PRESS VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUND EMISSIONS AS A FUNCTION OF WOOD PARTICLEBOARD PROCESSING PARAMETERS.

PARTICLE board; VOLATILE organic compounds

A laboratory method was developed to evaluate the effects of key wood particleboard processing parameters on hot-press emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The method was based on an enclosed caul plate system that trapped the gas stream containing the VOCs emitted during board pressing. The hot gases trapped in the caul plate were cleaned through cold traps containing distilled water or organic solvent for non-water-soluble chemicals, in order to condense and trap VOCs from the air stream. Formaldehyde was quantified through the chromotropic acid method (NIOSH modified method), while methanol was quantified by gas chromatography/flame ionization detection (GC/FID). Other VOCs were characterized and quantified by gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy (GC/MS). Formaldehyde emissions as well as methanol, phenol, and total volatile organic compound (TVOC) emissions, which consisted mainly of terpenes, increased with platen temperature, pressing time, and mat resin solids contents. Conversely, subsequent emissions from the panels themselves decreased when processing parameters such as resin content, pressing time, and pressing temperature were increased. Furnish composition in terms of softwood:hardwood ratio and mat moisture content significantly affected press emissions in terms of both nature and amount of chemicals emitted, but further work needs to be conducted to support these partial results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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