PROPERTIES OF PARTICLEBOARDS SUBMITTED TO HEAT TREATMENTS

The particleboards are the most consumed in the world, where much of the demand is associated to furniture sector. This study aims to assess the heat treatment effect on particleboard panels. The experiment consisted of four treatments and the control sample, evaluating temperatures of 160°C and 180°C for six and twelve minutes. Commercial particleboard panels were produced with particles of Eucalyptus sp. and urea-formaldehyde synthetic resin. Samples for physical testing (water absorption, and thickness swelling) and mechanical (static bending strength and screw withdrawal strength) were taken from these panels. For physical properties, the assessed heat treatments influenced significantly the water absorption of the panels after 24 hours of immersion. The treatment that utilized temperature of 180°C for six minutes provided the best performance. Concerning to the mechanical properties, the evaluated treatments had non-significantly influence in the panels strength