The Use of Environmentally Friendly Bio-Oil in the Production of Phenol Formaldehyde (PF) Resin

Phenol Formaldehyde (PF) resin has been extensively used in the manufacturing industry as a binding agent, especially in the production of wood-based panels because of its ability to provide good moisture resistance, exterior strength and durability as well as excellent temperature stability. However, due to the use of limited petroleum-based phenol in its formulation, there is a strong interest in exploring renewable biomass material to partially substitute the petroleum-based phenol. In this study, the slow pyrolysis of biomass decomposition process was used to convert two types of biomass, namely, oil palm frond and Rhizophora hardwood, into bio-oil. The phenol-rich fraction of the bio-oil was separated and added into the formulation of PF resin to produce an environmentally-friendly type of PF resin, known as bio-oil-phenol-formaldehyde (BPF) resin. This BPF resin was observed to have comparable viscosity, better alkalinity, improved non-volatile content and faster curing temperature than conventional PF resin. Moreover, the particleboard bonded with this BPF resin was observed to have just as excellent bonding strength as the one bonded using conventional PF resin. However, the BPF resin exhibited an increased level of free formaldehyde and less thermal stability than the conventional PF resin, probably due to the addition of the less reactive bio-oil.