Abstract:Wood surfaces are very heterogeneous in nature and variable in the degree of roughness and porosity due to cutting of wood cells. They are usually in a dynamic state, changing with their environmental conditions. The wood surface properties or characteristics will thus inevitably subject to the effect of bondability. So the modification of veneer surface becomes an improtant research problem in the area of wood procession. In this investigation, poplar wood veneers were treated with a specially prepared water soluble melamine compound BL-M expected to be acting as a surface modifying/bridging agent. BL-M not only can crosslink to the hydroxyl groups on the wood surface but also can act with the urea-formaldehyde forming a bridge between the wood surface and the glue. Expermental resuits reveal ed that the gluing strength was found obviously enhanced, the quantity of adhesive applied was reduced about 25-30% and the formation of fuzzy grain on poplar wood surface was greatly checked. The application of this wood surface modification method would be expected to be feasible both technically and economically in the manufacturing of plywood.