Manufacturing and Testing the Panels with a Transverse Texture Obtained from Branches of Norway Spruce (Picea abies L. Karst.)

Abstract

As a result of the imbalances in the forestry market and the increased demand for wood products worldwide, the resource of branches resulting from the exploitation of a forest has attracted special attention from researchers, in order to use these secondary resources judiciously and obtain an added value superior to classic uses. In this context, the current research took into consideration the use of spruce branches to obtain panels with a transverse structure. The work methodology has focused on the process of obtaining panels with a transverse texture and on determining the physical–mechanical properties of the created panels. The results regarding the panel density (determined as a ratio between mass and volume of specimens) showed about 693 kg/m3, static bending resistance parallel to the face of 5.5 N/mm2, resistance of adhesion of 5.6 N/mm2, shear strength parallel to face of 4.1 N/mm2, and screw pull-out resistance perpendicular to the face of 31.3 N/mm2, highlighting that the properties were in accordance with the European standards and that the panels obtained were suitable for obtaining furniture products with a special aesthetic aspect. As a general conclusion of the research, it can be stated that spruce branches are a sustainable wood resource with great possibilities to add more value in the form of panels with a traverse texture.