Nippon Paper announced that its resin blended with ultrafine wood-derived fibers, CNF, has been adopted as a powder material for 3D printers. The company said the material achieves approximately 17% weight reduction while maintaining strength equivalent to conventional materials.
Nippon Paper announced that its resin blended with wood-derived ultrafine cellulose nanofibers, or CNF, has been adopted as a powder material for industrial 3D printers. CNF is produced by breaking down cellulose, the main component of wood, into nanoscale fibers, and is considered to offer high recyclability.
Blending CNF into resin enables products to be made lighter while maintaining the same strength as products reinforced with conventional materials such as glass. For mass production, more than 50 tonnes of CNF-reinforced resin are produced annually at the Fuji Mill in Fuji, Shizuoka Prefecture.
On the same day, Yamaha Motor announced that it had adopted CNF-reinforced resin for exterior components of a personal watercraft to be sold as a new 2027 model. The range of applications for CNF, which was also used in engine components of the previous model, has expanded, with the material's water resistance and high strength attracting attention.
Next-generation materials using CNF are advancing toward commercialisation in fields such as automobiles and industrial machinery, and the applications for CNF-reinforced resin are expected to expand. The announcement is positioned as evidence of progress in the practical application of CNF.