CONTACT DRYIXG OF WOOD VENEER

A model for contact drying of wood veneer is presented and compared with experimental results. The model is and-dimensional and assumes that convective transport of liquid and vapor is dominant for the drying conditions examined. Model results are in good agreement with the experimental data.

A parameter study indicates that total drying time is a strong function of platen temperature and veneer thickness. The model indicates that the spacing of ventilation grooves does not affect drying rate significantly, but has a large effect on pressure buildup in the veneer. Veneer permeability shoved a similar effect--with lover permeabilities resulting in slightly slower drying, but significantly higher internal pressure.