The basic density of the wood of the rowan tree (Sorbus aucuparia L.) is almost the same along the stem but that of the bark is increasing along the stem. The moisture content of the wood and of the bark is increasing along the stem. Its strength in the bending and in the compression is high. The volume shrinkage is high.
The PDF includes an abstract in Finnish
There are great impact forces in mechanized harvesting and wood yard in the mills which can cause breaks in timber. The impact strength of timber in green condition was tested in temperatures of +18°C and -18°C using sawn pieces (20 x 20 x 300 mm) of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.), birch (Betula pendula Roth and B. pubescens Ehrh.), grey alder (Alnus incana L.) and aspen (Populus tremula L.). In addition, unbarked naturally round sticks (length 300 mm, diameter 15 and 35 mm) of the same species were tested.
The impact strength of round sticks was 1.5–4.4 times as great as that of sawn pieces. The reasons are possibly the avoidance of cell breaks at the surface as well as growth stresses. The frozen samples were clearly weaker than the unfrozen ones. As a rule, the impact bending strength increased with increased density of the species. However, the correlation varied greatly between species. If density was kept constant, an increase in the growth ring width decreased the impact strength. The reason may lie in the fracture mechanism.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
The aim of this literature review was to compare Finnish Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.) sawn goods to Central European spruce sawn goods which contain fir in some amount. However, it was found that no statistically valid comparisons have been made. Therefore, conclusions have been based mainly on the relationship between various properties and growth rate. According to this analysis, most properties of Finnish spruce are better, although small in practice.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
Basic density and absorbed energy in impact bending were measured for 500 Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.) samples from Northern and Southern Finland. Statistical analysis showed that the relationship between impact strength and basic density was significant and regression analysis showed that it was linear.
Furthermore, with constant density, the impact strength was higher in Northern than in Southern Finland. This was due to growth ring width: i.e. when density was kept constant the impact strength increased with decreasing growth ring width. In addition, when the growth ring width was kept constant, the basic density of wood was higher in Southern Finland than in Northern Finland.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
Empirical measurements showed that the strength of a dead branch of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) was related to the second power of the branch diameter and the third power of the basic density of branch wood. The same factors affected also the strength of living branches. Especially, the contribution of wood density was important. The significance of the results is discussed considering the natural process of self-pruning and its effect on the branchiness of the stem.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
In order to evaluate the strength properties of boards made from small and large Norway spruce (Picea abies) butt logs, 15 small (top end diameter 13 cm) and 15 large (top end diameter 25 cm) logs were sampled from a sawmill in Finland. From each log two test pieces were made in order to measure the bending and compression strength, dry density and average ring width.
The boards from small logs were stronger and their density higher. When the differences between groups were analysed it was found that the strength was determined by the density and ring width. When the density was kept constant, the increase in ring width had a decreasing effect on the strength properties. Because there was a negative correlation between ring width and density, ring width alone had a great effect on the strength properties.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
A population consisting of 450 Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.) samples was gathered from northern and southern Finnish wood. The static bending strength was affected greatly by the density of the wood. However, keeping the density constant, the bending strength was higher in northern than in southern Finnish wood. The reason was the effect of the growth ring width.
The basic density was affected by the growth rate. Keeping the growth ring width constant, the basic density was over 5 kg/m3 lower in northern than in southern Finnish wood. This result supports the earlier findings on the effect of latitude.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
The objective of the investigation was to determine the differences between timber grown on a peatland before and after draining, in respect of compressive strength parallel to the grain, static bending strength and density. In addition, the characteristics of boundary zone between the wood formed before, and after the draining with wider growth rings was studied. 41 Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and 22 Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.) trees were studied.
The compressive strength of pine usually decreased from the butt end upwards, but no trend was observed in spruce wood. In coniferous trees, wide-ringed wood formed subsequent to draining was slightly lighter than the close-ringed wood produced prior the draining. The density of pine as well as spruce increases as the width of the growth rings decrease up to a certain limit. The strength of the different kinds of wood seems to decrease from the butt end upwards.
In both species, the compressive strength parallel to the grain and the bending strength are lowest in such wood that contains exclusively wide-ringed wood formed subsequent to draining. Also, compressive and bending strength increase with decreasing width of the growth rings. The longitudinal shrinkage of compression wood in spruce was several times that of normal wood, and the bending strength was lower than that of normal wood particularly in spruce. The compressive strength parallel to the grain in dry condition was, however, higher than in normal wood both in pine and spruce.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
According to the literature, the mechanical strength of the green reaction wood of softwood species (compression wood) is greater than that of normal wood. Drying increases the mechanical strength but less in reaction wood than in normal wood. In particular, the tensile strength along the grain and the impact strength are lower than in normal wood. The compression strength and possibly bending strength are greater, however.
The properties of the reaction wood of hardwood species (tension wood) differ from those of softwoods. When green, all mechanical properties are weaker than those of normal wood. When dried, the tensile strength and impact strength are better and compression strength lower. There is no great difference in the bending strength.
When the higher density of reaction wood is not taken into account and there are no impact forces, the mechanical strength of reaction wood in sawn goods etc. does not differ so much from that of normal wood. The harmful effect of knots, for example, can in practice be much greater.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
The objective of the investigation was to determine the differences between faultless timber grown on a peatland before and after draining, in respect of compressive strength to the grain, volume weight, and shrinkage. In addition, the influence of the boundary zone between the close-ringed wood formed before draining and the wide-ringed wood produced after draining on strength of the timber was studied. The material consisted of 15 sample trees of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.), white birch (Betula pubescens Ehrh.) and silver birch (B. Pendula Roth).
The volume weight of wood of the tree species in ascending order is; spruce, pine, white birch, silver birch. The volume weight of Scots pine seems to decrease from the butt end upwards, while no trend was revealed for spruce. In the coniferous trees, the wide-ringed wood formed subsequent to draining was slightly lighter than the close-ringed wood produced prior draining. No distinct trend was seen in the birch species. The volume weight of pine and spruce increased with decreasing width of the growth rings up to a certain limit, after which the conditions inverted.
The compressive strength of the different kinds of wood seems to increase from the butt end upwards, but after height of two meters it begins to decrease considerably. In birch, this point of inversion is in somewhat greater height. In spruce timber, the compressive strength parallel to the grain is lowest for wood which contains exclusively wide-ringed wood formed after draining. The boundary zone between the woods formed before and after draining is very distinguishable, but has no remarkable influence on the compressive strength parallel to the grain. Shrinkage of close-ringed wood is higher in all three principal directions than that of wide-ringed wood. This can be explained by the variations in volume weight and fibrillar orientation of the tracheid walls.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
Compression wood of the tree species studied in this investigation, Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) and common juniper (Juniperus communis L.), was found to be characterized in its cross section by the thick walls and rounded shape of its tracheids and the profuse occurence of spaces. Tension wood of aspen (Populus tremula L.) and alder (Alnus incana (L.) Moench) was found in microscopic examination to be characterized by the gelatinous appearance of the wood fibres, by its small cell cavities and by the thickness and buckling of the inner layer of the cecondary wall. Tracheids of the compression wood were found to have shorter length than normal on an average, while the tension wood fibres were found to be longer.
The microchemical studies suggest a higher than normal lignin content in compression wood and lower than normal lignin content in tension wood, as compared to normal wood. The reverse would be true for the cellulose contents. Volume weight of absolute dry reaction wood was distinctly higher than that of normal wood. The longitudinal shrinkage of reaction wood, particularly of compression wood, is several times that of normal wood. Transversal shrinkage of compression wood is much less than normal wood. Swelling tests revealed pushing effect of compression wood on elongation and pulling effect on tension wood on constraction. Volume shrinkage of compression wood is less than that of normal wood, in contrast to tension wood. The strength of compression wood in absolutely dry condition was nearly same as that of normal wood.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
The article reviews the change in how the most sufficient wood material was chosen for different uses. The craftsmen used different characteristics to determine the quality of wood, for instance, tree species, location in the stem, whether it was sapwood or heartwood etc. Scientifically, the quality of the wood has been described by, for instance, specific gravity, bending strength and compressive strength. Durability would, however, be better attribute than strength to describe the quality of wood, because circumstances, like humidity and temperature can change where the wood is used. The article discusses further the development of durability indexes.
The PDF includes a summary in German.
Birch wood is used widely in wooden structures where mechanical strength is needed. The aim of the research was to study the influence of the relative share of mechanically weak tracheids, and length of the wood fibers on specific gravity and bending strength of downy birch (Betula pubescens Ehrh.) wood. According to the results, the strength of wood is strongly dependent on the relative share of tracheids, and length of the libriform cells. The strength of the wood increases when the share of tracheids decreases and the length of libriform cells increases. The specific gravity can be used as an indication of the strength of wood, especially if it is possible to analyze the structure of the wood.
The PDF includes a summary in German.
The growth of a tree is influenced by inherited properties and external circumstances, including climate, soil, the position of the tree in the stand, and the position of the wood in the stem. The tree species have optimum climate and optimum conditions. The aim of this study was to determine if the summerwood content of the wood of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) is dependent on the rate of growth of the tree. Comparing the position of the sample trees in the stand, it seems that the position of the tree and the size of its crown influences strongly the quality of the wood. In a dense stand the summerwood content was higher in the trees that had small crowns. Thinning of the stand decreased the difference in summerwood content of the trees.
The PDF includes a summary in English.
According to earlier studies, the weight of the wood may be a useful quality when aim is to create such wooden structures where small weight is combined with maximum mechanical strength. Of the northern tree species, Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.) and birch (Betula sp.), birch has the highest bending strength. The main focus of this study was to find out if there is correlation between the specific gravity of cell wall substance and bending strength of the birch wood, and if the specific gravity of cell wall substance could be used as indication of the quality of the wood.
Dominant trees from 55 years old birch (Betula sp.) stand was selected for bending tests. The bending strength did not vary in birch as much as in many other tree species. The highest bending strength was achieved near the specific gravity class s=0,65, and it can be concluded that when the specific gravity falls below S=0,57, the wood’s technical quality is not sufficient. The article includes a literature review on the subject.
The PDF includes a summary in GermanThe article includes a detailed review on the technical properties of wood. The weight, water content, strength and conductivity of the wood, and the factors affecting them are discussed. The mechanical and technical properties of wood are influenced, for instance, by tree species, age and part of the tree, geographical situation, site and growth conditions of the stand, anatomical structure of the wood, and temperature. The author summarizes the topics where further research should be addressed. For instance, the forest site types developed in Finland could be utilized in studies of the mechanic technical properties of wood.
The PDF includes a summary in English.