Effect of Vacuum Heat Treatment Temperature on Physical and Mechanical Properties of Eucalyptus Pellita Wood

• Published in: Wood and fiber science Vol. 46; no. 3; pp. 368 - 375
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Society of Wood Science & Technology 01.07.2014
• ISSN: 0735-6161

This study investigated how vacuum heat treatment influenced the physical and mechanical properties of Eucalyptus pellita wood. The investigated properties included mass loss, oven-dry density, dimensional stability, modulus of elasticity (MOE), and modulus of rupture (MOR). For the study, wood samples were heated under vacuum atmosphere at temperatures ranging from 80 to 280°C for 4 h. The results showed that although the mass loss of wood showed only a slight change below 200°C, there was a sharp increase in loss after 240°C. Oven-dry density of wood decreased slowly with an increase of treatment temperature with decreases of 4.4 and 10.4% compared with the control sample observed at 200 and 240°C, respectively. Conversely, the dimensional stability of samples increased by about 30% at 200°C. As temperatures increased, MOE and MOR initially showed gradual enhancements before declining rapidly. Compared with the untreated sample, MOE increased by 25.2% at 200°C, whereas MOR augmented by 6.5% at 160°C. Vacuum heat treatment temperature between 160 and 200°C would be available for improving dimensional stability and keeping mechanical strength of Eucalyptus pellita wood.