Comparison of standard methods and gas chromatography method in determination of formaldehyde emission from MDF bonded with formaldehyde-based resins

Formaldehyde emissions from MDF bonded with urea–formaldehyde resin (UF), melamine–formaldehyde resin (MF) and the co-polycondensation resin of urea–melamine–formaldehyde (UMF) and melamine–formaldehyde, measured by the Japanese standard method of determining formaldehyde emission with a desiccator (JIS A 5908) and the DIN EN 120 (European Committee For Standardization, 1991) method using the perforator value, were used as the typical standard methods. While the UF resin showed a desiccator value of 7.05 ppm and a perforator value of 12.1 mg/100 g panel, the MF resin exhibited a desiccator value of 0.6 ppm and a perforator value of 2.88 mg/100 g panel. According to the Japanese industrial standard and the European standard, the formaldehyde emission level of the MDF panels made with UF resin in this study was E2 grade. The formaldehyde emission level was dramatically reduced by the addition of MF resin. This is because the addition of formaldehyde to melamine occurs more easily and completely than its addition to urea, even though the condensation reaction of melamine with formaldehyde is similar to that between urea and formaldehyde. These two methods, the desiccator method and the perforator method, produced proportionally equivalent results. Gas chromatography, a more sensitive and advanced method, was also used. The samples used for gas chromatography were gathered during the experiment involving the perforator method. The formaldehyde emission levels obtained from gas chromatography were similar to those obtained from the perforator method. The formaldehyde contents measured by gas chromatography were directly proportional to the perforator values.