Structural flakeboards from aspen-red maple mixtures
1991
Girschner, S.E. | Stokke, D.D.
Aspen is the main furnish used by flakeboard mills in the Great Lakes States. Unfortunately, the aspen supply is decreasing while the red maple supply is increasing in this region. If this trend continues, alternatives to aspen and increased usage of red maple may become necessary. Many mills currently avoid using significant quantities of red maple due to its higher density. However, by mixing it with aspen, the overall furnish density could be reduced to achieve adequate compaction during pressing. To examine this possibility, flakeboards were made from mixtures of aspen and red maple disk flakes. The boards were made with a 40 pcf target density and had the following aspen to red maple weight ratios: 100:0, 85:15, 70:30, 50:50, and 0:100. The boards were conditioned and tested for mechanical and dimensional properties while dry and after soaking and reconditioning. The dry moduli of rupture and moduli of elasticity decreased with increasing red maple content. Dry internal bond (IB) strength was not adversely affected by high amounts of red maple. Thickness swelling stability improved with increasing red maple content as did the percentage of IB strength retained. Results indicate that boards having acceptable properties could potentially be produced with significant amounts of red maple with no substantial change in manufacturing practices. High quantities of red maple should perform well as a core furnish for flakeboard.
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