Potential Use of Waste Marble Powder as Adhesive Filler in the Manufacture of Laminated Veneer Lumber

Abstract

The waste powder produced during the manufacture of marble, which is presently mostly discarded in landfills, has the potential for higher-valued usage. Recycling marble waste powder will contribute to the protection of nature as well as economic gain. The potential use of waste marble powder as filler in the adhesive for manufacturing of laminated veneer lumber (LVL) was investigated in this study. With this objective, LVL panels were manufactured by adding marble factory waste powder in different ratios to polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) and urea-formaldehyde (UF) adhesives. The waste powders of beige marbles and travertine marbles were mixed by weight with adhesives in the percentage levels of 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, and 50%. Physical and mechanical tests were performed on the specimens obtained from the LVL panels. According to the results obtained from the present study, as compared to the control specimens, higher mechanical performance was obtained with the waste beige marble powder at high contents and with the waste travertine marble powder at low contents with the PVA adhesive. A poorer mechanical performance was found in the travertine powder with the UF adhesive. The dimensional stability of LVLs containing travertine powder was better than that of the LVLs containing beige marble powder.