A matsayin ɗaya daga cikin tsoffin kayan aikin ɗan adam da kayan rayuwa, samfuran itace suna riƙe da mahimmancin kimiyya fiye da fahimtar zahiri. Daga kimiyyar kayan aiki zuwa injiniyan muhalli, abubuwan musamman na itace suna ci gaba da ba da mahimman bayanai game da fasahar zamani da ci gaba mai dorewa.
Daga mahangar kimiyyar kayan, itace wani abu ne na halitta wanda ya ƙunshi cellulose (40% -50%), hemicellulose, da lignin (20%-30%), yana samar da tsari na musamman na anisotropic. Wannan tsarin yana ba itace ƙarfi na musamman {{7}zuwa{8}} ma'aunin nauyi-wasu katako suna da ƙarfi da ƙarfi kusa da na ƙarfe, duk da haka girman su shine kashi ɗaya bisa biyar na ƙarfe. Bincike a Jami'ar Kyoto da ke Japan ya gano cewa maganin nanocellulose na iya ƙara ƙarfin matse itace da kashi 200%, yana buɗe sabbin hanyoyin yin kayan gini masu nauyi.
A cikin ma'aunin zafi da sanyio, kaddarorin sarrafa zafin itace (0.04{1}}0.12 W/m·K) sun sa ya zama ingantaccen makamashi{3}}ceton kayan gini. Cross{4}}Laminated katako (CLT), wanda VTT Technical Research Center of Finland ta ƙera, yana amfani da tsari mai girman nau'i{5} don ƙara ƙarfin girman itace da kashi 300%. An riga an yi amfani da shi wajen gina wani bene mai hawa 30 na "gidan katako." Ko da abin lura shi ne kaddarorin "carbon korau" na itace: kowane mita mai siffar sukari da ake amfani da shi don maye gurbin simintin siminti kusan tan 0.9 na CO₂, babban fa'idar abubuwan da ke tattare da halittu akan makamashin burbushin halittu.
Kimiyyar zamani tana buɗe yuwuwar itace. Jami'ar Maryland, ta yin amfani da ƙaddamar da sinadarai, ta ƙara nuna gaskiyar itace zuwa 90% yayin da yake ƙarfafa ƙarfi, ƙirƙirar sabon kayan gani. Laboratory Federal Laboratory for Materials Science and Engineering ya yi amfani da ƙaƙƙarfan tsarin itace don haɓaka ingantaccen tsarin tace ruwa wanda ke tallata ion ƙarfe mai nauyi da inganci fiye da kunna carbon. Wadannan sabbin sabbin abubuwa sun tabbatar da ikirarin Richard Feynman wanda ya lashe kyautar Nobel na cewa "Nature shine babban injiniya."
Daga hangen nesa mai ɗorewa mai ɗorewa, cikakken kimanta yanayin rayuwa na samfuran itace ya nuna cewa itace tana ba da fa'idodi da ba za a iya maye gurbinsu ba fiye da filastik dangane da haɓakar halittu, sawun carbon, da sabuntawa. Bayanai daga Cibiyar Nazarin Itace ta Duniya sun nuna cewa gandun daji na duniya suna girma daidai da adadin itace a cikin daƙiƙa guda zuwa daidaitattun kwantena na jigilar kaya 1,000. Yin katako mai kyau yana tabbatar da dorewar amfani da albarkatun katako. Wannan kadarorin "kayan girma" shine mafita mai mahimmanci ga rikicin gurɓatawar filastik guda ɗaya -.
Ƙimar kimiyyar samfuran itace ta ta'allaka ne a cikin cikakkiyar tsarinsu na falsafar abu na "daga yanayi, mafi kyau fiye da yanayi," yana ba da kyakkyawan tsari don daidaita buƙatun ci gaban ɗan adam tare da kariyar muhalli.