Thermal treatment’s effect on dust emission during sanding of meranti wood

Abstract

The aim of this research was to investigate the effects of various temperatures of thermal treatment of red meranti (Shorea accuminata) wood on mass concentration and size distribution of wood dust produced by a hand-held belt sander. The experiment was conducted during the sanding of the meranti wood in the natural state and using specimens that were heat-treated via the ThermoWood® technology at the temperatures of 160 °C, 180 °C, 200 °C, and 220 °C. An analysis of variance was used to measure the significance of the effects. Average values of the inhalable and respirable fractions of wood dust mass concentration determined via the optical and gravimetric method was highest at the treatment temperature of 160 °C. The results showed that mass concentration was not significantly influenced by thermal treatment.