Friday, November 7, 2025
Lunawood, a leading global producer of sustainable and durable ThermoWood®, successfully concluded its “Best from Dust” innovation challenge. The initiative sought to identify groundbreaking, commercially viable applications for the fine wood dust generated as a by-product during the thermal modification and planing of its timber products.
While the wood dust has historically been utilised for internal energy production—a sustainable practice in its own right—Lunawood is strategically targeting higher-value uses that maximise the material’s potential and contribute to a more comprehensive bio-based circular economy. The successful culmination of the challenge has unveiled several highly promising pathways for this industrial byproduct.
“The innovation challenge confirmed that ThermoWood® dust holds many opportunities within the circular economy. We are pleased to have attracted teams with concrete and scalable ideas,” stated Pauliina Tynkkynen, Lunawood’s Sustainability Manager. Her comments underscore the company’s commitment to driving innovation beyond conventional sustainability metrics and into genuine resource optimisation.
The innovation challenge, launched in September 2025 in partnership with the business accelerator BioBoosters, was structured to discover concepts that could be rapidly piloted and scaled for future commercial use. The criteria were stringent, focusing on solutions that were not only sustainable and logistically efficient but also commercially sound.
Following an application phase, five select teams were invited to a focused workshop held at Lunawood’s production facility in Iisalmi, Finland, at the end of October. This hands-on workshop provided a critical environment for the teams to present their detailed proposals and undergo a joint feasibility assessment with Lunawood’s experts. The discussions proved highly fruitful, illuminating a diverse range of applications for the thermally modified wood fibre.
Promising avenues
The proposals from the participating teams showcased the versatile technical properties of ThermoWood® dust, which possesses unique characteristics derived from the high-temperature treatment process—namely, increased stability and decay resistance. The solutions presented fell into two main, high-growth market categories: carbon capture and biological applications.
1. Biochar production
Two key participants, Xylo Gas Oy and SFTec Oy, concentrated on the potential for large-scale biochar production. Biochar—a charcoal-like material produced by heating biomass in the absence of oxygen (pyrolysis)—is an increasingly valuable commodity in the global sustainability market, primarily due to its ability to:
For the ThermoWood® industry, converting a side stream into biochar represents a strategic shift from simply burning wood for energy to producing a high-value, marketable product that also enhances the wood’s long-term environmental contribution. The strong and growing global market for biochar, which is projected to reach several billion dollars in the coming years, provides a solid commercial foundation for these proposals.
2. Novel bio-applications
Other teams explored pathways in the biological and agricultural sectors:
Special mention
A distinct highlight of the challenge was the proposal from Finnmycel Oy, which received a special mention for its exceptional innovative potential. Finnmycel’s concept centres on utilising the ThermoWood® dust as a specialised growth medium for mycelium cultivation.
Mycelium, the root structure of fungi, is being rapidly adopted globally to produce a new generation of high-value, bio-based materials. These range from sustainable packaging and sound-dampening panels to next-generation leather alternatives and building insulation. This application offers a paradigm shift for the wood dust—transforming a low-cost byproduct into a crucial input for premium, highly sought-after industrial and consumer products, aligning perfectly with Lunawood’s ambition for maximum circularity and innovation.
The outcome of the workshop has confirmed the robust potential for Lunawood to elevate its wood side streams from a simple energy source to a valuable input material for multiple new industries. Lunawood has already confirmed that it will be continuing active discussions with several of the innovative teams, particularly those with ideas deemed ready for rapid pilot projects.
This strategic move places Lunawood at the forefront of the circular bioeconomy within the international timber industry. By partnering with agile startups and innovators, the company is demonstrating a practical model for how established manufacturers can leverage their industrial by-products to drive both corporate sustainability targets and the development of new, high-value markets. The ultimate goal is a truly closed-loop system where all components of the original timber are used to their highest possible potential, thereby reducing waste, capturing carbon, and creating a new economic value.
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Tags: biochar production, circular economy timber, Lunawood, sustainable wood side streams, ThermoWood dust, wood recycling innovation
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