Extrusion of Solid Wood Impregnated with Phenol Formaldehyde (PF) Resin: Effect of Resin Content and Moisture Content on Extrudability and Mechanical Properties of Extrudate

A new deformation technique of wood flow forming is promising for industrial uses of solid wood. Flow deformability, size stability, and good mechanical properties were obtained by using wood impregnated with low molecular weight phenol formaldehyde (PF) resin. In this study, to clarify the effect of the PF resin and moisture contents in wood on the flow deformability (extrudability) and the mechanical properties of the product (extrudate), a lateral extrusion was conducted by using wood impregnated with various contents of PF resin and three levels of moisture content. The results indicated that the extrudability of wood impregnated with PF resin improved with an increase in both PF resin and moisture content. The mechanical properties of the extrudate worsened with increases in the moisture content of the wood impregnated with PF resin. Because most of the water in the wood remained in the mold during the extrusion process, chemical changes of the wood substance and PF resin occurred due to steam forming under the high temperature and pressure of the extrusion. The steam worsened the mechanical properties of the extrudate.