Design of a low-density wood-cement particleboard for interior wall finish

Gypsum boards form a very large part of the building walls and ceilings finishing market. However, they have poor screw-withdrawal resistance, low hardness and are highly sensitive to moisture. The objective of this study was to determine whether it is possible to make wood-cement particleboards of the same density as gypsum boards while avoiding these drawbacks. Wood-cement particleboards were made by pouring the wood-cement paste in a mould. This was made possible by adding a viscosity modifying mixture to the mixing water and a set accelerating mixture to improve wood/cement compatibility. The mechanical properties and surface quality of the wood-cement particleboards were improved by using, on the board surfaces, paper sheets that were the same as those used on gypsum boards. The average specific gravity of the wood-cement particleboards was the same as gypsum boards, at 0.7. The average bending modulus of rupture obtained for the wood-cement particleboards was 10 MPa in the finishing paper principal direction and 5 MPa in the other direction compared to 5.5 MPa and 1.6 MPa respectively for gypsum boards. The average screw-withdrawal resistance of wood-cement particleboards was 570 N, that is, 1.7 times higher than for gypsum boards. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.