There is nothing surprising in the fact that innovations appear in the areas of science, technology, or production that have long been familiar to us. Here is the simplest example - people have been working on wood for more than one millennium, it would seem that what else can be thought up in this area. Nevertheless, some new materials that use wood are not uncommon here. An example of one of such inventions is the OSB-plate, the dimensions of which are stable, and the product itself - uniformity of composition and environmental safety.
So what is this mysterious material that is hidden behind this abbreviation?
Oriented Strand Board translates as
"oriented chipboard" or abbreviated OSB. To some extent, its analogue can be considered to all of us the long-standing chipboard. But the similarity here is very weak, except that the source material, which is the chips. If we want to see what an OSB-plate is, the dimensions and prices of which are mainly determined by the production conditions, then we need to pay attention to the manufacturing technology.
It implies at least two features - the use of special chips and its orientation in the production process. Here it must be immediately explained that the chips are specially prepared, up to seven tenths of a millimeter thick and up to fourteen centimeters long. The feedstock for it is fine wood. It undergoes special processing, and after that they get chips from it. Thanks to this approach to raw materials, the finished
OSB-plate dimensions are quite stable at all stages of production.
Another feature of manufacturing technology is the orientation of the chip itself. It fits into three layers - two of them are parallel to the length of the plate, and the middle, located between them, is perpendicular. Wood chips are dried, impregnated with special compounds (wax, salts of boric acid). As a binder, a synthetic resin is used. Under the influence of pressure and high temperature, it glues all the layers together, after which the finished OSB-plate is cut into sheets, the sizes of the pieces can be either standard or according to the customer's request.
There are four types of slabs that differ in certain characteristics. So, OSB-3 - a plate, the dimensions of which are standard, is characterized by high strength and moisture resistance. Although, as already mentioned, at the request of the customer, the dimensions can be changed. To date, the mentioned OSB-3 is most in demand on the market due to better properties than previous brands and lower price than subsequent ones.
The use of such an oriented
chipboard is extremely diverse. It can be used for furniture production, in the construction of frame-panel houses as walls, with internal and external finishes, as an element of formwork, etc. Even a simple listing of possible applications can make a list of many items.
OSB-plate, the dimensions and technical characteristics of which are highly stable, is considered one of the promising materials, especially from the point of view of frame-panel construction of houses. Convenience of work, reasonable prices and the possibility of application in various fields of industry, construction, as well as in domestic conditions provide increased demand.