Abstract
The paper aims to investigate the influence of the characteristics of the strands on the properties of oriented strand boards (OSB). To solve this objective, some global synthetic characteristics of the strands (the slenderness ratio, the characteristics of thinness, and the specific surface) of four wood species currently used in this technology (spruce and pine for softwood, and poplar and willow for hardwood) were first studied. The characteristics of the OSB obtained from each species separately were also determined, and finally the correlations analysis was made between the characteristics of the strands and those of the corresponding OSB boards. The working methodology used the European tests regarding the physical and mechanical properties of the boards, but also algorithms for forecasting and evaluating the quality of the strands and boards. The conclusions regarding the characteristics of the strands have highlighted the role of the specific surface of the strand and the characteristics of the thickness; respectively, the conclusions regarding the characteristics of the boards showed that the fast-growing species of willow and poplar lead to obtaining higher quality OSB boards. The general conclusion of the paper is that the characteristics of the strands have a significant influence on the physical–mechanical properties of the OSB board.
Highlights
Oriented strand board (OSB) are known as ‘Sterling board’ in the UK and ‘Aspenite’ in the US and Canada, and they represent tri-layered boards with high mechanical properties used for construction and are made of long strands of about 80–120 mm
The total quantity of strands from the four wood species was used to obtain four types of OSB boards in laboratory conditions, with the flat dimensions of 1200 × 600 mm, the density of 700 kg/m3 and the use of 6% isocyanine adhesive type LUPRANATE M20S, one solvent-free adhesive based on diphenyl methane diisocyanate (MDI) produced by BASF Company, Ltd., (Jung-gu, Seoul, Korea)
The obtained results were referred to the characteristics of the strands, the characteristics of the OSB boards and the correlations between them, depending on the four wood species used
Summary
Oriented strand board (OSB) are known as ‘Sterling board’ in the UK and ‘Aspenite’ in the US and Canada, and they represent tri-layered boards with high mechanical properties used for construction (shacks, temporary construction, sheepfold, false floors, etc.) and are made of long strands of about 80–120 mm. The starting point for their achievement was the wafer-board and flake-board, boards obtained from wide chips with large gluing surfaces, at which the length and orientation of the strands and tri-stratification was performed The surface of these boards is rough, reason why it is used less often in furniture production. The superior properties and the low price of these boards make it possible to replace the plywood in constructions, even under conditions of high humidity (there are OSB boards for exterior and interior use, according to EN 300 [1]). The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) [2] showed that the level of plywood and OSB in 2015 was higher in North America than in Europe and CSI, but the production of OSB and MDF (medium-density fiberboard) was much higher in Europe than those two comparison regions (Figure 1). If we compare the production capacities for the countries of Europe and Asia (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe area), it can see that on the top there are countries like Germany, Romania, and Russia, and countries like France and UK are only in positions 8 and 10, respectively (Figure 2)
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