WOOD RESEARCH Volume 61, Number 3, 2016
Osman Percin, Huseyin Peker, and Abdi Atilgan

The effect of heat treatment on the some physical and mechanical properties of beech (Fagus orientalis Lipsky) wood

This study describes the effect of heat treatment on the some of the physical and mechanical properties of beech (Fagus orientalis Lipsky) wood at different temperatures and times. Samples of beech wood were heat-treated at 150, 175, and 200°C for 1, 3 and 5 h. The mechanical properties of the heat-treated and untreated samples were determined by bending tests, modulus of elasticity in bending, compression strength parallel to grain, and Brinell hardness. Physical properties were determined by weight loss, density, and volumetric swelling tests. The results showed that the heat treatment increased the weight loss, density loss and dimensional stabilization. In addition, an increase was observed for compression strength parallel to grain (except for at 200°C for 5 h), while a small increase was determined in the bending strength, modulus of elasticity in bending, hardness values of heat-treated wood samples at 150°C for 1 and 3 h. However, the heat treatment at higher temperature and duration clearly decreased bending strength, modulus of elasticity in bending,and hardness.

WOOD RESEARCH Volume 62, Number 5, 2017
Igor Čunderlík, Peter Vilkovsky, and Vladimír Račko

Shear strength and analysis of shear area on wood/bark interface on beech wood (Fagus sylvatica L.)

The structure of both cambium and the last-differentiated cells from cambium influence the adhesion of bark on wood. In the submitted paper, the bark/wood adhesion is evaluated by means of measuring the shear strength in longitudinal and tangential direction of the wood/bark interface on woody plant beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) during one year. The growing period and dormant period and moisture of the wood/bark interface proved to be important factors influencing the shear strength. The shear strength measured during the dormant period in the greenstate showed values approximately 100% higher than those measured during the growing period. Considering the 12%-moisture, the values of shear strength proved to be circa 300% higher in comparison to the green state. The shear area during the dormant period was led through the zone of the last-created sieve tubes of non-collapsed late phloem, whereas during the growing period the shear area passed through the cambium zone. The structure of shear areas is also significantly influenced by diverse structure of narrow and wide phloem rays.

WOOD RESEARCH Volume 63, Number 4, 2018
Stanislav Doubek, Vlastimil Borůvka, Aleš Zeidler, and Ladislav Reinprecht

Effect of the passive chemical modification of wood with silicon dioxide (silica) on its properties and inhibition of moulds

This work investigates how wood modification with silicon dioxide affects its selected physical and mechanical properties and resistance to moulds. Silicon mineralization can improve some of the technical properties of wood and extend the service-life of wooden structures. Silicon, which is contained in inorganic and organic-inorganic substances that are used for artificial wood mineralization or is the main component at natural wood mineralization, was used in the form of colloidal silicon dioxide and its various concentrations for pressure impregnation of beech (Fagus sylvatica) and Silver fir (Abies alba) wood samples. Following, physical, mechanical and biological properties of such modified woodswere tested together with waterlogged fir wood stored in water over a long period. Silicon-dioxide did not significantly improve properties of beech and fir woods, probably due to the hypothesis, that none covalent bonds between the silicon and the OH- groups of cellulose, hemicelluloses or lignin could be created in the cell-walls of the silicon-modified woods.

WOOD RESEARCH Volume 66, Number 1, 2021
WENGANG HU and Bingrui Chen

Experimental and numerical studies on mechanical behaviors of beech wood under compressive and tensile states

Effect of loading type (compression and tension) on mechanical properties, including elastic constants, yield strength and ultimate strength of beech (Fagus orientalis) wood were studied based on experimental and numerical methods. The mechanical behaviors of beech wood in compressive and tensile states were simulated by finite element method (FEM) using mechanical parameters measured in an experiment. The results showed that the effect of loading types on mechanical properties of beech was statistically significant. The elastic moduli measured in tension were all bigger than those in compression, but the Poisson’s ratios determined in compression were bigger than those in tension. In compressive state, the yield and ultimate strengths of beech in longitudinal grain orientation were all smaller than those measured in tensile state, while the yield and ultimate strengths of beech in radial and tangential directions were higher than those of longitudinal direction. The results of the FEM in compression and tension were all well consistent with those measured by experiments respectively, and the average errors were all within 13.69%. As a result, the finite element models proposed in this study can predict the mechanical behaviors of wood in tensile and compressive states.