What is cork ?
Cork is the bark of the cork oak tree (Quercus Suber), of which it covers the trunk and branches. Cork harvesting is 100% sustainable as no tree need to be cut down. After harvesting, the cork oak tree re-grows its outer bark layer, and can be stripped about 15 times throughout its life.
- 14 years : the period of time between each harvesting of the cork oak in Southern France
- 30 years : the average time we need to await before the first harvesting of the cork oak.
- 200 years : The average life expectancy of a cork oak
Cork features a hive-like structure of cells, filled with gas and mostly coated with suberin and lignin. The gas contained in each cell, comparable to air, gives cork’s exceptional lightness. This aggregate of microscopic cells is responsible for cork’s elasticity and compressibility. In one cubic centimeter of cork, you may find as many as 40 million cells, all acting as tiny insulating cushions. Because of these unique features, Cork is often referred as “nature’s foam”.
Cork’s characteristics : the soul of performance
- 100% natural, renewable, and recycable
- Elasticity and compressibility
- High coefficient of friction
- Thermal behavior : insulation and effusivity
- Sound insulation
- Airtight and watertight
- Resistance to fire and high temperatures
- Hypoallergenic
- Lightness
- Soft touch
Cork Oak Forests
The greatest support to climate regulation : the cork oak forest offers a key contribution to our atmosphere by absorbing carbon dioxide. It has been calculated that per each ton of cork produced, the cork oak forest can store up to 73 tons of CO₂.* This places cork as one of the very few raw material on earth with a negative carbon footprint.
The cork oak : a unique and unparalleled tree
The Massif des Maures and Esterel (cork oak forest in Southern France) shelters a unique biodiversity-generating ecosystem. The main benefits of the cork oak tree :
- Shelters high levels of biodiversity
- Stores carbon dioxide throughout its entire life
- Absorbs up to 5 times more carbon dioxide during the regeneration of its bark
- Regulates the hydrological cycle
- Fights desertification and soil degradation
*Source: https://www.apcor.pt/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Brochura_Ambiente__EN.pdf
Cork applications
New techniques and innovation have been reshaping the cork industry over the last decades, helping the development of an amazing combination of new materials, challenging researchers to optimize its usages.
However its main application remains the sealing of wines and spirits : cork is the selected material for more than 70% of the world wine producers.
Many of its other uses are probably not known by consumers because they may not be directly visible. However, cork benefits are remarkable and outstanding. Cork unique properties are available in many different shapes: natural, granulated, agglomerated in pannels, sheets or rolls and in combination with other materials (composite products).
Cork properties make it an all-purpose solution, and suitable for a very wide range of applications:
- Thermal insulation
- Sound dampening and vibration control
- Indoor and outdoor flooring
- Flotation
- Gasketing
- Load bearing
- Polishing
- Sealing
- Energy saving
- Weight reduction
Who knows what we will find next ?