Investigating the Potential of Using Waste Newspaper to Produce Environmentally Friendly Fiberboard

Waste newspapers (WNPs), composed of mostly wood fibers and small amounts of inorganic fillers and printing ink, are a low-cost, abundant, and readily available form of household waste. Urea formaldehyde (UF) resin is used routinely to produce wood-based panel boards even though it releases harmful formaldehyde. The best way of resolving this issue is to use formaldehyde-free adhesives from renewable resources. Kraft lignin, a readily available, low-cost, and renewable waste product from the pulping industry, is used mainly as a fuel. Kraft lignin has good bonding ability to wood-based panel boards and improves water resistance. In this research, fiberboards were produced using a dry-processing method from recycled WNPs and bonded with kraft lignin instead of UF. The physical and mechanical properties of the produced fiberboards were evaluated. The results showed that the hot press temperature and kraft lignin content remarkably influenced the physical and mechanical properties of the fiberboards. As the hot press temperature and kraft lignin content increased, the overall performance of the fiberboards improved accordingly. The results indicate that WNPs could be a potential sustainable resource for fiberboards production.

Automated summary

By utilizing waste newspapers as a resource and replacing formaldehyde resin with renewable kraft lignin, fiberboards with improved physical and mechanical properties were successfully produced. This suggests that waste newspapers could potentially serve as a sustainable resource for fiberboards production.