Mechanical Properties of Particleboard Made from Mahogany Leaves Using Gum Arabic as Binder

This paper presents the findings of an investigation into the use of mahogany leaves particles for the production of gum
Arabic bonded particleboards. Fresh mahogany leaves, air-dried to a target moisture content of 10% were crushed to an
average particle size of 2mm. Mix ratios of 2:1, 2.5:1, 3:1, and 3.5:1 of gum Arabic to the crushed mahogany leaves by
weight of the mahogany leaves were produced respectively. Twenty four (24) particleboards of sizes 200mm length,
50mm width, and 6mm thick were produced. The boards were cured for 28 days in an acclimatized room, after which
tests on modulus of rupture (MOR) and modulus of elasticity (MOE) were carried out in accordance with ASTM D1037-93
procedures. Cost-effective analysis was also carried out to obtain comparison with conventional particleboards available
in the market. Results of the investigation indicated that the modulus of rupture (MOR) and modulus of elasticity (MOE)
with mean and standard deviation in parenthesis, are 22.235N/mm2 (2.92827N/mm2) and 16131.04N/mm2
(4806.63N/mm2) respectively, were above 3.0N/mm2 and 550N/mm2 as the minimum values specified by ANSI/A208.1-
1999. The particleboards produced met the minimum standard for general purpose boards, and adjudged cost-effective
and cheaper as compared to the conventional particleboards.