Comparison of methodologies for determining the carbon content in wood

New procedures seek to subsidize studies on biomass and carbon in forests and wood, mainly of tropical species. Thus, the work aimed to compare four methods of carbon determination in wood. A pre-dried sample of tropical wood was prepared and previously ground. In this sample, the carbon content was determined, applying four different methodologies, namely: conversion of organic matter, volumetric method, colorimetric method and dry combustion (LECO). The Tukey test was performed to determine the difference between the carbon levels obtained by each method. As a result, all methods differed statistically from each other: the colorimetric method underestimated the levels of organic carbon in a tropical wood; although widely used, the volumetric method has become obsolete; and the organic matter conversion method requires specific conversion factors for each material. So, from the environmental point of view and accuracy in obtaining data, the dry combustion method, in addition to being the closest to the standard, is also the one that generates less waste, being the most suitable to determinate carbon in wood.

Experimental Study of Tool Wear when Milling Tropical Wood with Various Tool Materials

The paper presents a study on the performance of cutter tip for wood milling process. The tests were performed with the tropical wood samples which were milled in the double sided wood planer, the measured micro-geometrical parameters encompassing the linear wear and tooltip radius. The study primarily contributes to developing a far better understanding of the physical nature of cutting tool wear in response with the growing concern of many researchers. Given this basis, it does not only assist the selection of reasonable cutting tool but also enable the detection of the patterns in the cutting tool wear process. In terms of tool wear and bluntness, there has been a number of researches taking account into the physical nature of cutting tools, - providing basis for selection of cutting tools apart from clarification of the current pattern of tool wear and bluntness. The load applied to the cutter during wood milling is the load that changes marks periodically. When starting to work after tool sharpening and finishing, the first stage changes the microscopic geometry - tool run-in process (rapid initial wear), followed by constant conditions of wear before a rapid wear which leads to failure at last. The objective of this study is to determine the influence of the cutting path to the tooltip radius and linear wear of the cutting edge. The paper employs method of least squares and variance analysis in application of the Minitab software to determine regression equations for relation of the tooltip radius and linear wear to the relative cutting length. The ultimate goal is to predict the life of cutting tool when milling tropical wood.

Evaluation of Discoloration and Subterranean Termite Resistance of Four Furfurylated Tropical Wood Species after One-Year Outdoor Exposure

The discoloration and resistance to subterranean termite attack of four furfurylated fast-growing tropical wood species were evaluated after outdoor exposure for 1 year in Bogor, Indonesia. For comparison purposes, imidacloprid-preserved and untreated wood samples were also prepared. Discoloration of all treated samples was measured before and after the furfurylation process. The wood specimens were then placed vertically to three-fourths of their length in the ground for 1 year, at which point they were evaluated for resistance to subterranean termite attack. After furfurylation, wood samples were darker in color than untreated wood, while imidacloprid-preserved wood was lighter. After 1-year exposure, furfurylated wood samples appeared to have the highest resistance to subterranean termite attack. These samples had minimal weight loss, indicating a substantial protection level. Imidacloprid-preserved wood had less resistance to termite attack, but was more resistant than untreated wood.

Ultrasound to estimate the physical-mechanical properties of tropical wood species grown in an agroforestry system

The great diversity of tropical wood species makes it difficult to obtain information about their technological properties. The present work employed ultrasound to estimate the physical and mechanical properties of four wood species: African mahogany (Khaya senegalensis), ‘freijó’ (Cordia goeldiana), ‘paricá’ (Schizolobium amazonicum), and teak (Tectona grandis). Nineteen-year-old adult trees were selected and harvested from an agroforestry system (AFS) located in the Brazilian Amazon. From the harvested trees, 1.5 m logs were sawn and test specimens were obtained for physical-mechanical assays. The ultrasound propagation speed (V 0) and the dynamic modulus of elasticity (E d ) were obtained from applying ultrasound longitudinally in wood samples. Values of V 0 decreased from the lightest wood (paricá) to the heaviest (African mahogany), and E d presented the opposite behavior. For the physical properties, the coefficient of determination (R 2) ranged from 12 to 35% and the best linear regression models were fitted for the basic density, having V 0 and E d as independent variables. For the mechanical properties, the values of R 2 varied from 18 to 63% and higher correlations were found between parallel-to-grain compression strength and E d , and rigidity, static bending and Ed. Ultrasound presented the potential to estimate the properties of tropical wood species from the ASF.