Comparison of Birch and Beech Wood in Terms of Economic and Technological Properties for Plywood Manufacturing

Evren Osman Cakiroglu,Aydin Demir,Ismail Aydin

doi:10.5552/drvind.2019.1828

Evren Osman Cakiroglu, Aydin Demir + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.5552/drvind.2019.1828

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Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the use of birch wood, one of the most important wood species used in the plywood industry, especially in Europe, the Nordic countries, Poland, Belarus and Russia as an alternative to beech wood. For this purpose, comparison was made of their economic and technological properties. In five-ply plywood manufacturing, beech (Fagus orientalis Lipsky) and birch (Betula pendula) veneer sheets were used with melamine urea formaldehyde (MUF) and urea formaldehyde (UF) resins. Some mechanical properties such as shear strength, bending strength and modulus of elasticity of plywood panels were conducted according to EN 314-1 and EN 310, respectively. Mean mechanical strength obtained for birch plywood panels was quite above the limit values specified in the related standards. When taking into consideration the annual increment of beech and birch trees in 1 ha and the time they need to reach suitable diameters for the manufacturing of rotary cut veneers, it was calculated that birch trees provide 2.46 times more physical harvesting than beech trees.

Highlights

IntroductionPlywood is a wood composite with good physical and mechanical properties and can be used in construction and furniture industry
The aim of this study was to investigate the use of birch wood, one of the most important wood species used in the plywood industry, especially in Europe, the Nordic countries, Poland, Belarus and Russia as an alternative to beech wood
The use of beech, which is one of the most important wood species, is appropriate for general purpose plywood production in terms of veneer production technology, such production leads to a significant loss in terms of country economy

Summary

Introduction

Plywood is a wood composite with good physical and mechanical properties and can be used in construction and furniture industry. European Union (EU) imports of panels (mainly plywood) increased by 9 % to Euro 2.79 billion in 2017. This follows a 3 % rise in 2016 and an 11 % increase in 2015. Most of this gain was due to a rise in plywood imports from Russia and other Eastern European countries. The value of EU plywood imports from China and tropical countries was generally stable or declining in 2017 (Industry News and Markets, 2018)

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