POTENTIAL USE OF PLANTED FAST-GROWING SPECIES FOR PRODUCTION OF PARTICLEBOARD

The present study evaluated the potential of using planted fast-growing species in Brazil for the manufacturing of particleboard. The species used in the experiment were Acrocarpus fraxinifolius, Melia azedarach, Grevillea robusta, Schizolobium parahyba and Toona ciliata. They were collected from an 18-year-old experimental forestry plantation located in Corupá, Santa Catarina, Brazil. Pinus taeda was used as reference species. Particleboard with final thickness 15 mm and nominal density 0.80 g cm-3 were produced using urea-formaldehyde resin under pressing temperature of 160 °C, specific pressure 40 kgf cm-2 and press time 8 min. The board was evaluated for physical and mechanical properties based on the European Standards (EN) for particleboard. When compared with panels of P. taeda and with requirements of EN, the final results showed satisfactory physical and mechanical properties in all treatments, except for the particleboard made from G. robusta. Thus, this study demonstrated that species A. fraxinifolius, M. azedarach, S. parahyba and T. ciliata were potentially useful for the production of particleboard.