BASICS OF WOOD

NATURE OF WOOD
Trees are Primary Producers, meaning that they use natural resources to
grow. Everything in a tree is built from raw materials gathered from soil and
air and that is the secret to renew-ability.

Learning about wood, its properties and its uses is an endlessly fascinating
study.
More you know about wood, more you want to know.

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 HOW TREES WORK
The roots
Anchor the tree into the soil
Absorb water, minerals and oxygen

The tree-stem
Static
Water and food transport
Production of new cells

The crown
Photosynthesis
To afford shade

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 THE TREE-STEM
The outer bark (A):
Protection from the outside world.
Helps keep out moisture in the rain (continually renewed from
within) and prevents from losing moisture when the air is dry.
Insulation against cold and heat
Wards off insect enemies

The inner bark, or phloem (B):

Pipeline through which food is passed to the rest of the tree. It lives
for only a short time, then dies and turns to cork to become part of
the protective outer bark

The cambium cell layer (C):

Growing part of the stem. It annually produces new bark and new
wood in response to hormones that pass down through the phloem
with food from the leaves.

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 THE TREE-STEM
Sapwood (D):
Is the trees pipeline for water moving up to the leaves. Sapwood
is new wood. As newer rings of sapwood are laid down, inner cells
lose their vitality and turn to heartwood.

Heartwood (E):
Is the central, supporting pillar of the tree. Although dead, it will
not decay or lose strength while the outer layers are intact. A
composite of hollow, needle like cellulose fibers bound together
by a chemical glue called lignin, it is in many ways as strong as
steel. A piece 12 long and 1 by 2 in cross section set vertically
can support a weight of twenty tons.

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 GROWING OF A TREE
Each year a tree grows in height from its tip,
although new wood is added along the length
of the stem, no previous growth rings are
present at the top of the stem.
The number of growth rings increases down
the stem according to the number of annual
height increments.
The appearance of growth rings is due to
changes in the structure of wood produced
through the growing season. Cells produced at
the beginning of the season are commonly
larger, and so this early wood appears less
dense than the latewood produced towards
the end of the season.

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 GROWTH RINGS
In the north temperate zones, cutting
any stem surface will show the wood
to be composed of a series of
concentric bands.
These bands are referred to as growth
rings, and in temperate trees
commonly one ring is formed each
year.
Growth rings actually extend vertically
along the stem as a series of
concentric cylinders.
If the numbers of growth rings on the
two ends of a log are counted, more
rings will be found on the lower end of
the log than on the upper.

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 GROWTH RINGS
Not all trees produce visible growth rings, neither are all growth rings
necessarily annual.
In some trees seasonal changes in wood structure may be so slight that
growth rings are not evident.
Under conditions of severe drought an annual growth ring may not be
produced. On the other hand under continuously favorable conditions, such
as the tropics, several growth rings may be produced in a year.

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 TRANSPIRATION
On a warm, windy day up to 100 litres of water can be removed from the soil,
transported through the trees xylem system and moved into the atmosphere.
The water evaporates out of the needle or leave pores. This water loss is called
transpiration
Transpiration maintains the supply of water in the cells. A tree takes up a lot more
water in its cells as he needs. The extra water is used to carry the dissolved minerals
from the roots to the leaves. This watery solution is called the sap. Once the minerals
have been removed from the sap, the remaining water is no longer needed and is
removed from the plant through transpiration. This results in more water and
minerals being taken in through the plant roots and moved into the xylem (a system
of tubular cells linking the roots with the top of the tree) to move up through the
plant to the leaves.

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 PHOTOSYNTHESIS
In a process called photosynthesis, trees
use free water, carbon dioxide and sunlight
to produce cellulose.
Together with the lignin that binds it
together, cellulose is the main component
of this miraculous fiber called wood.
Its the only raw material that is at the
same time renewable, biodegradable,
recyclable, durable, versatile, energy
efficient and extremely beautiful.

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 SOFTWOOD - HARDWOOD
Hardwoods do not always have harder wood as softwoods (Balsa is the softest
wood but it still a hardwood)

Softwood trees have needles

and are mostly evergreen (e.g.
spruce, pine). Some species
shed there needles in fall (e.g.
larch, douglas)

Hardwood trees have leaves

but may also be evergreen
(e.g. eucalyptus) or shed their
leaves in fall (e.g. oak, maple)

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 SOFTWOOD - HARDWOOD

In softwoods, the cells (tracheids) that In hardwoods, some division of labor has
serve to transport water also provide the evolved, with some cells specializing in
mechanical support for the stem. water transport (pores or vessels), and
others in providing mechanical support.

Cross section 20 x Cross section 20 x

As a result hardwoods are commonly referred to as porous woods, and softwoods as

nonporous woods.

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 MICROSCOPIC STRUCTURE OF WOOD

Softwood: Most cells run longitudinally
but some cells run horizontally. The big
hole is called a resin canal (rc). The
majority of the cells shown here are called
"longitudinal tracheids".
Hardwood: More cell types exists. The
large holes represent vessels, the small
ones are fibers. The lines between the
vessel elements on the top of the block
are bundles of ray cells called multiseriate
rays.

Electron micrograph scanning from redwood and birch

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 MICROSCOPIC STRUCTURE OF WOOD
This diagram shows some of the cell types in softwoods
and hardwoods.
a) Longitudinal tracheids accounts for over 90% of the wood
volume of softwood. They are approximately 3-5 mm in length
and 30-50 micrometers in diameter. These long cells, (fibers) are
the main cell type which make up writing paper and brown paper
bags.
b) Hardwood vessels is earlywood and: d) is latewood
c) Represents a hardwood fiber, while
e) is a hardwood tracheid. Hardwood fibers are similar to
softwood tracheids, but are much shorter. The fibers are
approximately 1-2 mm in length and 20-30 micrometers in
diameter. Kodak color paper is mainly made of maple and beech
fibers. Toilet paper, napkins, and Kleenex are made of poplar
fibers.

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 MICROSCOPIC STRUCTURE OF WOOD
Resin canal
SOFTWOODS
Here is a close look at pine wood. Most of the
cells run vertically and resemble long, straight
tubes, these are the tracheids.
The circles with a hole at the center (side of
specimen) are bordered pit-pairs. These pits
are channels through which materials can flow
from or into neighboring cells.
The block-like holes on top of the specimen
are cross sectional views of tracheids. Wood
rays are perpendicular to the tracheids.

bordered pit-pairs tracheids rays

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 MICROSCOPIC STRUCTURE OF WOOD
The earlywood is produced at the beginning of a growing season with a
relatively thin cell wall and a large diameter. The latewood is formed late in the
growing season with a relatively thick cell wall and small cavity.
In redwood the zones from the earlywood In balsam fir, the transition zone between
to latewood changes distinctively. This is the earlywood and the latewood displays
called an abrupt transition. a gradual change similar to white spruce.

Enlarged 100 times through a light microscope

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 MICROSCOPIC STRUCTURE OF WOOD
In this view southern yellow pine
earlywood is light in color and latewood is
darker brown. The large holes are resin
canals. Abrupt transition.
Cross section 20 x
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Sugar pine has large resin canals. The
growth ring in this sample is primarily
earlywood with narrow bands of
latewood. Gradual
transition.
Cross section 20 x
 MICROSCOPIC STRUCTURE OF WOOD
Latewood vessels
Hardwoods
This micrograph shows a cross sectional view
of red oak (20x). The largest diameter holes in
the earlywood zone are cross sectional views
of vessel elements.
In latewood, these vessel elements are small
and sometimes grouped together. Because of
this distinctive size and arrangement of the
vessel elements, the growth ring is very clear
and distinctive.
This type of hardwood is called a ring-porous
wood.

Earlywood vessels

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 MICROSCOPIC STRUCTURE OF WOOD
White oak is another good example of
a ring-porous wood. Large vessels
are located in the earlywood zone,
small vessels are in the latewood. Tyloses in
the large earlywood vessels.
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In other hardwoods (walnut), the size of
the vessels change gradually from the
early growing season to the late growing
season: semi-ring-porous wood.
latewood
earlywood
 MICROSCOPIC STRUCTURE OF WOOD
In some hardwoods size of vessels does
not change very much during a growing
season (sugar maple). The large circles are
the vessels. This type of even sized vessels
is called diffuse porous wood.
Another diffuse porous wood is sweet
birch. The vessel elements in this
micrograph are solitary (individual vessels)
or grouped in "multiples" of two.

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 Microscopic Structure of Wood
White oak is a hardwood In this cross section of ash, Birch is a diffuse porous
that has distinctive wide several rays may be seen, hardwood
rays amongst narrow rays. but they are much that also has fine rays.
Note the large diameter narrower than those in (20x)
early wood vessels and the oak. The latewood vessels
small latewood vessels, are often circled by fine
that are arranged in "flame whitish areas which are
shaped groups parallel to groups of longitudinal
the rays. (20x) parenchyma cells. (20x)

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 DIRECTION IN WOOD
Lumber is solid wood that has been cut into different shapes.

radial tangential

pith

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 ANISOTROPIC
Anisotropic means that structure and properties
vary in different directions.
Due to the way cells are formed in a tree-truck,
wood has 3 structural directions-the radial, the
R = Radial direction
tangential, and the longitudinal direction.
T = Tangential direction
The tangential direction is parallel to the growth L = Longitudinal direction
rings.
The radial direction is parallel to the wood rays. T

The longitudinal direction is parallel to the wood R

cells (the grain). L

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 Anisotropic
Many materials have mechanical
properties which are the same in all
directions. Such a material is said to be
isotropic. Examples of isotropic
materials are steel, concrete, and
plastic. The mechanical properties of
wood, vary with the direction in which
a load or force is applied. Wood,
therefore, is described as an
anisotropic material.
vertical

T
R
L

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 HYGROSCOPIC
Adsorption is a process by which the surface of a material attracts moisture
from the air. It differs from absorption which is the uptake of liquid due to
physical contact with the liquid like a sponge.
Wood is hygroscopic. Thats way it changes in moisture content as the
moisture environment in the air around it changes. Wood is able to attract
moisture from the air. This is important because as the moisture content of
wood changes, it changes in dimensions (swells or shrinks), the mechanical
properties change, and other physical properties are affected.
Therefore: proper use of wood products
requires an understanding of their
interaction with moisture.

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 WOOD AND MOISTURE
Water moves through wood as liquid or vapor through several kinds of
passageways.
These are:
cell cavities of fibers and vessels, ray cells, pit chambers (microscopic
openings on the sides of cell walls) and their pit membrane openings,
the cell walls themselves.
Water movement along the grain is many times faster than across the
grain.

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 WOOD AND MOISTURE
Water is contained in wood as either bound water or free water.

Free water is contained in the cell cavities and is not held by these forces it is
comparable to water in a pipe (liquid water or water vapor)

Bound water is held within cell

walls by physical / chemical
H2 H2
H2
forces of attraction within the O H2
O
O
O
H2
cell walls (water remaining in the cells) O
H2
O
H2 H2
H2
O O
O

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 WOOD AND MOISTURE

Free water moves through cell cavities and
pit openings (microscopic openings on the
sides of cell walls). During drying it is
moved by capillary forces that exert a pull
on the free water deeper in the wood.
This is similar to the movement of water in
a wick.
Bound water moves as vapor through
empty cell cavities and pit openings as
well as directly through cell walls. The
basic cause of bound water movement is
differences in water vapor pressure
caused by relative humidity, moisture
content, and temperature differences

H2
O
H2
H2 O
O H2
O
H2
H2 H2 O
O O

H2
H2 H2 O
O O

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 WOOD AND MOISTURE
Oven dry 105C, 214-221 F / >24 hours (= 0%)

Equilibrium Moisture Content (EMC) = dependent RH

Wood loses or gains bound water until the amount it contains is in balance with that of the
surrounding atmosphere. The amount of water at this point of balance is called the
equilibrium moisture content (EMC)

Faber Saturation Point (= 22-30%)

Free Water / Green Wood (>22% up to 600%)

Wood is dimensionally stable when the
moisture content is greater than the fiber
saturation point. (Weight-%)

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 MOISTURE CONTENT IN WOOD
The amount of moisture adsorbed by wood can be expressed as the moisture
content. Moisture content, calculated as a percentage of the oven-dry weight of
wood is:
% MC = wood weight + water (wet weight) weight of dry wood x 100
weight of oven dry wood
Oven dry weight of the wood only, no water (determined by drying the wood in an
oven at 221 F for >24 hours until no water remains and the weight of the block no
longer changes).

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 SHRINKING AND SWELLING
Wood changes dimension as it gains or loses moisture below
the fibre saturation point.
It shrinks when losing moisture from the cell walls and
+ H 2O - H 2O
swells when gaining moisture in the cell walls (Bound
Water)
This shrinking and swelling can result in warping, splitting,
and loosening of tool handles, gaps in strip flooring, or
performance problems that detract from the usefulness of
the wood product. Therefore it is important that these
T 1/1
phenomena be understood and considered when they can
affect a product in which wood is used. R 1/ 2
L 1/10

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 Shrinking and Swelling
Wood changes the volume with the moisture content mainly in tangential direction.
longitudinal

Core
Sapwood

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 SHRINKING AND SWELLING
Wood shrinks most in the direction of the
annual growth rings (tangentially), about half
as much across the rings (radially), and only
slightly (one-tenth to one-hundredth) along
the grain (longitudinally).

The combined effects of radial and tangential

shrinkage can distort the shape of wood
pieces because of the difference in shrinkage
and the curvature of annual rings.

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 SHRINKING AND SWELLING
after shrinking initial form after swelling

branch knot

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 Shrinking and Swelling
Types of wood: moisture content Oak Beech

Average volume change per 1 % moisture

content 0,25 % 0,32 %

All wood species have different shrinking and

swelling behaviours

Beech panel 9 % moisture content 13 % moisture content

length in metre 5,0 5,013

width in metre 5,0 5,130

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 Wood Characteristics
Wood tropical
characteristics oak beech maple pine bamboo woods

Bonding

Activity medium high high low medium high

Shrinking and swelling low high medium low medium medium

difficult
easy

All wood species have different behaviours in activity

(bending, curving) and different contents of resins, oil what
has an influence on bonding properties

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 EQUILIBRIUM MOISTURE CONTENT

Example: 26.7C + 50% r.h. = EMC 9.1%

Table according NWFA Association USA

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 WOOD FLOORING SPECIES
Most popular Hardwood Species

Wood-Bonding Hardness (Janka Stability (reactivity Relative cost (Price

characteristics Hardness Test), to ambient factor in
(activity + adhesion higher = harder variations such as comparison to red
properties) relative humidity)* oak)
Red Oak easy ~1290 0,00369 1,00
White Oak easy ~1360 0,00365 0,95
Hard Maple difficult ~1500 0,00353 1,30
Yellow Birch easy ~1260 0,00338 1,30
White Ash easy ~1320 0,00274 1,20
Black Cherry medium ~950 0,00248 1,70
American Beech difficult ~1300 0,00431 1,20
Black Walnut medium ~1010 0,00274 3,00

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 WOOD FLOORING SPECIES
Most popular Tropical Wood Species
Wood-Bonding Hardness (Janka Stability (reactivity Relative cost (Price
characteristics Hardness Test), to ambient factor in
(activity + adhesion higher = harder variations such as comparison to red
properties) relative humidity)* oak)
Bamboo difficult ~1800 ? ?
Mahogany difficult ~2200 0,00238 1,55
Teak difficult ~1000 0,00186 2,50
Cypress difficult ~1375 0,00162 1,30
Wenge difficult ~1630 0,00201 5,50
Hickory difficult ~1820 0,00411 1,20
Cherry Brazilian difficult ~2350 0,00300 1,30

Douglas fire medium ~660 0,00267 1,70

Southern Yellow Pine easy ~690-870 0,00265 0,95

Some Softwood Species (Imported Engineered Wood)

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 CALCULATION SOLID WOOD
The numbers in the chart above were developed by the Forest Products Laboratory of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture. They reflect the dimensional change coefficient for the various species, measured as tangential
shrinkage or swelling within normal moisture content limits of 6-14 percent.

Calculation:
Multiply the change in moisture content by the change coefficient, then multiply by the width of the board

Sample: 13 cm (5-inch) red oak plank board:

1. Interior temperature of 21C (70 F) and a relative humidity of 40%, the board has a moisture content of 7.7%
2. If the relative humidity falls to 20%, the moisture content of the board will be 4.5% (difference 3.2%)
3.2% x 0.00369 x 13 cm (5 inch) = 1.5 mm (0.059 inch)

The 13 cm (5-inch) board will shrink by 1.5 mm (0.059 inch). Across 3 m (10 feet) of flooring. that could translate to
as much as 3.5 cm (1.4 inch) of shrinkage

3. If the humidity rises to 60%, the boards moisture content would be 12% (difference 4.3%)
4.3% x .00369 x 13 cm (5 inch) = 2 mm (0.079 inch)

The 13 cm (5-inch) board would expand by 2 mm (0.079 inch). Across 3 m (10 feet) of flooring, this could translate to
4.8 cm (1.9 inch) of expansion

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 CALCULATION SOLID WOOD
Board width: 130mm, species: red oak, room width: 3000mm
Initial conditions: Interior temp. =21C (70F) / Relative Humidity =40% =EMC of 7.7% (table)

A) Drop in R. H. Interior temp. =21C (70F) / Relative Humidity =20% =EMC of 4.5% (table)
Impact on wood floor:
Change in EMC: 7.7% to 4.5% =-3.2% difference
Difference in dimension:
Formula: Difference in EMC [%] x shrinking/swelling coefficient [-] x dimension of plank [mm]
Board: -3.2% x 0.00369 x 130mm = -1.53mm (shrinking)
Room: -3.2% x 0.00369 x 3000mm = -35mm (shrinking)

B) Increase in R. H. Interior temp. =21C (70F) / Relative Humidity =60% =EMC of 12% (table)
Impact on wood floor:

Change in EMC: 7.7% to 12% =+4.3% difference

Difference in dimension:
Board: +4.3% x 0.00369 x 130mm = +2.0mm (swelling)
Room: +4.3% x 0.00369 x 3000mm = +47mm (swelling)

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 Pictures:
Forest Products and Wood Science
J.G. Haygreen and J.L. Bowyer (c) 1996 by Iowa State University Press, Ames, IA
Brown Center for Ultrastructure Studies of S.U.N.Y. - College of Environmental
Science and Forestry, Syracuse
Audrey Zink-Sharp, Va Tech, Blacksburg, VA.
Chip Frazier, Va Tech, Blacksburg, VA.
Society of Wood Science and Technology, One Gifford Pinchot Drive Madison, WI
53726, http://www.swst.org

Books:
Bowyer, J.L., R. Shumlsky, J. G., Haygreen. 2003. Forest Products and Wood Science -
An Introduction, 4th ed. Iowa State Univ Press, Ames, Iowa.
Hoadley, R. B. 1980. Understanding Wood: A Craftsmans Guide to Wood
Technology. Taunton Press, Newtown, CT.
Panshin, A.J. and C. deZeeuw. 1980. Textbook of Wood Technology, 4th ed. McGraw
Hill Book Company, New York.

42
 WOOD FLOOR TYPES
Solid Wood Floors
are one solid piece of wood that have
tongue and groove sides. Solid wood
floors are more sensitive to moisture.
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Engineered Wood Floors
are generally 2-, 3 or Multi-ply of wood,
glued on top of each other in the
opposite direction. The wood floor is
dimensionally more stable and less
affected by moisture.
 Shrinking and Swelling
2-, 3-ply: Mosaic Parquet
Production: same moister content and Only small movements:
change coefficient (stability) per layer! Small wood elements
Frequently thin joints

Dry

Production

Wet

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 MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF WOOD
Just as shrinking and swelling of wood vary in the radial, tangential, and longitudinal
directions, so do various mechanical properties of wood.
So, wood is anisotropic in hygroscopic behavior as well as mechanical behavior.
Three important mechanical properties of wood are used as a measure of its
strength. These properties are compression, tension, and bending.
The hardness / softness is an important indicator for the mechanical resistance of a
wood floor

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 DENSITY ()
Density () of a material is defined to be the mass per unit volume and is calculated
using the following equation:
= mass / volume
Density of the substance that makes up a wood cell wall has been found to be about
1.5 g/cm3. But a wood contains air in the cell lumens, so most woods have a density
less than 1 g/cm3. And therefore it swims in water
Density of a sample of wood is usually calculated as the weight density instead of
mass:
Wt density = weight of wood with moisture
volume of wood with moisture

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 SPECIFIC GRAVITY
Specific gravity is a measure of the amount of solid cell wall substance and is also
known as relative density. It is a ratio of the density of a substance to the density
of water. In our case, the oven dry (OD) weight of a wood sample is used as the basis
and comparison is made with the weight of the displaced volume of water. In
equation form this is:
SG = OD weight of wood
Weight of an equal volume of water
Most of commercial woods fall between 0.35 and 0.65. Exotic woods exhibit a much
greater range, with SGs reported as low as 0.04 and as high as 1.40

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 NATURE OF WOOD
Never forgetWood is watching you

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