News

Researchers from the Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry (LSIWC) recently participated in one of the leading global conferences on carbon materials – Carbon 2025, held from June 29 to July 4 in the scenic coastal town of Saint-Malo, France. This event, hosted every three years in Europe, brought together over 500 participants – scientists, engineers, and industry experts – from across all continents. PhD Ance Pļavniece presented her work on carbon spheres, synthesized via hydrothermal carbonization, within the framework of the Latvian Science Council-funded project (No. 1.1.1.9/LZP/1/24...

Professor Carol Sze Ki Lin, at the School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong ( CityU), is a distinguished leader in the fields of waste-based biorefineries, biomass valorisation, and sustainable technologies. Over her two-decade career, she has championed the development of circular bioeconomy approaches that transform organic residues into valuable chemicals, materials, and fuels, thereby significantly reducing environmental burden. Prof. Lin has authored more than 240 peer-reviewed journal papers in high-impact outlets such as Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, Chemical...

Construction continues in Bolderāja on the first lignin-based resin flagship plant in the Baltics. The Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry (LSIWC) is proud to contribute to this innovative project as a scientific partner in the VIOBOND consortium. Our researchers collaborate with leading bioeconomy companies from five EU countries to: develop industrially scalable technologies based on wood-derived lignin, significantly reduce the use of fossil-based phenol and formaldehyde in synthetic resins, support the commercialization of sustainable lignin-phenol-formaldehyde (LPF) resins. The...

Can your used cooking oil become a material of the future? This question - and broader sustainability challenges - were at the heart of discussions at one of Europe’s most prominent engineering forums: the 28th International Dresden Lightweight Engineering Symposium, held on 26–27 June 2025 in Dresden, Germany. This year’s theme was “Lightweight Engineering – Sparking Industrial (Re)Ignition.” With growing attention to security, infrastructure, and technological sovereignty, lightweight engineering is being positioned as a globally significant, cross-disciplinary field that bridges materials...

Recycling thermoset materials such as polyurethane (PUR) foams is one of the most challenging tasks in the circular economy. Until now, PUR foams have been considered difficult to recycle due to their crosslinked structure, which prevents remelting or dissolution. In this context, a significant breakthrough is presented in the 2025 publication in the Journal of Polymers and the Environment, titled “ Fast Recycling of Polyurethane Foams Containing Bio-based Ester-Cleavable Segments”, co-authored by PhD Miķelis Kirpļuks, senior researcher at our Polymer Laboratory. The study was carried out in...

Applications are now open for Venture Catalysts, a free training programme for budding entrepreneurs and scientists in Latvia to develop their innovative ideas into competitive businesses. The five-week training programme will run from 29 July to 28 August. "The Venture Catalysts programme is designed for founders, academic teams and PhD students working at the intersection of science and business. "Venture Catalysts" is a hands-on, training programme focusing on commercialisation, innovation strategy, leadership and start-up development. Participants learn step-by-step how to build a viable...