I.

INTRODUCTION

PHYSICAL STRUCTURE OF WOOD

Wood is a hard fibrous substance that forms the bulk of trees and shrubs beneath the
bark. It is a cellular organic material that is made up principally of cellulose, which comprises
the structural units, and lignin, which cements the structural units together.

WOOD CELL
The basic structural element of wood is its cells. They are approximately rectangular in
cross section with unsymmetrical tapered ends that overlap with the cells above and below.
Principally, cell walls consist of cellulose and lignin. Strength of wood comes from the cellulose,
which is the load-carrying material. They are bind together by the lignin, the glue that cements
and stiffens the fibers together and fills the spaces between them.

HARDWOODS AND SOFTWOODS

Species of trees are divided into two classes: hardwood which has broad leaves and;
softwoods (also called conifers), has needle-like or scale-like leaves.
The terms hardwood and softwood are often misleading because they do not directly
indicate the hardness or softness of wood. In fact, there are hardwoods, which are softer than
certain softwoods.

EARLYWOOD AND LATEWOOD

During springtime, growth is rapid and the newly created cells have relatively large cells
openings and thin walls. Portions of new wood created during the season are known as
earlywood (springwood). New cells are created later in the year, when less moisture is available,
has similar cavities and thicker walls. The portion of the wood is called latewood
(summerwood).

ANNUAL RINGS
In climates where temperature limits the growing season of tree, each annual increment is
known as an annual growth ring or annual ring, and consists of an earlywood and latewood
bands.

MEDULLARY RAYS
Medullary rays are ribbonlike bundles of cells arrange in a radial direction in the tree.
They are perpendicular to the annual rings, running from the center toward the bark. They brace
the longitudinal cells so that their bucking strengths are higher.
CAMBIUM
The cambium layer produces new wood cells, formed by cell division. As new cells are
added on the inner side of the cambium, the diameter of the tree increases. At the same time, the
cambium adds new cells to the inner bark, just outside the cambium layer.

PORES
These are large-diameter structures having thin wall made up of individual cells. The
importance of pores is mainly in the appearance of the wood.

MOISTURE CONTENT
Moisture content is the weight of the water contained in wood, expressed as a percentage
of the weight in an over-dry wood.

II. DESIGN OF FLEXURAL MEMBERS

STRENGTH- REDUCING DEFECTS IN TIMBER

KNOTS- are defects in timber formed by the change of wood structure that occurs where
limbs grow from the main stem of the tree. The limbs extend radially to the main trunk
and its own annual rings interrupts the normal pattern of the cell arrangement of the main
portion of the tree. Knots which are often loose, fall out when cut.
CROSS GRAIN- it is a defect in timber formed when the longitudinal axis of the cells is
not parallel to the edge of a piece of wood. Cross grain involves both diagonal and spiral
grain that occurs usually at knots and other locations. Spiral grain is an inherent cross
grain defect of timber while diagonal grain is not, since it is caused by the way in which a
piece of lumber is cut from log.
SHAKES- are splits or cracks in wood that originate in the tree caused by the
separation of longitudinal planes. They may be heart shakes or rift cracks (shakes int the
longitudinal plane), ring shakes (in the longitudinal/tangential planes), surface shakes,
through shakes, pith shakes.
CHECKS- are splits or cracks in wood that occur as the wood seasons after the tree is
felled. These are caused by the stresses resulting from differential shrinkage in the
tangential and radial directions during drying, of form uneven drying in different portions
of the lumber.
COMPRESSION WOOD- is a form of a reaction wood, in which an unsymmetrical
growth patterns has been caused by long-term bending stresses in the live tree. It is
undesirable mainly because, with moisture change, its longitudinal shrinkage and
swelling are as much as ten times greater than normal wood.
 WANE- it is a defect in lumber when part of the bark or rounded peripheryof the trunk is
present in that finished lumber. Wane is the lumbermans term for the absence of wood.
The effect of a wane is to reduce its cross-sectional area with a resultant reduction in
strength.
DECAY- is a defect in lumber where no strength is present, since the wood fibers
growths were interrupted. Wood with decay should not be used in any construction.

DRYING OR SEASONING OF TIMBER

AIR DRYING/SEASONING- is the method in which the timber is stacked and layered
with air-space in open sided sheds to promote natural drying. this method is relatively
inexpensive with very little loss in the quality of timber if carried out correctly.
KILN DRYING/SEASONING- is the method in which timber is dried out in a heated,
ventilated and humidified oven. This requires special equipment and is more expensive in
terms of energy input. One advantage of this method is that the temperatures used are
sufficient enough to kill any decay-causing organisms present in the wood.

GRADING OF TIMBER
VISUAL STRENGTH GRADING- this is the method of grading lumber based on the
physical observation of strength-reducing defects. The grader examines each piece to
determine the type, location, and size of various defects that might affect its structural
strength. This method is inherently subjective since the technique is based on the
experience and judgement of the grader.
MACHINE STRENGTH GRADING- this method is generally carried out by
conducting bending tests on planks of timber which are fed continuously through a
grading, then it passes through the machine which bends the piece to a pre-determined
curvature and measures the force required to bend it.

PRESERVATIVE TREATMENTS
TAR OIL-preservatives such as creosote, are restricted in their use to a limited type of
external members because of their eco-toxicological characteristics.
ORGANIC SOLVENT- preservatives are widely used and have the advantage of being
readily absorbed by the timber, even when applied using simple techniques such as
brushing, spraying or dipping.
WATER BORNE SOLVENTS- like the chromated copper arsenate, are the most
widely used preservatives and are normally introduced into the timber under pressure.