Effects of panel density, panel temperature, and cutter sharpness during edge machining on the roughness of the surface and profiled areas of medium density fiberboard

Abstract

The success of direct painting and thin laminating of profiled medium density fiber-board (MDF) is dependent upon the smoothness of surfaces and profiled areas. Many variables can affect surface smoothness or roughness. In this study, the effect of panel density, panel temperature, and cutter sharpness during edge machining on the roughness of the surface and profiled areas of MDF were investigated. The results of this study showed that increasing the panel density and the use of a sharp cutter decreased the roughness of the profiled areas, and that lowering the board temperature from 40degrees to 25degreesC during machining decreased the average roughness of the profiled areas at a depth of 5 mm from 10.68 to 6.75 mum.