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Module CE-251
Building Materials,
Construction and Estimation

Lecture 9: Wood

Dr Rajib Chowdhury
Department of Civil Engineering
IIT Roorkee
CE-251 - Lecture 9 2

Structure of Wood
l  Each annual ring of exogenous tree is composed of:
Ø  Earlywood (light ring): rapid spring growth of hollow thin-walled
cells
Ø  Latewood (dark ring): dense summer growth of thick-walled cells
which are much harder & stronger
CE-251 - Lecture 9 3

Testing Representative, Small, Clear Specimens

Compression Hardness
parallel
to grain perpendicular
to grain

Tension Compression
perpendicular perpendicular
to grain to grain

Tension parallel
to grain Hardness parallel Bending
to grain
CE-251 - Lecture 9 4

Introduction

Wood is the earliest construction Still very widely used today for:
material used by mankind. ü  building frames
Ø  easy to use ü  bridges
Ø  durable ü  utility poles
Ø  high strength ü  floors
Ø  low weight ü  roofs
Ø  widely available ü  trusses
Ø  low cost ü  piles, etc.

l  Endogenous (intertwined growth): e.g., palm trees

Ø  very strong and lightweight

l  Exogenous (outward growth): e.g., most other trees

Ø  Fibers grow from the center outward by adding concentric layers (annual
rings) which gives more predictable engineering properties.
CE-251 - Lecture 9 5

Main Structural Features of Tree Stem

l  From center axis outwards:

Ø  Pith – center stem
Ø  Heartwood (darker) –
provides structural
support
Ø  Sapwood (lighter) –
transports the sap
Ø  Cambium (very thin
layer) – location of
wood growth
Ø  Inner bark
Ø  Outer bark
CE-251 - Lecture 9 6

Structure of Wood
Wood is Anisotropic – properties change with direction:
l  Longitudinal
Ø  parallel to the long axis (grain)
Ø  strongest and least shrinkage
l  Radial
Ø  perpendicular to the
growth rings (out from center)
l  Tangential
Ø  tangent to the growth rings
Ø  weakest and most shrinkage
l  directions influence strength, modulus,
thermal expansion, conductivity, shrinkage,
etc.
CE-251 - Lecture 9 7

Moisture Content

l  shrinkage, strength, & weight depend on moisture content

l  depends on air temperature and humidity:
Ø  slow changing so it tends to adjust near the average
Ø  Equilibrium Moisture Content (EMC)
ü  moisture content for average atmospheric conditions
ü  1% when hot & dry >130oF & 5% humidity
ü  20% when warm & humid <80oF & 90% humidity

Wm − Wd
Mc = 100
Wd
CE-251 - Lecture 9 8

Fiber Saturation Point (FSP)

•  moisture content when cells are completely saturated with bound

water but no free water inside cell cavities

water inside cell

cavities doesn't
affect shrinkage

•  FSP = 21-32%
Ø  Above FSP
§  changes affect only wet weight held tightly in
Ø  Below FSP cell cavities,
§  small changes strongly affect all wood shrinks on
physical and mechanical properties removal
CE-251 - Lecture 9 9

Shrinkage

Ø  largest shrinkage is in the tangential direction

Ø  smallest shrinkage is in the longitudinal direction
Ø  zero shrinkage above FSP regardless of direction
Ø  For glulam (varying growth ring orientations)
§  assume 6% shrinkage in 30% change in m/c below FSP (or 1% shrinkage
per 5% change in m/c)
 CE-251 - Lecture 9 10

Physical Properties of Wood

Specific Gravity & Density

•  Specific gravity of the cell walls (cellulose) = 1.5 regardless of species

Ø  excellent indicator of the amount of material (and properties) in dry

wood

Ø  closer to 1.5 means more cell walls which is denser & stronger

•  Dry density = usually 20-45 lb/ft3 (300-700 kg/m3)

CE-251 - Lecture 9 11

Physical Properties of Wood

Thermal Properties
§  Thermal conductivity
Ø  The rate that heat flows through (inverse of thermal resistance R value)
Ø  Good R value (R = 1 / conductivity)
Ø  much better than metals
Ø  slightly worse than insulation
Ø  reduces loss of heat and cold
Ø  delays fire
§  Specific Heat
Ø  Ratio of the quantity of heat required to raise the temp. of the material 1o to
that required to raise the temp. of an equal mass of water 1o
CE-251 - Lecture 9 12

Physical Properties of Wood

•  Thermal Diffusivity
Ø  Rate that material absorbs heat from surroundings
Ø  Much better (lower) than most other building materials
•  Thermal Expansion
Ø  Anisotropic: 5-10x greater across grain than parallel to it
Ø  Applying heat to wood:
ü  first expands the wood from thermal expansion
ü  then it shrinks from moisture loss (when below FSP)
Electrical Properties
•  Good electrical insulator which decreases with moisture content – more water
is a better electrical conductor
CE-251 - Lecture 9 13

Mechanical Properties of Wood

l  Wood is extremely anisotropic
Modulus of Elasticity
l  linear up to proportional limit, then small non-linear curve

l  Depends on:

Ø  species variation
Ø  moisture content
Ø  specific gravity
Ø  direction of grain
CE-251 - Lecture 9 14

Mechanical Properties of Wood

Strength Properties

l  Vary widely because of anisotropy, moisture content, defects, etc.

l  Tensile strength is greater than compressive strength

l  Tensile strength parallel to grain is 20x greater than perpendicular

CE-251 - Lecture 9 15

Mechanical Properties of Wood

Load Duration
l  Wood can support higher loads of short duration than sustained loads
l  Under sustained loads wood continues to deform
l  Design values assume 10 year loading and/or 90% of full maximum load
throughout life of the structure
l  Multiply design values by load duration factors for short-duration loads

Load Duration Factors

CE-251 - Lecture 9 16

Testing Representative, Small, Clear Specimens

Compression Hardness
parallel
to grain perpendicular
to grain

Tension Compression
perpendicular perpendicular
to grain to grain

Tension parallel
to grain Hardness parallel Bending
to grain
CE-251 - Lecture 9 17

Plywood
Ø  thin sheets (plies) glued together with
the grain at right angles to each other so
it has the same properties in both
directions
Ø  veneer is peeled from a soaked log on a
giant lathe