Thermoforming of wood veneer composite sheets

Abstract

Thermoforming of wood veneers into profiles is a novel idea and the focus of this paper is to study the formability characteristics of thin radiata pine (Pinus radiata D. Don) veneers, which are generally used as surface coverings. Radiata pine is well suited as a raw material for furniture, joinery, and interior architectural products. This is because it has excellent turning, shaping, and laminating properties and readily achieves brilliant stain and paint finishes. In this study, radiata pine veneers were softened by immersion in a hot water bath and then thermoformed by means of heated dies/moulds. The formability characteristics were investigated by conducting single-curvature V-bending tests. The influence of the forming method on the shape conformance of softened veneers under single- and multiple-bend conditions was examined. The paper also discusses the influences of manufacturing parameters that include the softening method, the die temperature, the duration of forming, the ratio of bend radius to veneer thickness, and the veneer architecture. The study clearly establishes the feasibility of forming veneers into multi-bend products in a semi-continuous manner using matched dies.