Synthesis of phenol formaldehyde (PF) resin for fast manufacturing laminated veneer lumber (LVL)
AbstractPhenol formaldehyde (PF) resin is a well-tried adhesive for manufacturing laminated veneer lumber (LVL). PF has a high bonding strength, good cold pressing property and contributes a lot to the high production efficiency of LVL. In the present paper, PFs were synthesized at three different alkaline condition levels with a molar formaldehyde to phenol (F/P) ratio of 2.25. The bonding strength of PFs was not influenced by the alkalinity. Compared with PFs synthesized under alkalinity of 1 and 4%, PF with 8% alkalinity formed a resin with a high mole mass (MM), uniform mole mass distribution (MMD) and a high cross-linking density. With PF8%, the cold pressing property could be shortened from 30 to 12 min in the winter time. Cured PF8%had a higher cross-linking density than PF1%and PF4%. PF8%has a high potential for industrial production of LVL.