So it's not wood, but a heavily chemically treated wood/acrylic composite. Interesting, but not really better than just plain acrylic sheet (or polycarbonate sheet, if you need greater strength), at least not optically. But the low density and greater insulation values may make it attractive, depending on the price. To say it comes from renewable resources is a bit of a stretch, a good proportion of it is still plastic, and the removal of lignin is not exactly a benign process.

Always with the naysayers, what's up with these guys? So....now were going to start building transparent houses, high rises & tree houses? ok, cool.

So, "the material comes from renewable sources"... unlike, you know, SAND!

So, what's the UV resistance of this plastic "wood"?

@Mr. T From what I read, they used the same knowledge/technology used to GMO-ify other plants. As long as it is able to be planted, pollinated and produce seeds that then make new "trees" from those seeds without the lignin, that sounds renewable to me. Personally, if "we" are going to start GMO-ifying "our" trees, I would like to see us produce a tree that can pull more carbon out of the atmosphere. Who knows, maybe if we can find a way to reverse the greenhouse effect at the level it currently exists on Venus, Climate Change will not be as much an issue.
@noteugene I vote no to transparent houses. I like my privacy. :-)

In 1992, I attended a "science fair" showcasing the work of researchers at America's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). A Soviet-born metallurgist had developed a kind of transparent metal. I smiled and asked him, "Oh, like the transparent aluminum in the Star Trek movie?" My question visibly upset him. "Everyone keeps asking me that," he said indignantly. Then he explained how his approach differed, using terminology only a metallurgist could understand.

Very nice, but it probably burns. Not an ideal glazing material.

If you remove the lignin aren't you just left with cellulose? Cellulose is flammable but translucent (think old film stock). adding the acrylic makes it less flammable but at that point why not skip the cellulose altogether and just use the acrylic? In neither case is it wood anyway.

I pity the fool....I agree with you Mr T. This is NOT wood, but a tiny part of wood that is heavily treated. Highly misleading and not as renewable as the article would have one believe..

Might be really good for HPVs and small electric vehicles. A lot like Japanese paper panels. Takes a lot less energy than glass to make. Probably degrades a lot faster. As concerns the anthropogenic greenhouse effect, more than half is due to dessert irrigation.