Dimensional stability of wood in presence of water
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abstract
An experimental program was defined aiming to evaluate the dimensional stability of
hardwood and softwood species. The maritime pine softwood (Pinus pinaster) and the ash
hardwood of the North-east region of Portugal are analysed. A group of thirty specimens were made for each species of wood. The experimental procedure has been conducted according to NP EN 614 and NP EN 615. For each wood species, one half of the specimens were previously dried while the other one half was prior saturated. Two main variables were studied in normal environmental conditions: mass and dimensional variation. Tests were conducted at 20ºC environment temperature and 60% of relative humidity. Measurements were taken allowing to quantify the dimensional variation suffered during the dry/saturation process for both species. The properties that define the behaviour of wood against temperature and moisture actions are assessed in this work. Hygroscopicity and shrinkage are given
special attention.
Moisture is one of the most important causes for building pathology. The material degradation can be affected by the presence of water, both in vapour and liquid phase. Wood has a strong hygroscopic behaviour, with a strong variation of moisture content and dimension stability caused by modifications of the relative humidity of the surrounding air. The properties that define the behaviour of wood against temperature and moisture actions were studied in this work. Hygroscopicity and shrinkage were given special attention.
