Prediction of mechanical properties of Chinese fir wood by near infrared spectroscopy

Abstract

Mechanical properties and the visible and near infrared (NIR) (350–2500 nm) spectra obtained from longitudinal and transverse face of 155 small clear wood samples of Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata) were measured, and 103 of them were used to establish calibration models. Calibrations were tested on an independent set (52 samples). Differences between calibrations developed by using the longitudinal and transverse face were small. The calibrations developed by using NIR spectra (350–2500 nm) collected from transverse face were slightly inferior to those developed by using NIR spectra collected from longitudinal face. When reducing the spectral range to between 780 and 1050 nm, the calibrations developed by using NIR spectra collected from longitudinal face were slightly inferior to those developed by using NIR spectra collected from transverse face, and reducing the spectral range causes no decrease in the quality of the models developed using NIR spectra collected from transverse face. Partial lease square (PLS) modeling and test showed that calibrations developed using the visible and NIR spectra from transverse and longitudinal faces and calibrations developed by using the reducing spectral range (780–1050 nm) from the transverse face were moderate, and have a RPD range from 1.51 to 1.90. It is concluded that NIR spectroscopy can be used as an initial screening.