innventia.Nanocellulose is a material that is extracted from wood fibers. It has exceptional strength properties, being more or less as strong as kevlar, a light weight material. However, in contrast to kevlar and other materials based on fossil fuels, nanocellulose is completely renewable.“For a long time, there’s been a great deal of interest from industry in utilising nanocellulose as a strengthening component in other materials, such as paper, composites and plastics,” relates Mikael Ankerfors.