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Characteristics of Medium Density Fiberboards for Furniture Production and

Interior Application

Article in South East European Journal of Architecture and Design · March 2016
DOI: 10.3889/seejad.2016.10013

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ID Design 2012/DOOEL Skopje
South East European Journal of Architecture and Design
Volume 2016; Article ID 10013, 5 pages
http://dx.doi.org/10.3889/seejad.2016.10013
Technologies in Design

Characteristics of Medium Density Fiberboards for Furniture

Production and Interior Application

1* 1 2
Violeta Jakimovska Popovska , Borche Iliev , Ivo Spiroski
1
Faculty of Design and Technologies of Furniture and Interior, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje, Skopje,
2
Republic of Macedonia; Id Design 2012/DOOEL Skopje, Skopje, Republic of Macedonia

Abstract

Citation: Jakimovska Popovska V, Iliev B, Spiroski I. BACKGROUND: The paper analyzes the properties of medium density fiberboards (MDF) intended for furniture
Characteristics of Medium Density Fiberboards for production and interior application. Because MDF panels are one of the mostly used wood-based panels in
Furniture Production and Interior Application. SEE J Archit
Des. 2016 Mar 23; 2016:10015. http://dx.doi.org/ furniture production sector in the Republic of Macedonia it is important to know and understand their basic
10.3889/seejad.2016.10013 physical and mechanical properties.
Key words: wood-based panels; medium density
fiberboards (MDF); physical properties; mechanical AIM: For better understanding of MDF panels and their proper end use by the furniture constructors and
properties; furniture production. designers, physical and mechanical properties of MDF panels present in the market are tested.
*
Correspondence: Violeta Jakimovska Popovska. Faculty
of Design and Technologies of Furniture and Interior, Ss. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Commercially produced MDF panels taken from one company from wood-based
Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje, Skopje,
Republic of Macedonia. E-mail: panel market were tested. Evaluation of the quality of the panels was made on the basis of the obtained results
[email protected] for the physical and mechanical properties of the panels. Properties of MDF were tested according to the national
Received: 30-Jan-2016; Revised: 01-Mar-2016; MKS standards and European norms.
Accepted: 02-Mar-2016; Published: 23-Mar-2016
Copyright: © 2016 Violeta Jakimovska Popovska, RESULTS: Tested MDF panels present on our market are characterized by good physical and mechanical
Borche Iliev, Ivo Spiroski. This is an open-access article properties that meet the requirements of the standards for MDF for use in dry conditions including furniture
distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons
Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, production and interior applications.
distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided
the original author and source are credited. CONCLUSIONS: It is recommended to avoid application of these MDF panels in high humidity conditions for a
Competing Interests: The author have declared that no longer exploitation period. For this kind of applications, such as bathroom areas, the furniture constructors and
competing interests exist. interior designers should consider use of MDF.H type of panel for application in high humidity conditions, which
will provide good dimensional stability of the products during whole exploitation period.

Introduction MDF are available in a wide range of thickness, can

be easily machined and finished to a high standard,
so have been accepted in a wide range of applications
Medium density fiberboards (MDF) or dry both in furniture and construction, where in both cases
process fiberboards represent engineered wood- they replace solid wood and other wood-based panels
based panels made from wood fibers bonded together (plywood and particleboards) in particular
with an adhesive on the base of a synthetic resin. A applications. It is also used for interior door skins,
typical production process involves reducing wood moldings, and interior trim components [4]. MDF are
down to small chips, which are then thermally applicable in production of window boards, wall
softened and mechanically refined into fibers, which paneling, architraves, and decorative facades and as
are then mixed with a synthetic resin binder. The core material for floorings. Its uniform and smooth
resinated fibers are dried and then formed into a surface provides an excellent base for applying
mattress ready for pressing. The mattress is pressed decorative overlays, veneers and painting [2]. When
in a hot press to the desired thickness (Wood Panel MDF panels are used as substrate for overlays, their
Industries Federation). The average density of surface roughness is an important factor in
standard form of MDF ranges between 450 to 800 determining the quality of the final product [5].
3
kg/m (Wood Panel Industries Federation) [1]. It is supposed that MDF panels are the best
MDF are one of the most rapidly growing substitute for solid wood, but MDF properties differ
products in the world wood-based panel market [2, 3]. from those of solid wood [6]. MDF panels have
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homogenous structure and higher isotropy of the Hallein GmbH & Co KG“, Austria. The product
properties compared to solid wood, which has dimensions of the panel were 2070 ×2650 × 19 mm.
different mechanical properties in different directions
Test specimens for determination of the
of the wood.
physical and mechanical properties according to the
Beside standard MDF panels, value added national and European norms were cut from the
variants with enhanced mechanical performance and panels. The following properties were tested: density
improved performance in the presence of moisture (MKS D.A8.085), moisture content (MKS D.A8.083),
and fire are also produced (Wood Panel Industries thickness swelling and water absorption (MKS
Federation) [1]. These value added variants extend D.A8.084), modulus of rupture (MOR-bending
the MDF furniture application in many products such strength) and modulus of elasticity in bending-MOE
as shopfitting and display, interior fitments, exterior (MKS EN 310), internal bond-IB (MKS EN 319) [9]
application (signage and shop fronts). and hardness according to Janka [10].
MDF panels produced in Europe are specified Thickness swelling and water absorption are
according to the requirements defined in the EN 622-1 tested after 24 hours immersion in water, which is a
[7] and EN 622-5 [8]. EN 622-5 defines the standard treatment and after prolongation of the
requirements of MDF that are classified according to treatment up to 48 hours in order to see the behavior
their intended end use. According to that of the MDF panels during exposure of high humidity
classification, the requirements for the following types conditions and prolonged water impact.
of MDF are specified in the standard:
The bending strength and modulus of
 general purpose boards for use in dry elasticity in bending were tested in five directions, i.e.,
conditions (type MDF); parallel and perpendicular to the length of the panel
and at the angles of 22.5°; 45° and 67.5° to the
 general purpose boards for use in humid panel’s length. Tests in different directions of the MDF
conditions (type MDF.H); panels will provide data for the strength of the MDF
 load-bearing boards for use in dry conditions panels in different direction related to the homogeneity
(type MDF.LA); of the structure of MDF.

 load-bearing boards for use in humid The obtained data were statistically analyzed.
conditions (type MDF.HLS); One way ANOVA was used to determinate the
significance of the effect of the direction of the force in
 light MDF boards for use in dry conditions bending on the MDF bending strength and modulus of
(type L-MDF); elasticity in bending. Shapiro-Wilk test for normality of
the obtained data was applied and Levene’s test for
 light MDF boards for use in humid conditions
homogeneity of variances was applied. Tukey’s test
(type L-MDF.H);
was applied to evaluate the statistical significance
 ultra-light MDF boards for use in dry between mean values of the properties in different
conditions (type UL1-MDF); panel direction.
 ultra-light MDF boards for use in dry Statistical software SPSS Statistic was used
conditions (type UL2-MDF); for statistical analysis of the obtained data.
 boards for use in rigid underlay in roofs and
walls (type MDF.RWH)
For better understanding of MDF panels and
their proper end use by the furniture constructors and
designers, physical and mechanical properties of MDF Results
panels present in the market are tested.

The obtained results for the physical and

mechanical properties of MDF panels (Table 1)
showed that the tested MDF panels meet the
Materials and Methods requirements for general purpose boards for use in
dry condition including furniture manufacture and
interior fitments.
For the realization of the research, medium
density fiberboards were taken by random choice from The value for thickness swelling after 24
the storehouse of the company „Soloprom“, Skopje hours immersion in water is below 12 % which
and transferred to the Laboratory for wood-composite guarantee the dimensional stability of MDF when it is
materials at the Faculty of Forestry in Skopje. The used as a material for interior application and furniture
MDF panels were product of the company „MDF production. Thickness swelling after prolongation of
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 Jakimovska Popovska et al. Medium Density Fiberboards for Furniture Production and Interior Application
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water immersion treatment up to 48 hours is above 12 The analysis of variance of the obtained data
% which shows that these MDF panels should not be for modulus of elasticity in bending (ANOVA: F (4; 55)
used in high humidity areas for a longer period, = 4.4; p = 0.004) showed that there is a statistically
although incidental exposure to water will not significant differences in the mean value of this
decrease the panel stability and its properties. property in different panel directions. The post-hoc
Tukey’s test showed that MOE parallel to the panel’s
Table 1: Statistical data for physical and mechanical properties length statistically differs from the MOE at the angle of
of MDF panel 45° to the panel’s length. Besides this differences, the
95% value of MOE in two major directions of the MDF
Confidence
Property N Mean SD* SE**
Interval for
Min Max
panel are similar and there are no statistically
Mean
Lower Upper
significant differences between them, which also
Bound Bound speaks for the high isotropy of the properties of the
695.2 710.9 671.3 716.3
Density (kg/m3) 12 703.10 12.37 3.57 MDF panel.
4 6 6 5
Moisture content (%) 12 7.75 0.09 0.03 7.70 7.81 7.61 7.92
Thickness swelling after 24 h
12 9.07 1.56 0.45 8.07 10.06 6.91 11.46 The homogeneity of the MDF panel also can
(%)
Thickness swelling after 48 h
12 13.84 1.37 0.39 12.97 14.71 12.18 15.94
be seen from the polar diagram of bending strength
(%)
Water absorption after 24 h (%) 12 20.47 3.45 1.00 18.28 22.67 15.33 23.10 shown on Figure 1. Approaching of the diagram to the
Water absorption after 48 h (%) 12 31.83 2.92 0.84 29.97 33.68 27.14 34.43 form of circle speaks for higher isotropy of the MDF
IB (N/mm2) 12 0.61 0.07 0.02 0.57 0.65 0.51 0.76
Janka hardness (N/mm2) 12 47.68 2.13 0.43 46.78 48.58 41.20 50.52 bending properties.
*, SD, standard deviation; ** SE, standard error.
The obtained values of bending strength and
modulus of elasticity in bending of tested MDF panels
The statistical data for the bending strength in all tested directions exceed the minimal values for
2
and modulus of elasticity in bending of tested MDF general purpose MDF (20 N/mm for the bending
2
are shown in Table 2 and 3. strength and 2200 N/mm for the modulus of elasticity
in bending) and load-bearing MDF for structural
Table 2: Statistical data for MOR in different directions of the application defined in the standard EN 622-5 [8].
panel
95% Confidence
Force Std. Std. Interval for Mean
N Mean Min Max
direction Deviation Error Lower Upper
Bound Bound
Parallel 12 35.30 2.10 0.61 33.96 36.63 32.29 38.89
Perpendicular 12 35.54 1.19 0.34 34.78 36.30 33.24 36.87
Angle 22,5° 12 34.13 1.31 0.38 33.30 34.96 31.44 35.84
Angle 45° 12 35.14 1.59 0.46 34.13 36.15 32.38 37.49
Angle 67,5° 12 35.68 1.58 0.46 34.68 36.68 33.34 38.31

There are no statistically significant differences at 0.05 probability level.

The analysis of variance of the obtained data

for bending strength (ANOVA: F (4; 25) = 1.782; p =
0.146) showed that the there are no statistically
significant differences in the mean values of this
property in different directions of the panel at 0.05
probability level. This shows that MDF panel has
homogeneous structure that provides uniform bending
strength across the panel in all directions. This
homogeneity allows cutting MDF panels in desired
direction of the panel without warring about the
direction of the span of the loaded panel, which is
important for better utilization in furniture production,
interior applications and construction.

Table 3: Statistical data for MOE in different directions of the Figure 1: Polar diagram of bending strength of MDF panel
panel
95% Confidence
Force Std. Std. Interval for Mean
direction
N Mean
Deviation Error Lower Upper
Min Max According the values of thickness swelling
Bound Bound after 24 hours immersion in water, internal bond,
Parallel 12 3208.78a 98.48 28.43 3146.21 3271.35 3001.55 3328.65
Perpendicular 12 3347.18b.a 169.59 48.96 3239.43 3454.93 3008.64 3540.98 bending strength and modulus of elasticity of bending,
Angle 22,5° 12 3225.50a 183.33 52.92 3109.01 3341.98 2930.87 3580.98 tested MDF panels beside furniture production and
Angle 45° 12 3098.72c.a 99.34 28.68 3035.60 3161.83 2874.28 3210.51
Angle 67,5° 12 3238.06a 157.42 45.44 3138.04 3338.08 2968.69 3509.48 interior design, also can be used as load-bearing
The mean values with the same letters are not significantly different at 0.05 probability panels in dry conditions (as type MDF.LA).
level.

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evaluation of the MDF quality and characterization of

their performance, physical and mechanical properties
are used. Mechanical properties are the most
frequently used to evaluate MDF and other wood-
based panels for structural and nonstructural
applications, where the strength properties usually
Figure 2: Failure mode of the test specimens for determination of reported, include modulus of rupture (MOR, bending
bending strength and modulus of elasticity in bending of tested strength), compression strength parallel to surface,
MDF panels tension strength perpendicular to surface (internal
Failure mode of the test specimens during bond strength), tension strength parallel to surface,
determination of bending strength and modulus of shear strength, fastener holding capacity and
elasticity in bending of tested MDF panels is shown on hardness [11]. Elastic properties include modulus of
Figure 2, while the failure mode of the test specimens elasticity (MOE) in bending, tension, and
for determination of internal bond is shown on Figure compression.
3. General purpose MDF for use in dry
conditions is one of the most used MDF type for
interior fitments including furniture, where typically
load-bearing panels are not need it. For application in
high humidity areas as bathroom and kitchen
cabinets, where the MDF product can reach high
moisture levels from the surrounding area, MDF for
use in humid condition should be used (MDF.H). In
application in construction, as well as in construction
Figure 3: Failure mode of the test specimens for determination of of wooden buildings, depend on the place where the
internal bond of tested MDF panels panels are incorporated, load-bearing MDF panels are
used either for dry or humid conditions.
Thickness swelling is one of the basic
properties that determine whether the panel will be
used in dry or humid conditions. That is way it is very
important for furniture constructors and designers to
Discussion be aware of the climate conditions in which the
furniture or other interior fitments will be incorporated.
The basic mistake is made when the MDF for use dry
Beside particleboards, MDF are one of the condition is used in high humidity areas such as
mostly used wood-based panels in furniture bathrooms where the panels are exposed on high
production sector in the Republic of Macedonia. moisture levels and water impact for a longer period.
These panels are imported from other countries. For When MDF is exposed to water contact, wood fibers
proper use of MDF panels it is essential for furniture swell and residual stress that is created during the
designers and users to be familiar with the properties MDF pressing process is released, which causes
of these panels. Also in past years in our country increasing of MDF thickness [12]. This thickness
there is an increased interest for construction of swelling also reduces the strength characteristics of
wooden buildings where the wood-based panels are MDF [13].
one of the basic materials for structural and non-
structural use. In such buildings different types of It is very important to use the proper type of
MDF can be used as load-bearing members or as MDF for these applications, such as type MDF.H
general purpose board depend on the place of which will guarantee the stability of the products made
incorporation in the building. Very often, buyers and by these panels during its exploitation period.
users of wood-based panels are not familiar with
The values of the water absorption of MDF
different types of MDF panels, their categorization and
correspond with those one of the thickness swelling.
characteristics that are intended for different
Thickness swelling of the panels is related to the
application. That is way it is important to take an
water absorption, so the higher water absorption
overview of the characteristics of these panels that
contributes in higher swelling in thickness.
are present in the market in our country, which will
contribute in better understanding of the proper use of The obtained value of internal bond shows
MDF according to their physical and mechanical that the structure of MDF has good adhesion which
properties. guarantees good dimensional stability of the panel
and high mechanical characteristics.
For adequate use of MDF boards in different
application areas their physical and mechanical Testing of MDF hardness is not mandatory,
properties must meet the standard requirements. For but gives the information about MDF durability. It is
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 Jakimovska Popovska et al. Medium Density Fiberboards for Furniture Production and Interior Application
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

more important property for high density fiberboards utilization of burned wood in manufacture of medium density
that are used as core materials for floorings. The fiberboard. Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management Vol.
15 (2): 195-201.
obtained value for Janka hardness shows that the http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10163-012-0108-3
tested MDF is durable for application in furniture
4. Stark NM. Cai Z, Carll, C. (2010). Wood handbook - Wood as
production and other interior elements. engineering material, Chapter 11: Wood-based composite
materials. USDA, Forest Product Laboratory, General Technical
Requirements for MDF for use in furniture Report-190: 11-1 - 11-28.
production are related to the basic panel properties,
5. Jarusombuti, S., Ayrilmis, N., Bauchongkol, P., Fueangvivat, V.
i.e. thickness swelling, internal bond, bending strength (2010). Surface characteristics and overlaying properties of MDF
and modulus of elasticity in bending. MDF panels for panels made from thermally treated rubberwood fibers.
this application must meet the required values for the BioResources 5 (2): 968-978.
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Impact of MDF board side plane instability on lacquer film crack
The quality of the furniture made form panels, appearance. Drvna industrija 62 (1): 137-146.
such as MDF will depend on the designed 7. EN 622–1. 2003. Fibreboards. Specifications. General
construction and joining strength, which depends on requirements.
MDF characteristics, coating material and thickness of 8. EN 622-5: 2009. Fibreboards. Specifications. Requirements for
panel details [14]. dry process boards (MDF).
In conclusion, medium density fiberboards are 9. Macedonian standards: MKS D.A8.085, MKS D.A8.083, MKS
one of the most rapidly used wood-based panels for D.A8.084.
furniture production and interior application due to its 10. Janka G. Die Harte des Holzes. Vienna, Austria: Wilhelm Frick,
1906.
good physical and mechanical characteristics, easy
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width direction of the panel. The smooth and compact Technical Report-190: 12-1 - 12-12.
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demands understanding of the basic physical and
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properties that meet the requirements of the
Materials Science 12 (4): 328-332.
standards for MDF for use in dry conditions including
furniture production and interior applications. It is
recommended to avoid application of these MDF
panels in high humidity conditions for a longer
exploitation period. For this kind of applications, such
as bathroom areas, the furniture constructors and
interior designers should consider use of MDF.H type
of panel for application in high humidity conditions,
which will provide good dimensional stability of the
products during whole exploitation period.

References
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(http://www.wpif.org.uk/uploads/PanelGuide/PanelGuide_2014_An
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3. Akgül, M., Ayrilims, N., Çamhbel, O, Korkut, S. (2013). Potential

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