• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.323-332
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• 2010

Petroleum-based adhesive resins have extensively been used for the production of wood panels. However, it is necessary to develop environmentally friendly adhesive resins due to the increase of manufacturing cost and the environmental issue, such as the emission of volatile organic compounds, of the pertroleum-based adhesive resins. This study was conducted to formulate environmentally friendly adhesive resins using by rapeseed flour (RSF), which is the by-product of bio-diesel produced from rapeseed, for replacing petroleum-based adhesives with them. To formulate RSF-based adhesive resins, RSF was hydrolyzed in de-ionized water, 1% and 3% sodium hydroxide solutions. As a crosslinking agent, PF prepolymers were prepared with 1.8, 2.1 and 2.4 mol formaldehyde and 1 mol phenol (1.8-, 2.1- and 2.4-PF), and then mixed with RSF hydrolyzates to complete the formulation of RSF-based adhesive resins. The RSF-based adhesive resins were applied to fabricate 3-ply plywood panels. The solid content of RSF-based adhesive resins were ranged from 26.08% to 36.12% depending on the hydrolysis condition of RSF and PF prepolymer type with a high viscosity. The tensile shear strength and wood failure of plywood fabricated with RSF-based adhesive resins exceeded a minimum requirement of KS standard for ordinary plywood regardless of the hydrolysis condition of RSF and PF prepolymer type. Formaldehyde emissions of the plywood panels fabricated with 1.8-PF and RSF hydrolyzates were lower than that of E0 specified in the KS standard. Based on the results, RSF might be used as a raw material of environmentally friendly adhesives for the production of plywood panels, but further researches - the increase of solid content of RSF-based adhesives for reducing press time and the microscopic observation of plywood specimen for identifying the relationship between tensile shear strength and the penetration of adhesives into wood structure - are required to commercialize the RSF-based adhesives.