CIVI 321: Engineering Materials

Experiment #3
Wood and engineering wood products

Made by
Samuel Chevalier
SID #: 26797350
Section VU

Presented To
Dr. Michelle Nokken

Concordia University
March 18th 2016
Performed the
March 4th 2016

Table of Contents
OBJECTIVES................................................................................... 3
INTRODUCTION.............................................................................. 3
PROCEDURE.................................................................................. 4
RESULTS........................................................................................ 5
DISCUSSION:................................................................................. 7
CONCLUSION:................................................................................ 8
REFERENCES................................................................................. 9
APPENDIX..................................................................................... 9
SAMPLE CALCULATIONS........................................................................9
APPENDIX B: ORIGINAL DATA AND SPECIMEN FRACTURE TYPE........11

Objectives
The objective of the experiment is to determine the different
compressive strength with regards to the grain of the wood (parallel or
perpendicular) as well as the flexural strength of engineered wood
sheet products.

Introduction
Throughout history, man has largely use wood as construction
material, fuel and furniture. Its availability is high and its properties are
astonishing. Wood is an incredibly versatile product. The strength,
durability and workability of wood are astounding comparatively to its
weight, which explains the high strength-to-weight ratio of wood.
Additionally, it possesses many fascinating properties and
characteristics such as the substantial overloads it can resist over a
short period of time or even the low electrical and thermal
conductance. The direction, size, arrangement, appearance and quality
of the fibers in lumber are known as the grain and they largely govern
the properties of the wood.
Wood standards are established to evaluate and test the physical and
chemical properties of a wide range of wood and wood-based products.

From these tests, a unit stress is established for every wood species.
This unit stress is considerably lower than the actual average of the
species. From these obtained unit stresses of commercial species of
lumber, an economical and efficient design can be obtained. These unit
stresses are widely accepted for usage in engineering and are often
incorporated in current design publications and standards.
Engineering wood is an engineering material made of wood and
adhesive. One of the most notable is plywood, which consists of thin
wood sheets glued together and the grain of each is alternating. As for
the performance of the plywood, it varies based on the thickness,
species and the used glue. Plywood is only one of the numerous
engineering materials made of wood. These engineering materials are
available in different size and thickness affecting the flexural behaviour
of these materials that are generally loaded perpendicular to the thin
axis.
As for the testing of these materials, it will be divided in three parts.
The first part of the experiment consists of testing the compressive
strength of the wood samples by applying the force parallel to the
grain. In the second part of the experiment, the compressive strength
will be tested perpendicular to the grain. Lastly, in the final part of the
experiment, the flexural strength of engineered wood products will be
determined according to the ASTM D3043.

Procedure
In the first part of the experiment, we are to test two (2) specimens of
each dry and moist wood. The first step consists of measuring the
mass and label each of the specimens. Afterwards, measure the
dimensions of each block and dimensions smaller than 100 mm should
be measured with a digital caliper. Then the moisture content of the
sample is measured with a moisture content meter. When the
dimensions, mass and moisture content of the blocks are determined,
we can start the testing of the samples. The blocks are to be placed in
a way that the applied force is parallel to the grain of the block. Special
care is required to assure that the end grain surfaces will be parallel to
each other and at right angles to the longitudinal axis. Lastly, note the
type of failure and the maximum load at failure.
The second part of the experiment is largely similar to the procedure of
the first part; however, the grain is to be perpendicular to the applied
force. Additionally, a small metal plate is to be placed on the top of

the surface of the wood. The test is to be stopped when the top surface
of the metal plate is at the top surface of the wood. Lastly, the strength
of the specimens is determined using the applied force when the
deflection has reached 2.5 mm.
The third and last part of the experiment is to test the flexural strength
of the different engineered panels. The three different specimens to be
tested are strips of plywood, OSB and MDF. The first step is to measure
the dimensions in at least two locations, as well as the moisture
content of each specimen aided by the moisture content meter. Before
testing the flexural strength, ensure that the panels are properly
placed on the testing machine.

Results
Compression test results when parallel to grain
Sample
Mass (g)
Width (mm)
Height (mm)
Length (mm)
Moisture content (%)
Peak compressive load
(kN)
Strength (MPa)
Modulus of elasticity
(MPa)
(Density (kg/m3)

Dry sample
100.4
41.71
40.75
153.27
< 6%

Wet sample
149.3
42.42
42.08
152.99
> 25%

92.65

28.66

54.51

16.06

73.839

61.334

385.4

546.7

Failure mode

Brooming or endrolling

Brooming or endrolling

Table 1: Compression test results when applied load is parallel to grain

Compression test results when perpendicular to

grain
Deflectio
n (mm)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Load
(N)
8430
10290
11610
12780
13800
14740
15800
16190
-

Dry maple
Stress
(MPa)
8.02
9.79
11.05
12.16
13.13
14.03
15.04
15.41
-

Strain
(%)
0.024
0.048
0.072
0.096
0.120
0.144
0.168
0.192
-

Load
(N)
4550
6210
7770
9180
10420
10830
11400
11670
-

Wet maple
Stress
(MPa)
4.26
5.81
7.27
8.59
9.75
10.14
10.67
10.92
-

Strain
(%)
0.024
0.047
0.071
0.094
0.118
0.141
0.165
0.189
-

Table 2: Compression test results when applied load is perpendicular to grain

The dry sample has a maximum load of 92.65 kN when applied load is
parallel to grain while the wet sample has a maximum load of 28 .66
kN. These values of peak compressive load translate in the difference
between samples in their compressive strength (Dry: 54.51 MPa; Wet:
28.66 MPa). Oppositely, the density of a dry sample is 385.4 kg/m 3
while the wet sample has a larger density with a value of 546.7 kg/m 3.
However, this divergence in density is directly related to the moisture
content of the sample in different condition.

Stress (MPa)-strain (%) curve of the compression test results

20.00

Dry maple
Wet maple

15.00

Stress (MPa)

10.00
5.00

Dry sample trendline

f(x) = 73.84x + 6.25

f(x) = 61.33x + 2.87
R = 1
R = 1

0.00
0.000 0.100 0.200 0.300

Linear (Dry sample

trendline)
Wet sample elasiticty of
modulus
Linear (Wet sample
elasiticty of modulus)

Strain (%)
Graph 1: Stress-strain curve for applied load perpendicular to the grain

The modulus of elasticity was determined using the first few points of
the stress-strain curve of the samples. The following points of the
curve were neglected as the slope largely varies due to the permanent
deformation (yielding point) of the samples as seen in the previous
experiment (Steel and concrete behaviour). As shown on graph 1,
using the first values of the curve, the obtained modulus of elasticity is
based on a linear slope (tangent to the line), which can be considered
accurate, as the coefficient of determination of the trendline is
elevated (R2=1 and R2=0.99868).

Flexural test results of engineered panels

Panels
Load (N)
Deflection (mm)
Modulus of
rupture (MPa)
Span (mm)
Width (mm)
Thickness (mm)

Medium density
fiberboard

Oriented strand
Plywoo
board
d
608.7
432.74 447.84
25.29
42.64
45.93
15.10

Table 3: Flexural test results of engineered panels

10.73
457.2
50.8
19.05

11.11

Load (kN) - deflection (mm) curve of engineered panels

70
60
50
Plywood

40

OSB

Load (kN) 30

MDF

20
10
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
Deflection (mm)

Graph 2: Load-deflection curve of engineered panels following the flexural test

Graph 2 shows the different properties of the engineered panels. From

the illustration, we can observe that plywood ruptures at a loading of
44.0049 kg and is subjected to large a deflection without rupturing
(>50 mm), comparatively Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) supports a
large load (62.0486 kg) but its deflection is small (25.29 mm)
comparatively to plywood before fracturing. As for the Oriented Strand
Board (OSB), it deforms substantially (42.64 mm) under a respectable
load (42.6377 kg), however plywood can deform additionally without
fracturing. The load, which the medium density board can support, is
the largest recorded value as shown in table 3.

Discussion:
The results of the compression tests clearly demonstrate that the
compressive strength of the wood samples when the grains are parallel
to the applied force (92.65 kN) is superior compared to perpendicular
to the grain (16.19 kN). The strength of the dry samples (92.65 kN) is
also much stronger than the wet sample (28.66 kN). The presence of
moisture content largely increases the density of the wood without
increasing its strength. The presence of moisture content increases the
sample mass by 150% and reduces the strength by 320%. Based on
the obtained results, we can determine that the presence of moisture
is incredibly harmful to the performance of wood.
The density calculated using the dimensions and mass measured in
class for the dry sample is 385.4 kg/m 3 when the moisture content is
less than 6% while the density for the wet sample is 546.7 kg/m 3 while

the moisture content is more than 25 %. When the moisture content is

12% as identified in table 5.1, the density for eastern white pine varies
between 340 to 350 kg/m3 and the density of the silver maple is 440 to
480 kg/m3. Based on the previously mentioned results, we can deduct
that the type of lumber for the compression test with the grain parallel
to the applied force is the silver maple. As for the strength of the
samples, the compressive strength of the sample whether parallel to
the grain or perpendicular to the grain they are not within the range
determined in table 5.1. This discrepancy could have been caused by
the difference in the moisture content of the samples compared to the
values determined in the table.
The end grain of a sample may cause variations in the results of the
experiment. The end grain is used to determine the positioning of the
specimen when testing its compressive strength. Whenever the grain
orientation of the wood products is not consistent and the cross grain
is large, it is not possible to determine the appropriate way to apply
the load to ensure that it is either perpendicular or parallel to the grain.
The grain of a wood sample may not be ideal, which causes erroneous
results or the presence of knots within the wood can largely affect the
properties of the wood such as its compressive and flexural strength.
This leads to uncertainties in the estimation of the mechanical
properties of the lumber samples, which can be reduced by testing a
larger number of samples. Additionally, ASTM D3043 specifies that
span of the specimen should at least be 48 times its thickness,
however, the testing machine is the one previously used in experiment
3 meaning that the span used during the testing was not 48 times the
thickness of the sample, which may have lead to mistakes in the
obtained results as the material was not tested within the prescriptions
given by the ASTM. Deviations of standard can lead to uncertainties in
the estimation of the mechanical properties of the wood sample.

Conclusion:
Throughout the experiment we have observed that an excessive
presence of moisture within the timber can negatively impact the
performance of the products. It also increases the deformation of wood
while subjected to an inferior loading. The engineered panels tested
possess different mechanical properties and perform differently. The
Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) supports a large loading but does
not deform substantially while also characterized by a superior density;
the Oriented Strand Board deforms less than the plywood under a
smaller load while the plywood deforms largely before rupturing.
Briefly, the mechanical properties of wood can largely vary under

different conditions, wood species and density. Additionally, wood

products and engineered wood materials sport an incredible strengthto-weight ratio and availability making an affordable and effective
material.

References
Laboratory manual, CIVI 321, Michelle Nokken, Winter 2016.

Appendix
Sample calculations
Strength (stress):
P
A

A=W steel W wood

A=25.19 41.71=1050.67 mm 2
8430
=8.02 MPa
1050.67

Strain:
=

L
L

1
=0.024
41.71

Modulus of elasticity:
E=

However, the elasticity of modulus can also be determined using the

tangent of the stress-strain curve.
Density:

Mass ( kg )
3

Volume(m )
0.1004
kg
=385.40 3
0.04171 0.040750.15237
m

Modulus of rupture:
MOR=

PL
2
bd

P=Load ( kg ) gravitational constant

P=62.0486 9.81=608.70
MOR=

608.70 457.2
=15.10 MPa
50.8 19.052

Appendix B: Original data and specimen

fracture type