Chapter -5

1. Write about the structure (macro) of wood.

The structure of wood visible to the naked eye or at a small
magnification is called macro structure. The given figure shows the
macro structure of exogenous tree.

i. Pith: The innermost central portion or core of the tree is called pith
or medulla. It is the first formed portion of the stem of tree. It
consists entirely of cellular tissues. Pith structure can be solid,
porous, chambered or hollow.

ii. Heart wood: The innermost annual rings surrounding the pith is
known as heart wood. This wood is darker in colour, stronger, more
compact and durable. The cells of heart wood have been physically
and chemically altered by mineral deposits.

iii. Sap wood: The cuter annual rings between heart wood and
cambium layer is known as sap wood(alburnum). Compared with
heart wood, sap wood is lighter in colour, weaker and more liable
to decay.

iv. Cambium layer: Thin layer of sap between sap wood and inner bark
which is not yet converted into wood is known as cambium layer. If
the cambium layer is exposed by removing the bark, the cells cease
to be active and results in death of tree.

v. Inner bark: The inner skin or layer covering the cambium layer is
known as inner bark.

vi. Outer Bark: The outer skin or cover of the tree is known as outer
bark. It is outermost protective covering of cells and woody fibres
on a tree. In course of time older layer split and scale off.
vii. Medullary rays: The thin radial fibers extending from pith to
cambium layer are known as medullary rays. They carry sap from
outside to the inner parts of tree and nourish it. They keep the
annual rings tightly gripped together.
2.Differentiate between hard and soft wood.
Features Hard wood Soft wood
colour It is dark in colour Its color is light
Weight It is heavy It is light in weight
denisty They are harder and They are lighter and
denser less denser
Easyness It is difficult to work It is easy to work
Growth They have slower They have higher
growth rate growth rate
cost Comparatively Comparatively
expensive economical
Fire resistance More poor
 3.Classify wood based on nature of growth.

Depending on the mode of growth trees are classified into two

categories as :

Endogenous ;

trees are the ones that grow inwards in a longitudinal fibrous

mass such as banana, bamboo, plam and cane. Even though
the “stem” of trees of this class is light and tough yet it is too
flexible and slender to furnish material suitable for engineering
works, with the exception of bamboo.

Exogenous;

trees are those that grow outwards by the addition of one

concentric ring every year. These rings are known as annual
rings. Since one ring in the stem of a tree indicates its age in
years. It is timber obtained from this class of trees that is
extensively used in engineering works.

Timber available from exogenous trees is further classified into

two categories as :

(a) Conifers or evergreens yielding Soft wood. These are trees

with pointed leaves. Deodar, Pine, chir and kail belong to this
class.

(b) Deciduous are trees with broad leaf, yielding Hard wood.
Teak, sal, shisham belong to this class.
 4.What are different types of defects in
timber? Explain with neat sketches.
A defect is an irregularity or abnormality occuring in or on wood
which is responsible for its, strength reduction, lowering of
durability, lowering of utility.

Defect that develop during growth of tree

1. Shake :-These are longitudinal separations in wood
between the annual rings. These are cracks which partly
or completely separate fibers of wood. The separations
make the wood undesirable when appearance is important

2. Rind galls:-The rind means bark and gall indicates

abnormal growth. Hence peculiar curved swelling found
on the body of tree are known as rind gall. They develop
at points from where branches are improperly cut off or
removed. They are rarely found in a tree and the timber in
this part is very weak and not durable.

3. Twisted fibres :-These are known as wandering hearts

and caused by twisting of young trees by fast blowing
wind. The timbers with twisted fibers is unsuitable for
sawing.

4. Upsets:-
These indicate wood fibers which are injured by crushing
or compression. The upsets are mainly due to improper
felling of tree and exposure of tree in its young age to fast
blowing wind
 5. Burls:- They are particularly formed when a tree receives
shock or injury in its young age. Due to its injury, the
growth of tree is completely upset and irregular projections
appear on the body of timber, known as burls.

6. Coarse grain:- If the tree grows rapidly, the annual rings

are widened, it is known as the coarse grain timber and
such timber possesses less strength & not durable.

7. Druxiness:- This defect is indicated by white decayed

spots which are concealed by healthy wood they are
probably formed by access of fungi.

8. Foxiness /dead wood:- The timber which is obtained from

dead standing trees contains deadwood. It is indicated by
light weight and reddish or yellowish tinge color.

9. Knots:- These are the bases of branches or limbs which

are broken or cut off from the tree. The portion from which
the branch is removed receives nourishment from the
stem for a pretty long time and it ultimately results in
formation of dark hard rings which are known as knots.

Defect that develop after felling of tree

1. Dry rot :- Some types of fungi feed on woods and during

feeding they attack on wood and convert it into dry powder
form. This is known as dry rot.

2. Wet rot:- Some kind of fungi caused chemical decomposition

of wood of timber and in doing so convert timber into greyish
brown powder. It is known as wet rot.

3. Bow:- This defect is indicated by curvature formed in

direction of length of timber .
4. Cup:- This defect is indicated by curvature formed in
transverse direction of timber.

5. Check:- A crack which separates fibers of wood. It does not

extend from one end to the other

6. Split:- When check extends from one end to other, it is

known as a split.

7. Twist:- When a piece of timber has spirally distorted along

its length, it is known as a twist.

8. Honey-combing:- Due to stress developed during drying,

various radial and circular cracks develop in the interior
portion of timber, which resembles with honey-comb texture
or honey-comb structure and the defect is called honey
combing defects.

9. Wane:- This defect is denoted by presence of original

rounded surface on manufactured part of timber.

10. Diagonal grain:- The defect is formed due to improper

sawing of timber. It is indicated by diagonal marks on straight
grained surface of timber.

11. Case hardening:- The upper exposed surface of timber

dries at a very fast rate and as such it shrinks and it is
subjected to compressive stresses.
 5.Define seasoning of timber and its
objectives.

By seasoning of timber, it is understood that the controlled

reduction of moisture from the wood.

This is necessary for reducing the unnecessary weight of

timber, for effecting an increase in its strength, to improve
its workability, to reduce the possibility of development of
shrinkage defects and to ensure durability or long life of timber.
Objectives of Seasoning of Timber.
We may Summarize the objectives of seasoning of timber in
five sentences:

1. Reduces much of the useless weight of timber;

2. Increases its strength considerably;
3. Improves the workability of the timber;
4. Decreases the chances of development of shrinkage defects,
and,
5. Increases the life of timber, i.e. makes it more durable.
6.Explain various methods of seasoning.
Natural Seasoning of Timber
Natural seasoning is the process in which timber is seasoned
by subjecting it to the natural elements such as air or water.
Natural seasoning may be water seasoning or air seasoning.
Water Seasoning
Water seasoning is the process in which timber is immersed in
water flow which helps to remove the sap present in the timber.
It will take 2 to 4 weeks of time and after that the timber is
allowed to dry. Well-seasoned timber is ready to use.
Air Seasoning
In the process of air seasoning timber logs are arranged in
layers in a shed. The arrangement is done by maintaining some
gap with the ground
Artificial Seasoning of Timber
Natural seasoning gives good results but takes more time. So,
artificial seasoning of timber is developed nowadays. By
artificial seasoning, timber is seasoned with in 4-5 days. Here
also different methods of artificial seasoning are there and they
are as follows.

 Seasoning by Boiling
 Chemical seasoning
 Kiln seasoning
 Electrical seasoning
 7. Write about air seasoning and kiln seasoning
along with neat sketches.
Air Seasoning
In the process of air seasoning timber logs are arranged in
layers in a shed. The arrangement is done by maintaining some
gap with the ground. So, platform is built on ground at 300mm
height from ground. The logs are arranged in such a way that
air is circulated freely between logs. By the movement of air,
the moisture content in timber slowly reduces and seasoning
occurs. Even though it is a slow process it will produce well-
seasoned timber.

Kiln Seasoning
In this method timber is subjected to hot air in air tight chamber.
The hot air circulates in between the timber logs and reduces
the moisture content. The temperature inside the chamber is
raised with the help of heating coils. When the required
temperature is obtained moisture content and relative humidity
gets reduced and timber gets seasoned. Even though it is
costly process it will give good results strength wise.
8.How can bamboo be used as construction
materials?
Bamboo is technically a giant grass but it is the effective
timber for construction purposes. Bamboo naturally grows
in groups.

As construction materials, bamboo has a very strong fiber.

The compressive strength of bamboo is two times higher
than concrete, while the tensile strength is close to steel.
Bamboo
fiber has a shear stress that is higher than wood. Bamboo
has wider span than wood. Bamboo also can be curved
without breaking. Bamboo used as a building material are
very strong with high tensile strength, high compressive
strength and low weight.
Bamboo used as building material acts as one of the
support for concrete, especially in those locations where it
is found in abundance. Bamboo as a building material is
used for the construction of scaffolding, roof
parts, bridges and structures, houses. Unlike other
building materials like cement and asbestos, bamboo
poses no danger to health. They are cost effective and
easy to use. They are
especially in great demand in earthquake prone areas.
The use of bamboo as construction material must go
through preservation process. It is because bamboo is
vulnerable to termites and fungal attack. In construction,
bamboo is
generally preserved using borax boric acid solution
through several techniques, such as immersion,
gravitational or vertical soak diffusion, and injection using
compressor machine.
The weakness of bamboo structure is at joint. These can
be remedied by using cement mortar at joint but may
leads to damp and alkaline environment that may
encourages decaying.
 9.What are commercial forms of timber?
1. Log
The trunk of a dead tree obtained after removal of branches is
called log. It can be converted into any other or required form of
timber.

Fig 1: Timber log

2. Balk
Balk is a roughly square-shaped piece of timber obtained by
removing the bark and sapwood from the timber log. The
general cross-sectional dimensions of balk are greater than 50
mm x 50 mm and its length may be greater than 200 mm.
 Fig 2: Balk Timber Beams

3. Batten

Batten is a piece of timber which is rectangular in its cross-

section. Its thickness lies between 50 to 100 mm and breadth
varies from 125 mm to 175 mm.
 Fig 3: Timber Batten

4. Plank
A plank is a piece of timber whose thickness is less than 50
mm and breadth is greater than 50 mm.

Fig 4: Timber Planks

5. Board
A timber is called board when its thickness is less than 50 mm
and breadth is greater than 150 mm.

Fig 5: Timber Boards

6. Pole
A pole is a round-shaped long piece of timber. The maximum
diameter of a pole is about 200 mm. It is also called as a spar.
 Fig 6: Timber Poles

7. Deal
A Deal is a converted form of softwood log. It is generally
rectangular in cross-section. The thickness of deal varies from
50 mm to 100 mm and breadth is limited up to 250 mm.

Fig 7: Timber Deal

8. Scantling
Scantlings are the pieces of timber with nonstandard sizes.
These are sawn out timber to a required size depending upon
the work. The shape of the cross-section also changes
according to the requirement. However, In general, the length
of scantling is limited to 200 mm.

Fig 8: Timber Scantlings

9. Quartering
Quartering is a square piece of timber. Its length varies from
50mm to 150mm.
 Fig 9: Timber Quartering

10. End
The short pieces of battens, deals, scantlings, poles,
quartering, etc. are called as ends.
 10. Explain the methods of artificial seasoning?

Artificial Seasoning of Timber

Natural seasoning gives good results but takes more time. So,
artificial seasoning of timber is developed nowadays. By
artificial seasoning, timber is seasoned with in 4-5 days. Here
also different methods of artificial seasoning are there and they
are as follows.

 Seasoning by Boiling
 Chemical seasoning
 Kiln seasoning
 Electrical seasoning
Seasoning by Boiling
Seasoning of timber is also achieved by boiling it in water for 3
to 4 hours. After boiling timber is allowed to drying. For large
quantity of timber boiling is difficult so, sometimes hot steam is
passed through timber logs in enclosed room. It also gives
good results. The boiling or steaming process develops the
strength and elasticity of timber but economically it is of heavier
cost.
Chemical Seasoning
In case of chemical seasoning, timber is stored in suitable salt
solution for some time. The salt solution used has the tendency
to absorb water from the timber. So, the moisture content is
removed and then timber is allowed to drying. It affects the
strength of the timber.
Electrical Seasoning
In the method of electrical seasoning timber is subjected to high
frequency alternating currents. The resistance of timber against
electricity is measured at every interval of time.