MEASURING STRAND DYNAMICS DURING ORIENTED STRAND COMPOSITE MAT FORMATION

MEASURING STRAND DYNAMICS DURING ORIENTED STRAND COMPOSITE MAT FORMATION

By Spencer A. Perry

Thesis Advisor: Dr. Stephen M. Shaler

A Lay Abstract of the Thesis Presented

in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the

Degree of Master of Science

(in Forest Resources)

May, 2010

The focus of this research was to study the movement of wood strands during the oriented strand composites (OSC) manufacturing process. The manufacturing process includes the creation, modification, movement, and compression of thin wood strands to form structural composite building material including oriented strand board, laminated strand lumber, and oriented strand lumber. These engineered wood composites are used as a substitute for solid wood, plywood, and steel in many structural applications. Many different process variables affect strand movement through the forming line. Process variables are parameters inside the manufacturing operation that can be adjusted to control the final output. Adjusting strand flow characteristics affects strand orientation, density variation, and thickness variation which in turn strongly influence product quality. This research examined the effects of two process variables, strand length and strand starting position, on strand orientation and horizontal density variation.

Quantifying the effects of strand length and starting position on the movement through the forming line enables improvements in forming practices that enhance final product performance while maintaining or reducing raw material usage. In addition, quantifying and understanding the dynamic interactions responsible for strand flow is an integral part of achieving the ultimate goal of developing a comprehensive computer model of the OSC manufacturing process. Industry would be able to use this model to predict how process variables would affect the final product quality. Results show that both process variables have significant effects on strand dynamics in the system.

Keywords: Oriented strand composite, strand, dynamics, forming line, process variables