Submitted: The Two Sides Team November 18, 2015

This prototype helmet is produced entirely from forest products—including a new foam produced from renewable nanocellulose.

Paper hats always brighten a birthday party—now partly-paper helmets may be brightening the bike lane! Swedish forest products company Cellutech has developed a bicycle helmet made entirely from forest-based materials.

Still only a prototype, the helmet was created and constructed by designer Rasmus Malbert, who used a variety of cellulose materials in his design. The helmet has an outer shell of wood veneer and straps made of durable paper. The cushioning inside consists of Cellutech’s proprietary cellulose foam.

The foam (called Cellufoam) is made of nanocellulose produced from wood pulp so, like paper, it is both renewable and biodegradable. Researchers at the Wallenberg Wood Science Center (WWSC) first developed the concept for the foam. The collaboration between WWSC and Cellutech will work to bring other cellulose products closer to market, the company says.

“I think there is an incredibly strong potential in this material; we are just at the beginning of an exciting trend where more and more petroleum-based materials are replaced with renewable alternatives,” says Malbert.

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