The pilot production line has been completed and the equipment has been tested for safety. The production of the innovative thermal insulation material has therefore been quickly launched simultaneously with process testing of the production line. We aim to develop the optimal product formulation with the best possible technical properties – density, thermal conductivity, air and sound permeability.
The innovative thermal insulation material will be produced by recycling poor quality waste paper and will be mixed with high quality hemp fibre to improve the technical performance of the product.
Raw materials are tested in stages, with each production unit tested separately. First, the components are ground into the necessary fractions to test the structure of the product before being mixed together.
Raw materials for thermal insulation:
Waste paper – in the initial tests, high quality waste paper (newspaper, office paper, books) will be used, gradually adding poorer quality waste paper (Tetra Pak). Tests are currently being carried out to see how much of the poor quality waste paper the new thermal insulation material could contain without loss of quality and technical properties.
Hemp – tests are being carried out with straw of different hemp cultivars to identify the most suitable hemp fibre. Hemp for product testing is purchased from Latvian Hemp Union, with whom we have established a successful cooperation
Hemp straw consists of a core and bark (fibre). The production line is designed to separate the fibre from the core during hemp processing. The fibre will be used for production of the thermal insulation material, while the cores remain as a by-product of production.
Biko fibre (bicomponent binder) – used as a material binder. We use fibres of different lengths, compositions, and strengths in our tests to find the best option for the final product. We experiment with the optimal amount of biko fibre in the material and the required melting temperature in the production furnace.
As the very last step in the tests, natural salt mixtures will be added to the product to reduce the risk of ignition and smouldering of the insulation material. Thus increasing the fire protection class of the material.
Any production residues will be reused to avoid unnecessary waste and energy consumption.
The final test samples of the thermal insulation material will be sent to certified laboratories in Latvia and the Czech Republic, where we will obtain confirmed technical properties to be used in further product certification.
