One of our patented formaldehyde-free wood adhesives (a combination of soy flour and a petrochemical-based curing agent) has been commercialized for replacement of carcinogenic urea-formaldehyde resins in the production of plywood since 2004.  We have recently developed and commercialized a second generation of formaldehyde-free novel adhesive that is a blend of defatted soy flour and a natural mineral.  Both materials are GRAS (generally recognized as safe) materials by the US Food and Drug Administration, and are very abundant, inexpensive, and readily available.  This adhesive is solely based on natural materials, i.e., does not contain any petrochemicals and petrochemical-based products.  The adhesive is environmentally safe, is cost-competitive to all wood adhesives and is superior to the urea-formaldehyde resins in terms of strengths and water resistance of plywood.  In this presentation, we will discuss how the blend of the natural materials can serve as a strong and water-resistant adhesive for bonding wood.  The presentation will focus on interactions between the mineral and different components of soy flour that are responsible for the superior bonding.  The adhesion mechanism will be proposed and discussed in detail.

Novel soy flour-based wood adhesive

248th National Meeting (2014)

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