There are innumerable words in the world, and their number continues to grow every day. Some words have been familiar to us since childhood, the significance of others we recognized during our studies or work, and the meaning of the third is still unclear to us today. As a rule, these are specific names or terms corresponding to one or another profile of activity. We encounter some objects almost every day, but we have no idea what they are called, and we don’t even think about it.
For example, not everyone knows what is chipboard, although this material is the basis of 80% of cabinet furniture. What is hidden behind the mysterious combination of four consonants?
What is chipboard: material characteristics and scope
Chipboard is a wood chip of large dispersion, which is given a sheet form by hot pressing. An auxiliary substance in the mechanism of plate production is formaldehyde resins, which serve as a binder for wood fibers.
The case of almost all cabinet furniture is made of laminated boards, “rough” panels are used for interior decoration or to create temporary partitions. The frame of upholstered furniture in most cases is also made of chipboard.
History of occurrence
For the first time , a particle board saw the light in the post-war period. Many buildings were destroyed, and restoration required much more resources than was available. The acute shortage of materials for interior decoration and their high cost forced manufacturers to look for alternative solutions. So, after long experiments, a material was invented that 90% consisted of waste components. Wood shavings, which were previously burned as garbage, have found a new purpose. For more than half a century, the technology and the final result of production have improved, and today the chipboard material is an integral part of furniture designs. So if you look at your kitchen or bedroom, you will surely find that their body is made of decorated chipboard.
Material classification
At first glance, it may seem that all the chipboard material has the same composition and quality, but this is not so.
By type of cladding, the plates are divided into:
- draft, without a decorated coating;
- laminated, coated with sulphite and finishing paper;
- veneered, covered with a thin layer of natural wood veneer.
Chipboard quality characteristics are divided into 3 grades:
- 1 grade of a plate is made from selected sawdust, as a rule, of one species of wood. Its surface is perfectly smooth, without chips. The plate is decorated on both sides by applying a laminated film or veneer.
- Grade 2 is characterized by minor defects on the surface in the form of chips and scratches. It can be with or without cladding.
- Grade 3 - these are plates with significant defects on the surface. They do not require cladding and are used only for construction and auxiliary purposes.
According to the degree of resistance to external factors, the chipboard sheet can be:
- moisture resistant - undergoes a special treatment with a paraffin emulsion, and also includes wood fibers with a special impregnation that prevents the composition from swelling under the influence of moisture;
- refractory - contains flame retardants, which serve as a barrier to ignition.
Technology and stages of production
Before you get to construction warehouses, the chipboard sheet goes through a long production process, consisting of five mandatory stages.
- Receiving material. The main component used is wood shavings obtained from waste from wood processing enterprises or shredded specifically for the production of particleboard. Illiquid trunks are cleaned of bark, after which they are cut into segments 0.5-1 meter wide. Prepared raw materials are placed in special mills, where they go through the grinding stage.
- Drying and selection. The chips are delivered to the drying chamber, where vortex drying is performed by hot air flows. In this case, the moisture content of raw materials is reduced by 6-7 percent. The dried chips are placed in a batch plant, where normal particles go to the next stage, and too large ones return to the grinding stage.
- Mixing the components. The selected drying enters the mixer chamber, after which formaldehyde resin also enters the mixer.
- Creation of forms. The chips mixed with glue enter the conveyor belt, where under the influence of a cold press a mold is created consisting of several layers. A hot press connects the layers, creating a chipboard blank. After which the stove is subjected to cooling and drying. At the same stage, the chipboard is cut into standard sheets.
- The final stage of production is the application of decorative coatings. First, the particleboard surface is leveled and ground, after which the sheet is placed on the forming press, only sulfate paper, which serves as the basis, is placed on the back of the plate, sheets of sulfite and finishing paper are added to the front side of it.
Manufacturers and sizes
Today, there are about two hundred domestic and foreign companies whose main area of activity is the production and cutting of chipboard.
One of the leaders in the sales market is Kronospan Holding, which produces more than 2.5 million square meters. laminated boards per month. Products gained worldwide fame due to strict adherence to the process, selection of the best raw materials and focus on consumer needs. Compliance with these rules allows you to produce high-quality products with unique decors. At the same time, prices are kept at a competitive level.
Kronospan, like most other manufacturers, produces chipboard sheets, the dimensions of which are 2750 x 1830 mm, the thickness of the plate is 16 mm.
Another popular chipboard manufacturer is the Austrian Egger holding. This product belongs to the elite category and has in its collection both plates with ordinary paper laminate and veneered chipboard. The dimensions of the sheets here are slightly larger - 2800 x 2070 mm with a thickness of 18 mm.
If we consider the overall dimensional grid of all manufacturers, the thickness of the chipboard can vary from 10 to 38 mm. In addition to the above sheet sizes, there are also 2440 x 1830 mm.
A variety of chipboard: colors and decors
Today, furniture manufacturers can create real masterpieces using only wood-particle boards as a material.
The range of colors of laminated boards is very extensive and includes entire collections of chipboard decors. Colors are divided into several groups:
- smooth monophonic (white, yellow, blue);
- textured plain (white textured, aluminum);
- standard wood tones (beech, alder, cherry);
- imitation of rare wood species (chipboard "Winchester oak", "merano", "cordoba");
- glossy decors;
- veneered decors;
- fantasy tones with drawings and patterns.
Due to the high cost, the last three categories are mainly used for the production of facade parts.
Benefits
What is chipboard is known to every furniture maker. It is this material that is the basis of all furniture designs and brings the largest part of the income. Why are wood chip boards so popular?
Firstly, the comparatively low cost price of the material is a priority advantage, which allows satisfying the purchasing needs of various financial levels.
Secondly, ease of processing attracts. Particleboard is a finished material that needs only to be cut in accordance with the cutting map and put an edge on the ends.
In addition, wood boards are quite strong and durable, they are not subject to drying out or twisting, like a natural tree.
The final item on the list of benefits can be noted a wide palette of decors chipboard. The colors are so diverse that they fit perfectly into the restrained interior of the study, and in the bright children's room.
disadvantages
Like any other material, chipboard has several drawbacks.
The main negative characteristic of particle boards is the presence of formaldehyde resins, which at high concentrations have a negative effect on human health. That is why it is necessary to ensure that in the finished product there are no unlined edges.
Another significant drawback is the exposure of the chipboard to swelling (with the exception of moisture resistant categories). This problem is eliminated in the same way as the previous one - melamine or PVC edge is applied to all visible ends, protecting the internal composition from moisture penetration.
The difference between chipboard and MDF
Often people who are not connected with the furniture world do not see the fundamental difference between MDF, chipboard and fiberboard. The difference, in fact, is not so big, but it is.
MDF is also made from wood chips, only it is crushed to a finer fraction than chipboard, and paraffin is used as a binder component, not formaldehyde resins. This composition allows you to give the material more environmental friendliness, density and flexibility. The surface of MDF is smoother than that of chipboard, easily amenable to deformation. This characteristic is very important, since it allows you to create not only flat, but also bent shapes with different milling. Due to the paraffin impregnation of MDF, the plate has water-repellent properties, which allows to expand the scope of its application. In most cases, the finely dispersed fraction is used in the production of the facade.
Fiberboard is a composite material made from wood chips, wood dust and chips, with the addition of synthetic resins, paraffin and rosin. The composition is pressed and coated with a laminate. The thickness of the fiberboard, as a rule, does not exceed 4 mm. Used as the back and back walls.
Compatibility with other materials
Among all furniture materials, the most universal is chipboard. The photo below confirms that the particle board is perfectly combined with any solid substances.
A classic furniture set is a body made of chipboard, the back wall is made of fiberboard and the front part is made of MDF.
In addition to the above materials in furniture production, natural wood, glass, aluminum are used, which also "get along" with the main material.
Particle Board Tips
So we figured out what is chipboard and in what areas it is used. It remains only to determine the criteria for assessing quality.
Not all manufacturers adhere to norms and standards, so it is possible that an illiquid may be masked under a normal external shell, which may be completely unsuitable for use in the furniture industry.
When choosing chipboard, pay attention to the price. If the cost of the chosen model is much lower than analogues, look for the reason. Perhaps the manufacturer decided to conduct a campaign to attract consumer demand to the product. Or maybe they decided to sell you a defective product. It is possible that defective material is also suitable for you at a low price (for example, for construction work), but you must be informed about all the pros and cons.
Inspect the material for integrity. On the surface of the plate there should be no cracks and chips, the decorative coating should be smooth, without scratches. Be sure to inspect the edges of the sheet. Their thickness should not be greater than the thickness of the main surface, otherwise this fact will indicate a swelling of the material. Swollen chipboard is completely unsuitable for furniture production, since its filling becomes loose, which makes it difficult to use fasteners.