Online Resin Cure Detection
ARC is working with an industrial partner to commercialize an on-line resin cure monitoring system that could significantly increase the productivity of oriented strand board (OSB) mills and others in the hot-pressed wood composites industry. Composites are manufactured by bonding wood particles with a resin in a hot press.
Currently, there is no efficient technique to monitor the resin curing process other than to test the product after the fact. This often results in a considerable amount of sub-standard product before a problem is discovered. To prevent this, mills provide extra press time to ensure a good cure, essentially creating a bottleneck on their production line.
The on-line cure detection system will help mills optimize their pressing operation, and produce a more consistent product. The technology is licensed to ARC on an exclusive basis from the University of California at Berkeley. Commercialization will initially focus on the more than 80 OSB mills existing or in development worldwide. Ultimately the technology will be marketed to any composite wood mill that uses heat-set resins.
Alberta Research Council. Alberta Research Council 2001 Annual Report. Edmonton: Alberta
Research Council, 2001 with permission from the Alberta
Research Council.
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