Study on the Effect of Flattening Modification on Bamboo Cutting Board and Corresponding Carbon Footprint Evaluation

Abstract

Bamboo, as a renewable biomass material, has received wide public attention. However, due to the thin-walled and hollow structure of bamboo, the mainstream processing method is complex and requires splitting the bamboo into narrow strips and then gluing them together for further manufacturing products. In addition, the surface glue residue makes the safety of indoor applications a concern, especially for cutting boards that come into contact with food. In response to the above problems, this paper introduces a bamboo flattening technology, which can flatten and unfold the pre-treated bamboo into a large-size flattened bamboo board (FBB). The results show that, compared to untreated bamboo, the dimensional stability of the FBB was improved and the flexural strength and elastic modulus of the FBB were increased by about 8.0%. The flattened bamboo cutting board was manufactured with the FBB as the surface layer and had a moisture content and hardness value of 9.2% and 5080 N, respectively, and the accumulated dip peel length of any glue layer was less than 25 mm. The flattened bamboo cutting board is proved to be a carbon-neutral product with a carbon footprint value of −42.92 kg CO2/t. This work provides a theoretical basis for the fabrication of large-size unspliced bamboo boards and provides new ideas for the scenario-specific application of FBBs. Using a FBB to make cutting boards can avoid contact between food and adhesives, making them more hygienic. The findings of this research can be used to make bamboo cutting boards more hygienic, environmentally friendly and possess excellent physical and mechanical properties.