Effects of wood species, number of teeth, and adhesive type on moment capacities of box-joints

Abstract

Effects of the wood species, number of teeth, and adhesive type were studied relative to the moment capacities of box joints under tension and compression loadings, which is commonly used in case type solid wood furniture. For this purpose, L-type specimens were prepared from Scotch pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), poplar (Populus sp.), and fir (Abies sp.). Polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) and polyurethane (PU) adhesives were used in the preparation of joints. Tension and compression tests with 360 samples were performed under static loading. According to the results, the highest moment capacities were obtained for Scotch pine under tension, and poplar specimens under compression. With respect to the number of teeth, the highest moment capacities were obtained with 12-tooth joints under both tension and compression loadings. For adhesive types, the specimens glued with PVAc gave better results in both tension and compression. In manufacturing of solid wood based case-type furniture, the higher number of teeth resulted in a slightly better performance; however, the results with the 4-tooth structure was not too far from 8-tooth. Furthermore, it was concluded that Scotch pine as a substance and PVAc as adhesive could be recommended.