The effect of the heat treatment of spruce wood on the curing of melamine–urea–formaldehyde and polyurethane adhesives

Abstract

The effect of the heat treatment of spruce wood on the curing of melamine–urea–formaldehyde (MUF) and polyurethane (PUR) adhesives was monitored by measuring their rheological properties by means of a rheometer. Instead of the standard aluminium discs, wooden discs, made from heat-treated wood with different degrees of thermal modification and conditioned in different climates, were used. The wooden discs provided more realistic curing of the adhesives compared to the real-life bonding of wood, because of solvent absorption. The results of the rheological measurements suggested that the modified wood inhibited the curing of MUF and PUR adhesives. The curing of the MUF adhesive was slower because of the reduced absorption of water from the adhesive. The curing of the one-component PUR adhesive was affected by the lower moisture content (MC) of the modified wood.

Keywords:

• adhesive
• curing
• heat-treated spruce
• melamine–urea–formaldehyde
• polyurethane
• rheometer

Acknowledgement

The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Slovenian Research Agency within the framework of the research program P4-0015-0481.