In this study, thermal stability of fibers obtained from recycled MDF was investigated and compared with virgin fibers by using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Two different methods, including electrical heating and hydrothermal treatment, were used for recycling the MDF wastes. Electrical heating method was performed at two different times (2 and 4 min) and hydrothermal method was done at three different temperatures (105, 125 and 150 °C). Chemical structure of wood fibers was also studied. TGA and DSC analysis showed higher weight loss of recycled fibers as compared to virgin fibers in a similar degradation region, which means that thermal stability of recycled fibers is lower than virgin fibers. In fact, thermal behavior of recycled fibers was medium between wood and UF resin. DSC analysis showed two exotherms at around 340 and 475 °C. The transition at around 340 °C in fibers thermogram was considered to be due to polysaccharides thermal deterioration and the exotherm at 475 °C was related to lignin carbohydrate complex deterioration. The results of chemical structure analysis showed that lignin and hemicellulose content of recycled fibers was significantly lower than that of virgin fibers, which resulted in decreased thermal stability.
Today, recycling is becoming increasingly important. In recycling process, the product performance should also be considered. In this study, manufacturing insulation fiberboard, as a practical wood product from recycled fibers, was investigated. For this purpose, two types of waste (MDF wastes and waste paper) were recycled to fibers and used for producing insulation fiberboards. The target fiberboard density was 0.3 g/cm3. The ratio of waste paper to MDF waste recycled fibers (WP/RF) was considered at two levels of 70/30 and 50/50. Polyvinyl acetate adhesive was used as a variable in the board manufacturing process. The mechanical properties, dimensional stability, thermal conductivity, and fire resistance of the boards were evaluated. Besides, the thermal stability of fiberboards was studied using thermal analysis including thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). The results showed that the insulation fiberboards had admissible mechanical properties and dimensional stability. The manufactured boards displayed low thermal conductivity, which proved to be well competitive with other insulation materials. The fiberboards manufactured with PVAc adhesive and WP/RF ratio of 50/50 had higher fire resistance compared to other treatments. Additionally, results of thermal analysis showed that the use of PVAc adhesive and WP/RF ratio of 50/50 leads to improved thermal stability. Overall, the recycled fibers from MDF and paper wastes appear to be appropriate raw materials for manufacturing thermal insulation panels, and use of PVAc adhesive can significantly improve thermal and practical properties of insulation fiberboards.
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