FEATURES OF THE INFLUENCE OF PHENOL ON ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION WHEN USING PHENOL-FORMALDEHYDE RESINS IN PUBLIC BUILDING

Abstract

Environmental aspects related to the harmful effects of phenolformaldehyde resins on the environment and human health, which are used in the production of chipboards, are considered. Phenolformaldehyde resin is a composite material of furniture and electrical engineering materials used in public construction and contains residual amounts of both phenol and formaldehyde, which can be released into the surrounding air for a significant period of time. These substances belong to the 2nd class of danger and have a negative impact on human health. Previously, we investigated [1] the effect of temperature on the amount of formaldehyde emission from laminated chipboard samples into the environment. In this work, the emphasis was placed on the behavior of the residual amounts of phenol when the temperature changes in the dynamics of the model operation of laminated chipboard samples in the environment. The content of phenol in the studied samples of chipboards was determined by the spectrophotometric method with dimethylaminoantipyrine. We found that the residual amounts of phenol at the level allowed by the regulatory document are present in all investigated samples of laminated chipboards. However, during a period of 60 days in the temperature range of 20–50°С, significant desorption of phenol was practically not observed, in contrast to formaldehyde [1]. These studies established that the adsorption of phenol on the sawdust surface is quite significant and is due to the chemical nature of both the phenol itself and the cellulosic base of the sawdust board. This indicates the insufficient volatility of phenol, its high adhesiveness on the surface of sawdust, as well as the possibility of keeping it on the surface of sawdust due to the formation of stable intermolecular compounds of phenol and cellulose. Thus, it can be stated that unlike formaldehyde, products made of laminated boards do not pose any particular threat to the atmospheric air environment due to phenol when they are used properly.