Modeling Drying Time during Veneer Drying and Comparison with Experimental Study.

Veneer drying is an important process in manufacturing of plywood and laminated veneer lumber. In order to understand and to improve the veneer drying, a mathematical model was developed based on heat and moisture mass transfer processes within the wood in the air stream. The model was validated from commercial scale drying tests. Air temperature, humidity and exit air velocity all affect the veneering drying to a different extent. This paper describes the drying time of veneer for 0.5 mm to 2.0 mm thickness. The variables considered for two wood groups were temperature, thickness and moisture content. An empirical equation was derived from a simple physical model and used to correlate this data. The raw material used mainly are kanyin (Botanical Name: Dipterocarpus spp) and Inn. Drying is a process of reducing the water content of timber economically and with the minimal damage to the stock. The empirical equation depends on the measurement of the moisture content and indirectly the water potential, the temperature at the surface of a wood specimen and different thickness which were used for the determination of drying time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]