Effect of panel density and resin content on properties of medium density fiberboard

This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of panel density and resin content on properties of medium density fiberboard (MDF) to obtain some insights on MDF properties as a function of panel density and resin content. MDF panels with different panel densities such as 650, 700, 750 and 800 kg/m³ were manufactured by adjusting the amount of wood fibers in the mat forming. MDF panels were also fabricated by spraying 8, 10, 12, and 14% of urea-formaldehyde (UF) resins onto wood fibers in a drum-type mechanical blender to fabricate MDF panels with a target density of 650 kg/m³. As the panel density and resin content increased, the internal bonding (IB) strength of MDF panel consistently increased. Modulus of rupture (MOR), modulus of elasticity (MOE) and screw withdrawal resistance (SWR) had a similar trend to the IB strength. In physical properties, thickness swelling (TS) and water absorption (WA) decreased with an increase in both panel density and resin content. In addition, the formaldehyde emission (FE) which increased as the panel density and resin content became greater. In overall, the panel density of MDF had more significant effect than the resin content in all properties of MDF panels, indicating that it was better to adjust the panel density rather than the resin content for MDF manufacture.