New technologies and alternative uses for poplar wood
- Autores: Gaetano Lo Castro, Giuseppe Fragnelli
- Localización: Boletín Informativo CIDEU, ISSN-e 1885-5237, Nº. 2, 2006, págs. 27-36
- Idioma: español
- Enlaces
- Dialnet Métricas: 2 Citas
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Resumen
After a brief introduction on the importance of poplar for both the environment and the woodindustry system, the current common uses of poplar wood are discussed, with particular reference to the production of plywood, which is by far the most important and remunerative destination for the best raw material resulting from intensive poplar cultivation.
Plywood can be considered a ¿mature¿ product both in terms of development (efficiency levels, yields and productivity) and of market (at the moment plywood is also suffering from the competition of new kinds of panels). From a technical point of view, possible innovations are strictly related to the ability to find new uses and new products, possibly with value added figures. In this frame, the building sector seems to offer new possibilities, also thanks to the renewed interest for wood and wood-based products.
Another possible destination for poplar wood could be the production of glue-laminated timber. A quite complete research was done in Italy on this subject, which included the possibility of mixing poplar with other species (in particular eucalypt and larch). Details are given on the results obtained. In the building sector, beyond the possibility of using purposely-produced plywood, Poplar wood could also be a very good raw-material for the production of ¿engineered panels¿ (LVL, OSB).
In conclusion, poplar wood is surely suitable also for use in other sectors. The reliability of products (with improved properties, if necessary) and their ecological characteristics, together with the preparation of updated technical information, are, in any case, among the main factors that can guarantee an increase of the use of poplar wood in nontraditional applications.
