Abstract:
The objectives of this research were to study the appropriate ratio for forming peanut
shell particle board, to test the physical and mechanical properties of the peanut shell particle board according to TIS 876-2547 standard, to produce product prototypes from peanut shell particle board for crafts, and to survey consumer satisfaction of peanut shell particle board prototypes.
The research method started from grinding peanut shells into approximate 4 mm in
size, and mixing them with isocyanate glue and paraffin wax with different 9 ratios. The ratio
of peanut shells to isocyanate glue to paraffin wax were 1: 0.25: 0.20, 1: 0.25: 0.25, 1:
0.25: 0.30, 1: 0.50: 0.20, 1: 0.50: 0.25, 1: 0.50: 0.30, 1: 0.75: 0.20, 1: 0.75: 0.25 and 1: 0.7: 0.30.
The mixture was put into a hot press machine at 120 °C for 3 minutes and was later put into
the cooling chamber for 3 minutes. The temperature of the peanut shell particle board was
adjusted at the room temperature for 24 hours and then tested for moisture content, bending resistance and swelling value according to the thickness. The best peanut shell particle board was selected to make a flash drive. A survey of consumer satisfaction of the invention was conducted. 120 people in the Phuket province were included in the survey.
The research results revealed that the peanut shell particle board with the ratio of
peanut shell to isocyanate glue to paraffin wax of 1: 0.25: 0.30 was the best ratio, with the
moisture content of 3.40 percent, bending resistance of 23.33 MPa, and swelling value of
1.49%. The physical appearance was light brown with relatively smooth surface. There were
no peanut shells falling off. With the selected ratio, the particle board could be fabricated into a flash drive. It was a beautiful, strong and durable flash drive with light brown color. The surface of the flash drive was relatively smooth. The consumer satisfaction of the flash drive made from peanut shell particle was 4.30 or very high.