Mechanical Properties of Wood
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Mechanical Properties of Wood Course No: S04-004 Credit: 4 PDH Gilbert Gedeon, P.E. Continuing Education and Development, Inc. 9 Greyridge Farm Court Stony Point, NY 10980 P: (877) 322-5800 F: (877) 322-4774 [email protected] Abstract Summarizes information on wood as an engineering material. Presents properties of wood and wood-based products of particular concern to the architect and engineer. Includes discussion of designing with wood and wood-based products along with some pertinent uses. Keywords: wood structure, physical properties (wood), mechanical properties (wood), lumber, wood-based composites, plywood, panel products, design, fastenings, wood moisture, drying, gluing, fire resistance, finishing, decay, sandwich construction, preservation, and wood- based products On the cover: (Left to right, top to bottom) 1. Research at the Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin, contributes to maximizing benefits of the Nation’s timber resource. 2. Testing the behavior of wood in fire helps enhance fire safety. 3. The all-wood, 162-m (530-ft ) clear-span Tacoma Dome exemplifies the structural and esthetic potential of wood construction (photo courtesy of Western Wood Structures, Inc., Tualatin, Oregon). 4. Bending tests are commonly used to determine the engineering properties of wood. 5. Engineered wood trusses exemplify research that has led to more efficient use of wood. 6. The Teal River stress-laminated deck bridge is March 1999 located in Sawyer County, Wisconsin. 7. Kiln drying of wood is an important procedure Forest Products Laboratory. 1999. Wood handbook—Wood as an during lumber manufacturing. engineering material. Gen. Tech. Rep. FPL–GTR–113. Madison, WI: 8. Legging adhesive (photo courtesy of Air Products U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products and Chemicals, Inc., Allentown Pennsylvania). Laboratory. 463 p. Adhesive bonding is a critical component in the A limited number of free copies of this publication are available to the performance of many wood products. public from the Forest Products Laboratory, One Gifford Pinchot Drive, Madison, WI 53705–2398. Laboratory publications are sent to hundreds of libraries in the United States and elsewhere. This publication may also be viewed on the FPL website at www.fpl.fs.fed.us/. Pesticide Precautionary Statement The Forest Products Laboratory is maintained in cooperation with the University of Wisconsin. This publication reports research involving pesticides. The use of trade or firm names is for information only and does not imply It does not contain recommendations for their use, nor endorsement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture of any product or does it imply that the uses discussed here have been service. registered. All uses of pesticides must be registered by The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimi- appropriate State and/or Federal agencies before they nation in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national can be recommended. origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or familial status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all pro- Caution: Pesticides can be injurious to humans, grams.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for com- domestic animals, desirable plants, and fish or other munication of program information (braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) wildlife, if they are not handled or applied properly. should contact the USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720–2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office Use all pesticides selectively and carefully. Follow of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence recommended practices for the disposal of surplus Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250–9410, or call (202) 720–5964 pesticides and pesticide containers. (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal employment opportunity employer. Chapter 4 Mechanical Properties of Wood David W. Green, Jerrold E. Winandy, and David E. Kretschmann he mechanical properties presented in this chapter Contents were obtained from tests of small pieces of wood Orthotropic Nature of Wood 4–1 termed “clear” and “straight grained” because they Elastic Properties 4–2 did not contain characteristics such as knots, cross grain, Modulus of Elasticity 4–2 checks, and splits. These test pieces did have anatomical Poisson’s Ratio 4–2 characteristics such as growth rings that occurred in consis- tent patterns within each piece. Clear wood specimens are Modulus of Rigidity 4–3 usually considered “homogeneous” in wood mechanics. Strength Properties 4–3 Common Properties 4–3 Many of the mechanical properties of wood tabulated in this Less Common Properties 4–24 chapter were derived from extensive sampling and analysis Vibration Properties 4–25 procedures. These properties are represented as the average Speed of Sound 4–25 mechanical properties of the species. Some properties, such Internal Friction 4–26 as tension parallel to the grain, and all properties for some Mechanical Properties of Clear Straight-Grained Wood 4–26 imported species are based on a more limited number of specimens that were not subjected to the same sampling and Natural Characteristics Affecting Mechanical Properties 4–27 analysis procedures. The appropriateness of these latter prop- Specific Gravity 4–27 erties to represent the average properties of a species is uncer- Knots 4–27 tain; nevertheless, the properties represent the best informa- Slope of Grain 4–28 tion available. Annual Ring Orientation 4–30 Reaction Wood 4–31 Variability, or variation in properties, is common to all Juvenile Wood 4–32 materials. Because wood is a natural material and the tree is Compression Failures 4–33 subject to many constantly changing influences (such as Pitch Pockets 4–33 moisture, soil conditions, and growing space), wood proper- ties vary considerably, even in clear material. This chapter Bird Peck 4–33 provides information, where possible, on the nature and Extractives 4–33 magnitude of variability in properties. Properties of Timber From Dead Trees 4–33 Effects of Manufacturing and Service Environments 4–34 This chapter also includes a discussion of the effect of growth Moisture Content 4–34 features, such as knots and slope of grain, on clear wood Temperature 4–35 properties. The effects of manufacturing and service environ- Time Under Load 4–37 ments on mechanical properties are discussed, and their Aging 4–41 effects on clear wood and material containing growth features Exposure to Chemicals 4–41 are compared. Chapter 6 discusses how these research results have been implemented in engineering standards. Chemical Treatment 4–41 Nuclear Radiation 4–43 Mold and Stain Fungi 4–43 Orthotropic Nature of Wood Decay 4–43 Wood may be described as an orthotropic material; that is, it Insect Damage 4–43 has unique and independent mechanical properties in the References 4–44 directions of three mutually perpendicular axes: longitudinal, radial, and tangential. The longitudinal axis L is parallel to the fiber (grain); the radial axis R is normal to the growth rings (perpendicular to the grain in the radial direction); and 4–1 Radial Table 4–1. Elastic ratios for various species at approximately 12% moisture contenta Species ET/EL ER/EL GLR/EL GLT/EL GRT/EL Fiber direction Hardwoods Ash, white 0.080 0.125 0.109 0.077 — Balsa 0.015 0.046 0.054 0.037 0.005 Tangential Basswood 0.027 0.066 0.056 0.046 — Birch, yellow 0.050 0.078 0.074 0.068 0.017 Cherry, black 0.086 0.197 0.147 0.097 — Cottonwood, eastern 0.047 0.083 0.076 0.052 — Mahogany, African 0.050 0.111 0.088 0.059 0.021 Longitudinal Mahogany, Honduras 0.064 0.107 0.066 0.086 0.028 Maple, sugar 0.065 0.132 0.111 0.063 — Figure 4–1. Three principal axes of wood with Maple, red 0.067 0.140 0.133 0.074 — Oak, red 0.082 0.154 0.089 0.081 — respect to grain direction and growth rings. Oak, white 0.072 0.163 0.086 — — Sweet gum 0.050 0.115 0.089 0.061 0.021 Walnut, black 0.056 0.106 0.085 0.062 0.021 the tangential axis T is perpendicular to the grain but tangent Yellow-poplar 0.043 0.092 0.075 0.069 0.011 to the growth rings. These axes are shown in Figure 4–1. Softwoods Baldcypress 0.039 0.084 0.063 0.054 0.007 Cedar, northern white 0.081 0.183 0.210 0.187 0.015 Elastic Properties Cedar, western red 0.055 0.081 0.087 0.086 0.005 Douglas-fir 0.050 0.068 0.064 0.078 0.007 Twelve constants (nine are independent) are needed to de- Fir, subalpine 0.039 0.102 0.070 0.058 0.006 scribe the elastic behavior of wood: three moduli of elasticity Hemlock, western 0.031 0.058 0.038 0.032 0.003 E, three moduli of rigidity G, and six Poisson’s ratios µ. Larch, western 0.065 0.079 0.063 0.069 0.007 The moduli of elasticity and Poisson’s ratios are related by Pine Loblolly 0.078 0.113 0.082 0.081 0.013 expressions of the form Lodgepole 0.068 0.102 0.049 0.046 0.005 µµ Longleaf 0.055 0.102 0.071 0.060 0.012 ij ji Pond 0.041 0.071 0.050 0.045 0.009 =≠=,i j i, j L,R,T (4–1) EE Ponderosa 0.083 0.122 0.138 0.115 0.017 i j Red 0.044 0.088 0.096 0.081 0.011 Slash 0.045 0.074 0.055 0.053 0.010 General relations between stress and strain for a homogene- Sugar 0.087 0.131 0.124 0.113 0.019 ous orthotropic material can be found in texts on anisotropic Western white 0.038 0.078 0.052 0.048 0.005 Redwood 0.089 0.087 0.066 0.077 0.011 elasticity.