JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #77 - December 2012 - 27

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- Bamboo composite-based flooring tiles, boards (used for partitions, cupboards, racks, door and window panels) and blocks (used for furniture, rails and styles for doors and windows, etc.) as wood substitute could be high value-added products. - Bamboo composite laminates with a low-temperature curing resin system result in reduced energy requirements. - Promotion of eco-friendly use of bamboo while building a sustainable infrastructure for plant multiplication, propagation and cultivation. - Boosting the usage of bamboo-based products in India could generate employment and income opportunities at rural level.

tial, the project on the development of bamboo composite laminates was launched by the Advanced Composites Programme of TIFAC in partnership with M/s. Emmbee Forest Products Pvt. Ltd., Manabari, with technology support from the University of Calcutta’s Department of Polymer Science & Technology. The project aimed at developing value-added products from bamboo with an innovative resin system for reduced processing energy requirement. Bamboobased products such as flooring tiles, laminate boards, blocks (for door and window frames, rails and styles, furniture, etc.) as wood substitute are being developed under the project. To prevent any deterioration of bamboo composites by moisture absorption and help ensure a long-term storage life, a water-based acrylic pre-coat was developed. This pre-coat will prevent any fungal attack during transit for the reconstituted wood sections for furniture. Further, a UV-cured melamine acrylate system is used as the finishing coat for flooring tiles made of bamboo composites.

Tab. 2: Applications of rice-husk particle boards

Wall panelling Doors, furniture, windows, table tops False ceilings Roofing panels Insulation Partitions and stage settings Industrial and domestic flooring

Medium-density rice-husk particle boards, both plain and overlaid with decorative laminates for use as wall panels. Plain and overlaid decorative medium-density boards can be used instead of wood-based boards. When used as the core for flush doors and window shutters, they ensure protection against insect attacks. Tiles made of low-density boards make attractive false ceilings, with added advantages such as thermal insulation and sound absorption. Medium- and high-density boards make excellent pre-fabricated, lightweight roof panels for low-cost housing, roof terrace houses, geodesic domes, garden houses, beach booths, etc., because of their resistance to decay and fire. Low-density boards can be used as thermal insulation material in air conditioning and refrigeration. The low cost and fire resistance of these boards makes them suitable for partition and stage settings.

High abrasion resistance makes these boards ideally suited for floorings.

Bamboo mat veneered rice-husk particle boards
Rice-husk particle boards with bamboo mat as face veneer have been developed by M/s Padmavathy Panel Boards Ltd., Bangalore, with the technology licensed by National Research & Development Corporation (NRDC), a public sector

undertaking of the Ministry of Science & Technology. The product is eco-friendly and manufactured out of agro-waste products such as rice husk and cashew nut shell liquid. The cleaned rice husk is blended with phenolic resin and cashew nut shell liquid to have a thin coat of resin on the surface. A predetermined quantity of coated rice husk is spread as mat in a hydraulic press, pressed to a predetermined pressure and cured at an elevated temperature. The bamboo mat is phenol-bonded on the rice-husk boards to provide dimensional stability. The boards have been successfully field tested by constructing temporary shelters for dormitories, go-downs, kiosks, etc. The

rice-husk boards were tested as per IS3087-1985 and IS-2380-1977 against the specified values. The rice-husk particle boards are manufactured in various densities, thickness, types and grades to suit a wide range of applications. Some of the applications are listed in table 2.

Rebuilding and rehabilitation – Case studies
In the wake of the disastrous damages caused by the earthquake in Gujarat in January 2001, the Advanced Composites Programme contributed to the national efforts for re-building and rehabilitation. Natural-fibre composite products such as jute-coir composite boards and bamboo mat veneered rice-husk particle boards were used to build semi-permanent shelters for the quake victims. TIFAC constructed 400 shelters of 22 m² area (6.10 m long x 3.65 m wide x 2.45 m high), 25 classrooms/vocational training centres and 15 shops supported on steel structures. To

Fig. 2: Bamboo composite flooring (a) Chair made of bamboo (b) Coffee table made of bamboo laminates (c)

No77 December 2012 /

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JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #77 - December 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #77 - December 2012