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Appendix L -  Materials
 
Bamboo Central http://www.bamboocentral.org
ENVIRONMENTAL BAMBOO FOUNDATION
Downloads
 
EBF has published a manual and a video that explain 
bamboo preservation procedures: Vertical Soak Diffusion (VSD)





 

[English]

Sucrose based Epoxy  http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/1999/990610.htm
 
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New Liquid Epoxies Created from Cane Sugar
By Jan Suszkiw
June 10, 1999
WASHINGTON, June 10--Sugar (sucrose) extracted from sugarcane juice is the main ingredient in new liquid epoxies that can bind wood, metal, glass, concrete and other materials, U.S. Department of Agriculture scientists and collaborators report.
The advance may open a new industrial outlet for the sweetener in the form of base coats, primers or adhesives for composite materials like particle boarding or boat hulls. “It’s an example of science finding a surprising new use for a common, everyday agricultural commodity,” said Floyd P. Horn, administrator for the Agricultural Research Service, the USDA agency carrying out the project.
More than three million tons of American cane sugar is produced annually, but less than 2 percent is used for non-food purposes, such as fermentation. As a food product, cane sugar has to compete with artificial and low-calorie sweeteners.
What sucrose offers that the other sweeteners do not is an abundant, chemically pure source of raw material for creating epoxies that can bind with such diverse materials as wood or plastic, says lead scientist and chemist Navzer D. Sachinvala, at the ARS’ Southern Regional Research Center in New Orleans.
“Once these epoxies set, they become clear glassy or rubbery materials, depending on the type used,” Sachinvala says.
It’s too soon to say how the new epoxies will fare in a market dominated by petroleum- based products. But Sachinvala cites a few selling points, notably the sucrose epoxies’ lack of ingredients like Bisphenal-A, a component of petroleum-based products. Controversy surrounds the chemical because of its alleged role in disrupting the reproductive system of mice and possibly humans.
Other sucrose epoxy benefits include an ability to cure or harden in conditions from below room temperature to 150 degrees Celsius. Lab tests indicate the epoxies are also capable of remaining stable under direct exposure to sunlight and saltwater, Sachinvala reports.
Results from studies published in the Journal of Polymer Science also indicate bonding strengths comparable to those of the petroleum product diglycidyl ether of Bisphenal-A, or DGEBA. One of the sucrose epoxies tested, called a crotyl monomer, outperformed the DGEBA product by 30 percent.
Sachinvala began exploring cane sugar’s industrial potential in 1988, first as a Case Western Reserve University graduate student, and later as a scientist at Hawaii’s Agricultural Research Center (HARC) in Oahu. In 1996, he joined ARS’ New Orleans center. There, along with HARC scientists Othman Hamed and David Winsor, Sachinvala perfected an epoxidation process that employs reagents like oxygenated vinegar to change sucrose’s molecular structure and chemical properties.
Negotiations with an industrial partner are underway to produce large amounts of the sucrose epoxies so commercial criteria like price and performance can be determined and compared to existing materials. A more detailed article appears in the June issue of Agricultural Research, ARS’ monthly publication and on the web at:

http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/jun99/epox0699.htm

Scientific contact: Navzer D. Sachinvala, ARS Southern Regional Research Center, New Orleans, La., phone (504) 286-4324, fax (504) 286-4271, nozar@commserver.srrc.usda.gov.

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Surian Timber - Background (Toona sureni)
The Meliaceae, or the Mahogany family, is a flowering plant family of mostly trees and shrubs (and a few herbaceous plants) in the order Sapindales, characterised by alternate, usually pinnate leaves without stipules, and by syncarpous, apparently bisexual (but actually mostly cryptically unisexual) flowers borne in panicles, cymes, spikes, or clusters. Most species are evergreen, but some are deciduous, either in the dry season or in winter.

The family includes about 50 genera and 550 species, with a pantropical distribution; one genus (Toona) extends north into temperate China and south into southeast Australia, and another (Melia) nearly as far north.


Uses

Various species are used for vegetable oil, soap-making, insecticides, and highly prized wood (mahogany).

Some economically important species belong to this family:
• Neem Azadirachta indica (India)
• Crabwood Tree Carapa procera (South America and Africa)
• Cedrela Cedrela odorata (Central and South America; timber also known as Spanish-cedar)
• Sapele Entandrophragma cylindricum (tropical Africa)
• Utile or Sipo, Entandrophragma utile (tropical Africa)
• Bossé Guarea cedrata (Africa)
• Bossé Guarea thompsonii (Africa)
• Ivory Coast Mahogany Khaya ivorensis (tropical Africa)
• Senegal Mahogany Khaya senegalensis (tropical Africa)
• Chinaberry or Bead Tree, Melia azedarach (Queensland, India and southern China)
• Mahogany Swietenia species (tropical Americas)
• Australian Redcedar Toona australis (Australia), often included in Toona ciliata (seq.)
• Toon, surian (int. trade) Toona ciliata (India, southeast Asia and eastern Australia)


Genera
• Aglaia


• Anthocarapa
• Aphanamixis
• Astrotrichilia
• Azadirachta
• Cabralea
• Calodecarya
• Capuronianthus
• Carapa
• Cedrela
• Chisocheton
• Chukrasia
• Cipadessa
• Dysoxylum
• Ekebergia
• Entandrophragma
• Guarea
• Heckeldora
• Humbertioturraea
• Khaya
• Lansium
• Lepidotrichilia
• Lovoa
• Malleastrum
• Melia
• Munronia
• Naregamia
• Neobeguea
• Owenia
• Pseudobersama
• Pseudocarapa
• Pseudocedrela
• Pterorhachis
• Reinwardtiodendron
• Ruagea
• Sandoricum
• Schmardaea
• Soymida
• Sphaerosacme
• Swietenia
• Synoum
• Toona
• Trichilia
• Turraea
• Turraeanthus
• Vavaea
• Walsura
• Xylocarpus

Bamboo Terminal Technology
Method for preparing a terminal assembly for bamboo
http://www.freshpatents.com/Method-for-preparing-a-terminal-assembly-for-bamboo-dt20041202ptan20040238070.php?type=claims

Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Claims

1. A method for the preparation of a terminal assembly for bamboo, comprising the steps of: selection of cured, dried and immunized bamboo stems (5) by diameter and according to the design of the structure to be produced; cutting of the bamboo stems (5) and a plurality of screws as required by design specifications; marking a first end of the bamboo stem (5) in eight equal sections (6), by drawing lines and projecting said lines to points on an inside of the bamboo stem (5) for a distance corresponding to a diameter of a mouth (8) of the bamboo stem (5); perforating the beginning of said lines with a thin wood-drill; making incisions (7) from the first end of the bamboo stem (5) to each of said points marked at which the perforation already made by the drill is located; repeating said preceding steps for each of the sections (6) marked on the base; said incisions (7) being about 2.5 mm-3.5 mm wide and when said steps are repeated for each incision, there will result eight channels (7) ending in the holes made by the drill; use of a closing chain (9) which allows the point being worked to close such that when the end is clamped the mouth (8) of the bamboo is closed 10%; the inside layer of the bamboo is removed to a depth of 9.5-10.5 cm using a metal scourer or brush (10); after the first end of the bamboo stem (5) is closed, installing a metal ring (1) to which is adhered a screw (2), using the closing chain (9) to maintain the channels (7) of the bamboo stem (5) closed, adjusting the chain (9) to the measurement of the ring (1); bringing the ring (1) to the level of the end of the mouth (8) of the, striking it gently with a hammer; taking the end being worked, opening an orifice, with a diameter equal to that of a steel cable (4). taking one of an end of the steel cable (4) and passing it through the orifice (11) leaving a section of 7.5-8.5 cm inside the bamboo stem (5); winding the steel cable (4) around the bamboo stem (5) until it passes the zone where the channels (7) end, winding the steel cable (4) round some four times more; tensioning the steel cable (4) as it is being wound, and applying gentle blows of a hammer towards the ring (1) in order to ensure that there is no space between one wind and the next; drilling the bamboo stem (5) to the diameter of the steel cable (4) and introducing the end to remain inside the bamboo stem (5); once both ends of the cable are inside the bamboo stem (5) they are tensioned to the maximum and joined together by a metal clamp (12), introducing it into a cavity (14); centering the screw (2), previously welded to a stub (3) or metal support to steady the screw (2) and inserting a filling material (13) leaving an anchor section inside; working the filling material (13) in the cavity (14) until a first internode of the first end of the bamboo stem (5) is filled, sporadically vibrating the bamboo stem (5) in order to ensure that no air-bubbles remain inside.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the metal ring (1) has a diameter of 10% less than the diameter of the bamboo stem (5), working to a height of 15% of the diameter of the bamboo stem (5).

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising the screw (2) is 20 cm long and has a stub (3) welded or screwed to its base; with a diameter and strength directly related to the structural design and stresses on it in the structure.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steel cable (4) is 5 m long and has a diameter of 0.32 cm.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising the filling material (13) is a mixture of sand, phenol resin and a catalyst in a total amount of 0.5 liters.

6. A method for the preparation of a terminal assembly for bamboo, comprising the steps of: selection of bamboo stems (5) having a diameter and a longitudinal axis; cutting of the bamboo stems (5) to length, the end defining a mouth; selecting a plurality of screws of requisite length; marking a first end of the bamboo stem (5) in equal sections (6), said sections projecting a distance corresponding to a diameter of the bamboo stem (5); forming incisions corresponding to said marked sections; closing said sections by application of compressing; treating the inside layer of the bamboo to provide a bonding surface; installing a retainer ring (1) to maintain said sections in closed condition; said retainer ring supporting a screw (2); affixing a first end of a tensioning cable (4) to said ring; winding said tensioning cable about said stem and securing said cable to said stem (5); centering and supporting said screw (2), on a stub; introducing a curable filling material (13) in said end; curing said material.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising: forming a plurality of bamboo members as described; interconnecting said terminals of said bamboo members to form a structural member.

Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Claims
Click on the above for other options relating to this Method for preparing a terminal assembly for bamboo patent application.


Mitsubishi Develops Bamboo-Reinforced Bioplastics for Auto Cabins
February 22, 2006 12:40 PM - Jacob Gordon, Los Angeles, CA


In efforts to reduce fossil fuel dependence and CO2 emissions, Mitsubishi Motors has announced the development of plastics for car interiors made from plant-based resin and bamboo fiber. The automaker hopes that the use of bioplastics can help replace processed wood and oil-based materials in car interiors. The materials they are calling “Green Plastics” are being developed in conjunction with the Aichi Industrial Technology Institute, and are planned for use in the interior of a concept minicar scheduled for next year. The plastic, called polybutylene succinate, or PBS, is a resin made from corn or sugar cane, and reinforced with fibers from the fast –growing bamboo plant. Mitsubishi reports test results showing an estimated 50% reduction in lifecycle CO2 emissions over petrol-based polypropylene, and a roughly 80% VOC reduction over processed wood hardboard. The pursuit of more sustainable component materials complements Mitsubishi’s recent developments in subcompact and in-wheel motor electric cars. :: Green Car Congress (thanks to Joe for the tip)

Bamboo Reinforced Concrete http://www.romanconcrete.com/docs/bamboo1966/BambooReinforcedConcreteFeb1966.htm