# Valorization of Olive Tree Pruning and By-Products from the Truck Industry in the Manufacture of Low-Environmental-Impact Particleboard

## TL;DR

Researchers made eco-friendly particleboards using olive tree waste and truck industry by-products, showing they can replace traditional materials with sustainable options.

## Contribution

The study introduces a novel particleboard formulation combining olive tree pruning and truck industry by-products for sustainable construction.

## Key findings

- Particleboards with higher RCM content showed improved dimensional stability and lower thermal conductivity.
- Formulations with more OTP resulted in lower density due to material granulometry.
- FTIR and SEM analyses confirmed good integration of materials with resin, reducing porosity.

## Abstract

This study presents the development of particleboards made from olive tree pruning (OTP) residues and truck industry by-products (RCM), using PUR resin as a binder. Five formulations with different OTP/RCM ratios were designed and physical, thermal, mechanical, chemical and microstructural properties were evaluated. The results showed that increasing the RCM content improves the dimensional stability, reduces water absorption and swelling and decreases thermal conductivity, reaching 0.061 W/mK. At the mechanical level, MOR, MOE and IB values of 7.11, 630 and 0.134 MPa, respectively, were obtained. A higher OTP content allows a reduction in the density of the particleboard (752.67 kg/m3) due to the granulometry of the material. FTIR and SEM analyses confirmed the good integration of the materials with the resin, highlighting a lower porosity and higher compaction in formulations with a high RCM content. These results demonstrate that the combination of agricultural and industrial by-products is feasible to manufacture a sustainable particleboard with customizable properties, promoting the circular economy and reducing the dependence on virgin raw materials in the construction sector.