Properties of Plywood Made from Perforated Veneers

The paper is focused on the bending properties of beech plywood made from veneers with perforations. The modification of the plywood was done by the targeted perforations in veneers used. The perforations were rectangular in shape 5 × 30 mm. There was a gap of 10 mm between the perforations (in each direction) and the perforations in the individual rows were shifted by 10 mm relative to each other. Two structures of lightweight plywood were investigated: sheathed (lightweight type 1) with perforated inner layers sheathed with solid veneer and perforated (lightweight type 2) with perforations in each layer. Bending properties were evaluated by three-point bend testing. The results showed decreased bending strength (MOR) as well as decreased modulus of elasticity in bending (MOE) with reduction of weight. Bending strength (MOR) was reduced by 33 to 57% and modulus of elasticity (MOE) by 13 to 43% compared to standard (non-lightweight) plywood. Bendability of lightweight plywood expressed by the minimum bending radius (Rmin) and the coefficient of bendability (koh) point to a slight decrease in bendability by 1 to 35% compared to standard (non-lightweight) plywood. The benefit of the proposed plywood lightweight constructions is weight reduction by 16.5 to 24.4%.