FAIR-CT95-0137 Natural Tannin-Based Adhesives for Wood Composite Products of Low or No Formaldehyde Emission

Contacts
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Biocomposites/Boards : Biopolymers/Gums : Enviromental Aspects : FAIR Area 1.3 - Forestry-Wood Chain

	Type of Project	Shared Cost
	Contract No	FAIR-CT95-0137
	Total Cost	1 475 000 ECU
	EC Contribution	730 000 ECU
	Start Date	01/12/1995

OBJECTIVE

Technical Approach

Natural tannin based thermosetting adhesives for wood composites have been commercial since 1971, and their use has increased ever since. Tannins are natural polymeric products that give, when hardened with formaldehyde, exterior grade bonds to yield panels of excellent performance and with some other technological advantages on equivalent synthetic resin adhesives. The already established technology presented three main problems as regards the European market:

1. tannins are sometime expensive due to the transport costs from far away producers
2. the quantity available for adhesives is not too great as only the production overflow from the leather market can be used
3. the established technology using high amounts of hardener yields panels of unacceptably high level of formaldehyde for at least a few months after panel manufacture due to the presence of unreacted hardener

Expected Results

The project is aimed at:

• Identifying European commercially-grown tree species capable of yielding economically acceptable levels of tannin extracts usable for adhesives, and in maximising their extraction yield in order to be able to produce these materials in existing industrial extraction facilities already existing in Europe.
• Developing a technology suitable to yield thermosetting tannin adhesives capable of producing environmentally-friendly interior wood panels and exterior grade wood panels of low or no formaldehyde emission.

Direct Results and Present Progress

• European commercially grown tree species capable of yielding economically acceptable levels of tannin extracts usable for adhesives have been identified, and their extraction yield maximised.
• Tannin adhesive formulations capable of yielding totally natural and completely environmentally-friendly interior wood adhesives and wood panels and with no (zero) formaldehyde emission have been developed and are in the process of being refined and finalised.
• Tannin adhesive formulations capable of yielding natural, environmentally friendly exterior wood adhesives of very low, and even no formaldehyde emission have been developed and are in the process of being refined and finalised.
• The total technology of preparing wood panels with these technologies is in the process of development.

Applications

The tannin adhesives and resins technology being developed could also be usable (by suitable modifications) in other industries and other applications different from the wood panels industry (such as car fibre panels, cement super-plasticisers, rigid industrial foams etc.).

Wood composite products

Contacts

Coordinator

• Antonio PIZZI / ENSTIB University of Nancy 1 / FRANCE

EC Scientific Officer

• Alexandros ARABATZIS / European Commission DG Research Theme 1 Key Action 5.3 / BELGIUM

Participant

• Mr. Willi ROLL / Bakelite AG GERMANY
• Marco BESSE / Silva Srl ITALY