GLOW – Green Low earth Orbit Woodcraft – Feasibility Study of Engineered Wood-Based Structures for Sustainable Satellite Applications in low earth orbits

Project goals & contents:

In addition to the regional and sustainable availability of wood as a renewable raw material, wood-based materials are characterised by high specific strength, good thermal insulation properties and low thermal expansion coefficients. While protection against moisture or fire plays a central role in terrestrial applications, these requirements take a back seat in the space context. Of particular interest is the theory that wood and wood-based materials could be thermally decomposed with virtually no residue when they re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere at the end of their life cycle. This would reduce the amount of space debris and prevent the release of potentially harmful particles, such as aluminium oxide when metallic materials burn up – an aspect whose effects on the atmosphere have not yet been conclusively assessed.

The project aims to investigate whether and to what extent wood or wood-based materials could be suitable as structural materials for use in low Earth orbit. Wood K plus’s research focuses on identifying, preparing and testing suitable wood structures that are based on the current state of research and, ideally, expand upon it. The aim is to gain fundamental insights into materials science that can serve as a basis for future developments in sustainable structural materials for space.