have a wood working bench with a particle work surface.

Polyurethane. There's really nothing else, outside of primer and paint. Polyurethane doesn't need a primer, is the most durable and can be re-coated numerous times once it starts to fail in spots. No, there isn't any penetrating "sealer" and even stains will turn out rather different than intended and not actually penetrate beyond the immediate surface wood dust, due to all the glue in particleboard.