Several Properties of Oil-Palm-Based Hybrid Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) Glued with Phenol Formaldehyde Resin

Abstract

Physical and mechanical properties were measured of oil-palm-based hybrid laminated veneer lumber (LVL) from pressed oil-palm wood veneer (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) combined with  jabon (Anthocephalus cadamba Miq.) or mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla King) veneers. Jabon and mahogany veneers were applied as the surface (face and back) and center-core of a 5-layer oil-palm-based hybrid LVL and glued with phenol-formaldehyde at a spread amount of 200 g/m². Different combinations of veneer layers were used to make oil-palm-based hybrid LVL. The hot-pressing phase occurred at 140 °C under a specific pressure of 10 kg/cm² for 7 min. All hybrid LVLs exhibited better properties than the oil-palm LVL. Specifically, the density, moisture content, horizontal shear flat, horizontal shear vertical, modulus of rupture, modulus of elasticity, compression strength, and hardness of all hybrid LVLs were higher than those of the oil-palm LVLs, showing improvements of about 7.8 to 19.6%, 8.8 to 17.6%, 35.0 to 44.9%, 35.4 to 79.4%, 35.7 to 76.1%, 5.3 to 46.8%, 19.9 to 68.4%, and 9.6 to 56%, respectively. Their thickness swelling and water absorption decreased 10.7 to 24.7% and 2.9 to 27.7%, respectively. The oil-palm-based hybrid LVL incorporating three mahogany veneers possessed the most favorable physical and mechanical properties among other LVLs.