Tool wear during wood sawing: influence of certain physical and chemical properties for 285 wood species

This study investigated the relationship between tool wear and some chemical and physical properties for four different Mozambican lesser known tropical species,: Pseudolachnostylis maprounaefolia (ntholo), Sterculia appendiculata (metil), Acacia nigrescens (namuno) and Pericopsis angolensis (muanga). Tool wear is an important aspect for sawmilling and for the woodworking industry. For Mozambique, the utilization of available lesser known wood species will help to increase domestic industry and the economic usage viability of sustainable forest management. A set of experiments was performed on a shaper with a mechanical feed mechanism. Tools of a cemented carbide grade for woodworking were used, and the cutting parameters were fixed. Edge recession and tool wear radius were measured for monitoring tool wear. The wear mechanism was investigated using a scanning electron microscope. The experimental results showed that the chemical properties of the wood species have a great effect on tool wear. Wood silica content was the most important factor affecting tool wear. Wood density and extractives had a low influence on tool wear. The highest tool wear was observed in ntholo, which also had the highest ash and silica contents. A single parameter for evaluation of tool wear was not sufficient to describe the amount of total tool wear.

The density of wood is highly correlated with the ability of stems and roots to resist bending or twisting, which is important for evaluating the mechanical behavior of trees. It also provides a measure of carbon storage, which is an important variable in modeling ecosystem processes and tree construction costs. However, most measurements of the density and mechanical properties of wood have little direct bearing on understanding the biomechanics of living plants because they are based on kiln- or air-dried samples. • Here, we present and analyze the relationships between four important mechanical properties (Young's modulus, the modulus of rupture, and the maximum strength in shearing and in compression) and the density of green wood (i.e., wood at 50% moisture content) from a worldwide, taxonomically broad spectrum of 161 species. • These data indicate that each of the mechanical properties disproportionately increases across species with increasing green wood density, i.e., stems composed of denser green wood are disproportionately stiffer and stronger than stems with equivalent cross-sections composed of less dense green wood. • Although denser wood may have a higher carbon construction cost, the mechanical benefits of denser woods likely outweigh the extra cost.

The lumber manufacturing industry faces challenges due to the cutting of wood with a high variation in moisture content and temperature. In this study, the cutting power and waviness during the circular sawing process of kiln-dried, green, and frozen hem-fir wood were measured and compared under different feed and rotation speeds. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to evaluate the impact of cutting parameters and the wood condition (kiln-dried, green and frozen), and a decision tree regression model was developed to predict the cutting power and waviness. The ANOVA highlighted that the feed speed had the most impact on cutting power, followed by the wood condition. Similar results were obtained from the decision tree regression (R2 = 0.89). The developed model failed to accurately predict the waviness from the cutting parameters, which emphasized the need for online wood sawing monitoring systems and a deeper understanding of saw blade’s dynamic behavior. The role of moisture content in the cutting power and waviness was nonlinear. The highest cutting power corresponded to sawing frozen wood, while there was no significant difference between sawing dry and green wood. The largest values of waviness were associated with sawing of dry wood, whereas sawing frozen and green wood yielded similar waviness. Sawing at higher rotation speeds yielded an increase in the cutting power but improved the surface quality by lowering the waviness.

The response of dynamic and static modulus of elasticity (MOEdyn and MOEsta) of red pine small clear wood (25.4×25.4×407 mm3) within the temperature range -40 to 40°C has been investigated. The moisture content (MC) of the specimens ranged from 0 to 118%. The MOEdyn was calculated based on measured ultrasonic velocity (V) and wood density. The MOEsta was measured by static bending tests in a climate chamber between -40 and 40°C. The results indicate that both MOEdyn and MOEsta were affected by temperature and the MC. Above freezing point, MOE decreased linearly at a slow rate with increasing temperature. Below freezing point, MOE increased at a rapid rate with decreasing temperature. The MC-level had a significant effect on the MOE-temperature relationships. Temperature effect was much more significant in green wood than in dry wood. Analytical models were developed to predict the change of MOEdyn relative to that at 20°C in the case of acoustic measurements under different temperature conditions.

Submerged woody habitat provides the major structure around which ecological processes operate in many lowland rivers. Colonisation by macroinvertebrates was measured in a south-eastern Australian river over a 32-day period in an experiment testing the hypothesis that wood type influences the invertebrate assemblage structure. The wood types were green wood, dry wood, and dry but previously waterlogged wood. All wood used was river red gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis). Macroinvertebrates colonised previously waterlogged wood more rapidly than green or dry wood. The assemblage structure varied significantly over the sampling period, with copepods and cladocerans numerically dominating the assemblage during the first few days after the introduction of the wood. The assemblage became more diverse through time and was numerically dominated by dipterans, ephemeropterans and trichopterans. The results indicate that there was little difference in the time taken for macroinvertebrate colonisation after wood introduction when using either green or dry wood. This has implications for large-scale restoration projects, where green wood is likely to be a more readily available option for reintroduction than dry wood.

Wood, being one of the most widely used construction materials by industry, relies on its moisture content for strength, durability and ductility. Lumber industry has long been searching for a non-destructive, accurate and fast method to determine moisture content in wood to replace the traditional one based on weighing. This paper evaluates the performance of a 2.45 GHz measuring system that determines moisture content of 4 cm thick wood samples. If dry wood and water densities are defined as the ratio between their masses and the volume of the wood sample, then they can be estimated by establishing the attenuation, phase shift and depolarization of the electromagnetic wave that propagates through the wood. Using this technique, moisture content of Radiata pine tree boards in the range of 0 to 68% has been established, with dry wood density ranging from 390 to 530 Kg/m3 and water density from 0 to 285 Kg/m3. This is an improvement of 2.4 times of previously reported measurements.

Summary Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) planks were dried in industrial progressive, conventional batch and high temperature kilns. The quality of drying was assessed by measuring the final moisture content and its gradient, deformations, checks and internal stress of planks. The timber was rearranged in three charges and impregnated in an industrial autoclave with copper-based preservatives for above ground use (class AB):Kemwood ACQ 1900, Tanalith E and Wolmanit CX-8. The moisture content was determined after impregnation and the planks were divided into two charges; the first was dried in an industrial conventional batch kiln while the second was air dried. Assessment of the final product quality after kiln and air drying was carried out as after the initial drying. The penetration of preservatives was measured as well. The data were analysed by a statistical mixed model to ascertain the effects of drying and preservatives on the impregnation and timber quality. A strong relationship was found between the initial drying of Scots pine timber and its quality after impregnation and drying. The conventional batch and high temperature kiln drying ensured similar drying quality regarding the final moisture content and gradient, bow, twist and checks, but the high temperature drying provided significantly better (94.4%of the total sapwood area) penetration of the preservatives tested. It is suggested that changes in wood structure could be provoked during the high temperature drying, thus improving the subsequent impregnation and secondary drying. The progressive and conventional batch kiln drying led to similar penetration of the preservatives; the conventional batch kiln drying ensured significantly lower final moisture content, less twist and surface checks of the timber than the progressive kiln drying. Wolmanit CX-8 penetrated significantly better into the pine sapwood (96.3%) than Kemwood ACQ 1900 and Tanalith E (83.5 and 88.5%, respectively). The planks impregnated with Wolmanit CX-8 achieved the best quality regarding the final moisture content, its gradient and cup. The planks impregnated with Kemwood ACQ 1900 and Tanalith E showed similar quality regarding the penetration and some deformations after drying, but Kemwood ACQ 1900 impregnated planks had highest moisture content and gradient.

Wood is an important raw material for the manufacture of consumer products and in achieving societal goals for greater sustainability. Wood powders are feedstock for many biorefining and conversion techniques, including chemical, enzymatic and thermochemical processes and for composite manufacture, 3D printing and wood pellet production. Size reduction, therefore, is a key operation in wood utilisation and powder characteristics, such as shape, particle size distribution and micromorphology play a role in powder quality and end-use application. While in a green state, the native chemical composition and structure of wood are preserved. Powders are commonly produced from wood chips using impact mills, which require pre-sized, pre-screened and pre-dried chips. These steps necessitate repeated handling, intermediate storage and contribute to dry matter losses, operation-based emissions and the degradation of the wood chemistry. This thesis investigated a new size reduction technology, known as the multi-blade shaft mill (MBSM). The MBSM performance was studied through the milling of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) wood using a designed series of experiments and through modelling with multi-linear regression (MLR) analyses. Light microscopy combined with histochemical techniques were used to investigate particle micromorphology and distribution of native extractives in powders. The aim was to evaluate the technical performance of the MBSM with relation to operational parameters, to characterise the produced powders and to evaluate the technology through comparison with impact milling. The results showed that the MBSM could effectively mill both green and dry wood. Produced powders showed distinct differences compared to those obtained using a hammer mill (HM). The specific milling energy of the MBSM was lowest for green wood and within the range of other established size reduction technologies. However, much narrower particle size distributions were observed in MBSM powders and they had significantly greater amounts of finer particles. Particles with high aspect ratio and sphericity were a characteristic of MBSM powders and this Production and characterisation of pine wood powders from a multi-blade shaft mill was true for wood milled above and below its fibre saturation point. MBSM powders from green wood showed evidence of higher specific surface area, larger pore volume and greater micropore diameter than those from HM powder. Preliminary microscopic examination suggested that cell walls in MBSM powders showed evidence of retaining their original native wood structure. Consequently, their extractive content appeared intact. This was in contrast to HM powder and it may reflect the differences between the two size reduction mechanisms. According to the produced MLR models, the results suggest that MBSM milling is more akin to a sawing process and opposite to that of impact-based mills.

As a large, long-term pool and source of carbon and nutrients, woody litter is an important component of forest ecosystems. The objective of this study was to estimate the effect of the factors that regulate the rate of decomposition of coarse and fine woody debris (CFWD) of dominant tree species in a cool-temperate forest in Japan. Respiration rates of dead stems, branches, and coarse and fine roots of Fagus crenata and Quercus crispula felled 4 years prior obtained in situ ranged from 20.9 to 500.1 mg CO2 [kg dry wood]–1 h–1 in a one-time measurement in summer. Respiration rate had a significant negative relationship with diameter; in particular, that of a sample of Q. crispula with a diameter of >15 cm and substantial heartwood was low. It also had a significant positive relationship with moisture content. The explanatory variables diameter, [N], wood density, and moisture content were interrelated. The most parsimonious path model showed 14 significant correlations among 8 factors and respiration. Diameter and [C] had large negative direct effects on CFWD respiration rate, and moisture content and species had medium positive direct effects. [N] and temperature did not have direct or indirect effects, and position and wood density had indirect effects. The model revealed some interrelationships between controlling factors. We discussed the influence of the direct effects of explanatory variables and the influence especially of species and position. We speculate that the small R 2 value of the most parsimonious model was probably due to the omission of microbial biomass and activity. These direct and indirect effects and interrelationships between explanatory variables could be used to develop a process-based CFWD decomposition model.

In order to examine correlations among the properties of tree species and to quantify the relationships between these properties and flammability, the properties of 20 tree species, consisting of heat of combustion, extractive contents, ash content, moisture content and basic density, were measured via experimental methods. In the first instance, the results show that, there are significant correlations between heat of combustion and extractive contents, ash content and basic density. Second, heat of combustion can be presented effectively in terms of linear regression models with extractive contents and ash content as independent variables. Third, a flammable model was developed based on four properties of tree species as independent variables, i.e., heat of combustion, extractive contents, ash content and moisture content. Finally, the flammability of 20 tree species is compared, ordered and ranked based on this flammable model. The conclusion is that flammability can be predicted from properties of tree species, which are significantly correlated among themselves.

The utilization of wood for furniture industry require special handling such as reduction of the content of water in order to produce a quality product. Drying the means used to reduce the water content results in a timber. The purpose of this is to predict the value pebelitian water content (moisture content) on the wood drying kiln wood drying process. This prediction is required to determine the quality of the wood to be processed as well about half finished products and finished products. Besides the impact on the moisture content of wood durability. Thus the current drying in an oven (kiln) required proper variable settings. Design of Experiment (DOE) can be used to predict the exact value of moisture content and quickly with low cost. In this study, the values obtained optimum moisture content 17.3%, with the optimum factor levels for temperature = 50 ° C, the cross-sectional area = 415 cm2 object, relative humidity = 80%, time = 15 days. Improved performance is achieved up to 12:57% compared with the previous arrangement.

In a biological context, the mechanical properties as elasticity and strength of green wood, particularly as measured in the axial direction, influence the stability of trees against static loads (e.g., snow, ice, rain) and dynamic loads (i.e., wind). Extensive collections of data on mechanical properties are listed in three different catalogs edited in Canada, Great Britain, and the United States. A statistical analysis shows that the density of the wood is a major predictor for the mechanical properties as measured in axial direction. In this respect, conifers from temperate zones and deciduous trees both from temperate and tropical zones do not differ significantly from each other. A common, nearly linear relation between the modulus of elasticity and the density at 50% moisture content is found. Relationships between strengths in bending, compression, and shear and green wood density have ordinary least squares scaling exponents around 1.2, but can almost equally well be approximated by linear functions of wood density. Therefore, if the density of stem wood of a given tree is known from direct measurement and differs from the tabulated value, the values tabulated for mechanical properties can be corrected for by a simple rule of proportion. Pulling tests as tools for tree control are discussed with emphasis on how the method is based on the knowledge of the mechanical properties of green wood, and how wood density is measured.

Seasoned or green? Radial cracks analysis as a method for identifying the use of green wood as fuel in archaeological charcoal

The effect of moisture content in fibre laser cutting of pine wood

Wood as a renewable material plays an important role in transforming society towards sustainability and climate neutrality. However, wood is a difficult material to saw due to its anisotropic and inhomogeneous properties. Currently, the adaption of process parameters due to varying wood temperature and moisture content are solely based on operator experience. This frequently results in unfavorable settings of process parameters leading to a drastic increase in energy consumption and poor surface quality of the sawn wood. This paper investigates the cutting force when sawing frozen spruce wood with a two tooth research saw blade and the surface quality of the resulting wood samples under varying influencing factors. The material properties temperature between 20 ℃ and −40 ℃ and moisture content as well as the kinematic factor cutting direction were observed. The results show that the cutting force of moist and wet wood increase with decreasing temperature and remain constant for dry wood. Additionally, the surface quality of wet and dry wood samples is improved when sawing wood with lower temperature values. Using these results, the operator can be supported by a data driven approach for the adaption of machining parameters, hence improving the energy- and resource-efficiency of the process.