Estimating the Moisture Content of Lumber above the Fiber Saturation Point Using Stress Wave Velocity during the Natural Drying Process
2016
Toyoshima, Isao | Yamasaki, Mariko | Sasaki, Yasutoshi
Determining the moisture content of wood during its drying process is important for the quality control of lumber. This study investigated the potential for using stress wave velocity to estimate moisture content in boxed-heart lumber from Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica D. Don) and examined a methodology using Monte Carlo simulation for applying estimated moisture content to quality control. Lumber was subjected to natural drying for about half a year, from the green wood condition to near the fiber saturation point, during which time stress wave velocity and moisture content were measured about seven times. Stress wave velocity was confirmed to increase with decreasing moisture content, even for lumber whose cross-sectional dimensions were comparatively large. The relation between stress wave velocity and moisture content was expressible by a regression line over a range of moisture content above the fiber saturation point. The database for the relation between stress wave velocity and moisture content was further divided into three groups based on apparent density, and the same analysis was conducted. Estimation precision was found to improve over the entire moisture content range when analyzed within each individual group compared with analysis values obtained when ungrouped. Finally, application of Monte Carlo simulation to the moisture content estimations was able to account statistically for the variation in the relation between stress wave velocity and moisture content. This method was found to be effective in reducing estimation error for quality control purposes.
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