Âé¶¹´«Ã½

News

Jaana Vapaavuori and Kati Miettunen receive significant funding for developing new composite biomaterials

Four million euros of funding has been granted to research supporting the forest industry and forestry sector in Finland and Sweden.
Uusi pohjoismaalainen projekti kehittää huipputehoisia puupohjaisia materiaaleja aurinkokennoihin. Kuva: Kati Miettunen.
The new Nordic project develops high performance wood-based materials for solar cells. Photo: Kati Miettunen.

In the Tandem Forest Values (TFV) application round, over €4 million was granted to nine Finnish-Swedish research consortia responsible for a total of 26 sub-projects. In their project, Assistant Professor Jaana Vapaavuori and Academy Researcher Kati Miettunen from Aalto University School of Chemical Technology and Senior Researcher Tiffany Abitbol (RISE Innventia, Sweden) will develop new multifunctional composite biomaterials to improve the efficiency and durability of photoelectric devices. The project has its roots in the  which served as a platform for developing the idea.

Finland's share of the funding is €2.1 million and Sweden’s is €2 million. The TFV programme strengthens research cooperation in the areas of Finnish and Swedish forest resources, the value chain of wood-based products, and wood construction. The application was a continuation of the research-cooperation- related 100th anniversary gift which Sweden gave to Finland.  The TFV programme strengthens multi-country cooperation between research funders and researchers.

The application was coordinated by the Academy of Finland's Research Council for Natural Sciences and Engineering, the Finnish Ministry of the Environment and the Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. The Swedish funders were the Formas Research Council and the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture and Forestry, through which the private foundations Wallenberg and Kempe also participated in the funding of the application. The programme funds two-year projects led by young researchers. The research is multidisciplinary and involves researchers from different fields. The programme includes projects in the fields of forest management, forest industry processes and wood construction.

More information:

Jaana Vapaavuori
Assistant Professor

jaana.vapaavuori(a)aalto.fi

Kati Miettunen
Academy Research Fellow

kati.miettunen(a)aalto.fi

FinnCERES is the joint competence center for the materials bioeconomy between Aalto and VTT. We aim to ensure our sustainable future by developing materials and applications for the future bio-economy with a solid scientific foundation. For more information visit

  • Updated:
  • Published:
Share
URL copied!

Read more news

Family posing by a fjord harbour with red cabins and snow-capped mountains in the background
Awards and Recognition, Cooperation, Research & Art Published:

The film Fjord wins the Palme d'Or at Cannes – featuring a number of Finnish creators

The film was co-produced by Jussi Rantamäki of the film company Aamu, and it also features a Finnish costume and sound designer.
Graphic poster with dark leaves, grey textured surface and Finnish words “Näytös 26 Näyttelyâ€.
Research & Art Published:

Näytös/Näyttely26 transforms Helsinki’s Lasipalatsi Quarter into a hub for fashion and textile expertise

The event showcases Aalto’s comprehensive expertise in textiles, clothing, and fashion, as students graduating from both the Bachelor's Major in Fashion as well as the Master's Major in Fashion and Textile Design will present their thesis work.
Brown-toned display of wood, pulp, fibre, thread cone and knitted fabric, showing stages from log to textile.
Research & Art Published:

The journey of a 17th-century shipwreck continues as a unique knitted dress

Researchers at Aalto University transformed surplus wood from the Hahtiperä shipwreck into textile fibre, spun it into yarn, and knitted it into a dress using new AI-assisted technology.
Small winding stream with rocks and tall grass in a sunny green park, trees and lawn in the background
Cooperation, Press releases, Research & Art Published:

The potential of urban greenery as a climate solution is not being fully utilized – a new handbook offers means to address this

The Handbook for carbon-smart urban green provides concrete tools for leveraging urban green spaces more effectively in climate and nature conservation efforts.