Enthalpy-entropy compensation in water sorption by various wood species

Abstract

), Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), western red cedar (Thuja plicata), sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis), and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta). Enthalpy and entropy show a strong negative relation to the moisture content, the absolute desorption values always being higher than the adsorption ones, but with no clear trend between and within the species. Furthermore, it is shown that the linear plot of compensation between enthalpy and entropy correlates well for water sorption in wood; that water adsorption or desorption are irreversible, and that both are enthalpy-driven mechanisms.