Constructing boiling water resistant and flame-retardant wood composites based on enzyme catalyzed synergistic high branching crosslinking strategy

In the realm of sustainable and regenerative environments, the development of a biomass-based laminated composites endowed with boiling water resistance and flame retardant capabilities holds paramount importance. First of all, a novel maleic anhydride-based polyamine (MAN) was designed and synthesized, characterized by its branched structure replete with numerous reactive sites. Subsequently, utilizing sucrose, MAN, and sucrase (I), a novel sucrose-based adhesive (S-I-MAN) was synthesized, capable of fostering a multifaceted chemical network through enzyme-catalyzed air oxidation cross-linking. And the enzyme-catalysed air oxidation reaction can provide a milder and more specific reaction pathway when catalysed by sucrase. Next, the laminated composites prepared from wood and biomass adhesive (S-I-MAN) exhibited excellent flame retardant properties by organic–inorganic surface modification using tannic acid (TA) and sodium perborate (NaBO₃). Further research showed that potassium persulfate can effectively initiate the free radical polymerisation of the carbon–carbon double bond in S-I-MAN, increase the strength and stability of S-I-MAN, and make the laminated composites have more excellent mechanical properties. On the one hand this study developed a new organic–inorganic biomass-based composite adhesive. On the other hand, the surface modification of laminated composites with excellent flame retardant properties provided a new “organic-inorganic composite system with flame retardant” idea.