Abstract
This paper presents the formulae and finite element analysis models for predicting the Modulus of Elastic (MOE) and Modulus of Rupture (MOR) of Cathay poplar finger-jointed glulam. The formula of the MOE predicts the MOE of Cathay poplar glulam glued with one-component polyurethane precisely. Three formulae are used to predict the MOR, and Equation (12) predicts the MOR of Cathay poplar glulam precisely. The finite element analysis simulation results of both the MOE and MOR are similar to the experimental results. The predicted results of the finite element analysis are shown to be more accurate than those of the formulae, because the finite element analysis considers the glue layers, but the formulae do not. Three types of typical failure modes due to bending were summarized. The bending properties of Cathay poplar glulam were compared to those of Douglas fir glulam. The results show that Cathay poplar glulam has a lower stiffness, but a marginally higher strength. One-component polyurethane adhesive is shown to be more effective than resorcinol formaldehyde resin adhesive for Cathay poplar glulam. This study shows that Cathay poplar has the potential to be a glulam material in China.
Highlights
Modern wooden structures have been used in many areas around the world
Cathay poplar glulam has a lower stiffness, but slightly higher strength compared to Douglas fir glulam in this experiment
In terms of the adhesive, the Modulus of Rupture (MOR) of six-layer Cathay poplar glulam glued with one-component polyurethane adhesive is 2.6% higher than that of six-layer Cathay poplar glulam glued with resorcinol formaldehyde resin adhesive, and the Modulus of Elastic (MOE) of the latter is 32.9% higher than that of the former
Summary
Modern wooden structures have been used in many areas around the world. Glued-laminated timber (glulam) is a type of engineered wood product that can preserve the natural beauty of the source wood during construction [1,2]. Structural glulam has been widely used in Japan, North America and Europe [3], but Chinese domestic wood species are rarely used in the construction of structural glulam manufactured in China. It is important to study Chinese domestic wood species that could be applicable for use in structural glulam. Cathay poplar (Populus cathayana) is one of the most abundant, fast-growing species in northern China and is cold resistant, fast growing, straight grained, medium and evenly textured and easy to manufacture. Cathay poplar is an excellent material for construction components [4,5]
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