About

The ARC Research Hub for Processing Lignocellulosics into High-Value Products, aims to convert renewable and readily-available lignocellulosic material and waste streams from the Australian Pulp, Paper and Forest Industry, into new, high-value products in demand in existing and developing markets. The concept is not simply to use lignocellulosic materials as sustainable replacements to widely-used existing fossil-fuel based products, but to extend significantly intrinsic properties of materials that can be manufactured commercially from lignocellulose and promote the manufacture of a range of novel products not attainable any other way from other raw materials. By processing and modifying lignocellulose in new ways, Australia’s reliance on imported oil-based polymers can be reduced and replaced by locally manufactured renewable polymers and chemicals derived sustainably from Australia’s forest resources and agricultural wastes. This strategy will create new industries based on sustainably managed forest resources and agricultural practices in regional Australia, leading to wider diversification and employment opportunities in these areas.