ABSTRACT
During replanting of the oil palm which is a major economic crop of Malaysia, a huge amount of waste is generated. This study was carried out to determine the feasibility of using this waste material in the form of felled trunks for cement-bonded particleboard manufacture.
A major setback in using the oil palm trunk (OPT) lies in its high carbohydrates content. Freshly felled OPT were found to have more sucrose than glucose and fructose. The total amount of sugars in OPT of age 35 years and above was in the range of 1.8 to 13.3 % (based on dry weight of wood) at various height and zones of the tree. The starch content was found to be in the range of 0.4 to 25.5 %. In general, the amount of sugars in OPT was more concentrated at the central zone of the palm while the starch content was more concentrated at the higher level of the tree.
Among the various pre-treatments to reduce the carbohydrates content, soaking of the OPT chips in water for 3 days was adequate to produce cement-bonded particleboard with consistent and acceptable physical and mechanical properties.
