Structural, Thermal, and Mechanical Properties of Spent Mushroom Substrate (SMS) and Rubberwood Sawdust (RWS) Binderless Particleboards

Abstract

The aim of this study is to examine the chemical compositions (extractive, alphacellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin) of the spent mushroom substrate (SMS) and rubberwood sawdust (RWS) to evaluate its suitability in the production of binderless particleboard. In this study, SMS fiber and RWS fiber were used to produce experimental binderless particleboard panels. Binderless particleboards were made with a target density of 0.80 g/cm3 at temperature 130 °C and a pressure of 5 MPa under the hot press. The chemical composition of the SMS fiber was found to be slightly lower than that of the RWS fiber. The degradation of the chemical composition can cause reduction of particle size and discoloration of fibers. Binderless particleboard made from SMS fiber also shows slightly lower mechanical properties as compared to the RWS fiber. The reaction and thermal profiles show almost similar characteristics for both SMS and RWS samples. However, the spent mushroom substrate (SMS) shows slightly lower chemical, thermal, and mechanical properties as compared to the rubberwood sawdust (RWS).