Formaldehyde emission from wood based panels

Abstract

As formaldehyde is considered as a potential risk for human beings, its emission from wood based panels must be constantly monitored during production. This problem is due to the use of urea-formaldehyde adhesives, which are extensively used for the production of particleboard, MDF, plywoods and other types of panel. Different analytical methods are used and some of them are also defined as European standards. This article considers the impossibility of calibrating these test methods due to the lack of a certified reference material and shows how intercalibration can overcome this problem.