ScienceAugust 15, 2026
nanofibrils
NAN-oh-fy-brilz
Definition
Extremely tiny, thread-like structures derived from wood pulp or plant fibers, often used as reinforcing agents in lightweight, high-performance materials.
Etymology
Derived from the Greek prefix 'nanos' (meaning dwarf) and the Latin 'fibra' (meaning a fiber or filament). It emerged in scientific contexts to describe structural elements at the billionth-of-a-meter scale.
In the news
In this article, cellulose nanofibrils serve as a key component in a new wood-based foam, acting as a binder and stabilizer to create an insulating structure that replaces petroleum-based plastics.
A graduate student in Maine turned wood into a foam that keeps a cooler almost as cold as plastic does, and the part that still fails is not the temperature
Read the full article ↗ECOticias.com