Effect of boron treatment on surface characteristics of medium density fiberboard (MDF)

The objective of this study is to determine surface characteristics of medium density fiberboard (MDF) panels manufactured using various boron compounds which have fire retardant effects. The surface roughness of the panels were measured using a fine stylus technique. Three roughness parameters, namely average roughness (Ra), mean peak-to-valley height (Rz), and maximum roughness (Rmax) were determined from the surface of the samples. Roughness measurements were taken from both sides of the specimens along and across the sandmarks over 15.2 mm tracing span. It was found that control panels had smoother surface than those of the other panels manufactured with boron compounds. Based on initial results of this study average Ra, Rz and Rmax values were found as 7.73 μm, 56.29 μm and 74.11 μm for the panels produced with 3% zinc borates (ZnB) and 8.14 μm, 60.87 μm and 76.73 μm for 5% zinc borates (ZnB), respectively. It appears that roughness values of the samples increased with increasing chemical concentration used in panel manufacturing.