Oriented strand board

Oriented strand board (OSB), also known as flakeboard, sterling board and aspenite in British English, is a type of engineered lumber similar to particle board, formed by adding adhesives and then compressing layers of wood strands (flakes) in specific orientations. It was invented by Armin Elmendorf in California in 1963. OSB may have a rough and variegated surface with the individual strips of around 2.5 cm × 15 cm (1.0 by 5.9 inches), lying unevenly across each other and comes in a variety of types and thicknesses.

OSB is a material with favorable mechanical properties that make it particularly suitable for load-bearing applications in construction. The most common uses are as sheathing in walls, flooring, and roof decking. For exterior wall applications, panels are available with a radiant-barrier layer pre-laminated to one side; this eases installation and increases energy performance of the building envelope. OSB also sees some use in furniture production.

Oriented strand board is manufactured in wide mats from cross-oriented layers of thin, rectangular wooden strips compressed and bonded together with wax and synthetic resin adhesives (95% wood, 5% wax and resin). The resin types typically used include Phenol formaldehyde (PF), melamine fortified Urea Formaldehyde (MUF) or isocyanate (PMDI), all of which are moisture resistant binders. In Europe, it is common to use a combination of binders, typically PMDI would be used in the core and MUF in the face layers and this has the advantage of reducing press cycles whilst imparting a bright appearance to the surface of the panel.

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