LineoTM by Stora Enso (Helsinki, FInland) a lignin-based product launched by the renewable materials company earlier this year (2018), has been awarded ‘Innovative Product Award 2018’ by the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE).

Shortlisted alongside products from a range of companies including Dow and Johnson Matthey, the judges chose Stora Enso as the winner "for creating a new bio-based, sustainable material to replace fossil-fuels used in coatings and adhesives". IChemE recognised LineoTM as a versatile solution made from lignin, one of the main building blocks of a tree.

LineoTM has applications in a range of areas where fossil-based materials are currently used. A renewable replacement for oil-based phenolic materials, it can be used in resins for adhesives e.g. in plywood, oriented strand board (OSB), laminated veneer lumber (LVL), paper lamination, and insulation material. Stora Enso is also researching new uses for LineoTM, including formaldehyde-free binders, carbon fibre and energy storage applications.

Stora Enso has been producing lignin industrially at its Sunila Mill in Finland since 2015 and the mill has a capacity of 50,000 metric tpy. The company is the largest kraft lignin producer in the world.

Markus Mannström, EVP of the Stora Enso Biomaterials division, said, "LineoTM is one of Stora Enso’s key renewable solutions and we are proud that it has, once again, been recognised as an important product by top chemical industry representatives. LineoTM has many potential uses across diverse industries and promotes the optimized use of natural and bio-based resources. At Stora Enso, we continue to believe that everything made from fossil-based materials today, can be made from a tree tomorrow."