1

Chapter 1


Introduction



1.1 Introduction

Wood has been used for a very long time ago due to the physical and mechanical properties
such as appearance, durability and performance. Wood has good insulating properties
against heat, sound and electricity other than tends to absorb vibrations under some
condition of use. Historically, woods have filled many purposes in our daily life and for
example, as structural material (bridge, construction and etc.), indoor and outdoor
application (flooring, panelling, door and window frame) and other products.


But, wood also face some problems such as fungi, swelling when absorb water,
shrinking when dried, strength reducing, compression failure, bending and porosity. The
weakness or limitation of wood as mention can be modified using nowadays technology.
Wood polymer composite (WPC) is the approach for consistency of wood usage and
research had been done and still undergoing to study the physical and mechanical
properties of WPC. Hence, future study of WPC should be done to modify the structure and
chemical of wood and at the same time can improve its properties for widely use.


1.1.1 Wood

The production of wood materials is from variety types of trees and it can be classified into
softwoods (conifers) and hardwood. The classification of wood is done base on its density,
however, some of softwoods are actually harder than some of hardwoods and some
hardwoods are softer than softwoods.

2



Softwoods are Gymnosperms, the species that is classified as conifers. Conifers are
usually evergreen with the shape of leaves look like needle or scale and narrow and bear
exposed seeds usually in cones (Little, 1993). For examples are pines, spruces, redwoods
and junipers.


The other classification of wood is Angiosperms that include the various orders of
hardwoods. According to Little (1993), hardwoods are mostly deciduous have net-veined
leaves and bear seeds enclosed in fruits. Examples for tropical hardwoods used as wood
based material and furniture are Cassia, Hevea, Mansonia and Pentacme.


a. Structure of Wood

The structure of wood can be seen from its cross section of tree trunk. Figure 1.1
shows the element of wood structure from the outer to inner and Figure 1.2 is the
simplified for the main elements of wood.


Figure 1.1: Wood Cross-Section
Source: Encyclopdia Britannica Online (19 October 2010)


The first layer of wood structure is bark as shown in Figure 1.1 which can be
divided into the outer and the thin inner living part which is corky cambium and
3



secondary phloem. The inner part of the growth ring formed is called earlywood or
springwood and the outer part formed later in the growing season is latewood or
summerwood as shown in figure above. Earlywood is characterised by cells that
having relatively large cavities and thin walls. Latewood cells have smaller cavities
and thicker walls.



Figure 1.2: Cross-Section of tree trunk


By referring to Figure 1.1 and Figure 1.2, the location of sapwood is next to the
cambium that contains only a few living cells and functions primarily in the storage of
food. The thickness of sapwood is range between one and half to two inches in radial
thickness. Heartwood is at the inner of wood structure and consists of inactive cells
that have been slightly changed both chemically and physically from the cells of the
inner sapwood rings. Usually, this part is used in production of wood materials
because heartwood has higher extractives content than sapwood.


The small central core of wood is known as pitch (Figure 1.1) and often darker in
colour which represents primary growth formed when woody stems or branches
elongate. Most branches originate at the pitch and their bases are inter-grown with
the wood of the trunk as long as they are alive.



4




Figure 1.3: Three principle axes of wood growth
Source: Courtesy of U.S Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisc.


Figure 1.3 illustrated the principle axes or direction of wood growth with respect
to grain direction and growth ring. These directions of symmetry are used to the
trunk cuts across the grain where grain is the cells in the xylem or wood that
oriented vertically along the line of the trunk. Followed by illustration in Figure 1.4, at
each point the directions of symmetry are longitudinal direction of tracheids of fibres,
the radial direction of rays and the tangential direction to the growth rings. These are
representing as L, R and T.



Figure 1.4: LRT reference frame of wood


b. Chemical Composition of Wood

Wood is a complex fibre-reinforced composite where each cell itself is a composite of
different cell wall layers where a complex structure of cellulose fibrils, hemicelluloses
and lignin builds even a non-structural material level (Fengel and Wegener, 1989).
The other point of view from Kollmann (1968), wood is composed of millions of
5



individual units called cell, which differ in shape and size, depending on the trees
physiology function.


Variations in the characteristics and volume of the four components (cellulose,
hemicelluloses, lignin and extractive) and differences in cellular structure result in
some woods being heavy and light, some stiff and some flexible, some hard and
some soft. The description of chemical composition of wood below - cellulose,
hemicelluloses, lignin and extraction is base on the Wood Handbook: Wood as an
Engineering Material.


Cellulose is the strong, long chain C
6
H
12
O
6
polymers comprising 40 to 50 percent
of woods cell wall weight and makes this part as the major part of wood structure.
During the growth of tree, the linear cellulose molecules are arranged into highly
order strands called fibrils (synthetic fibre) which in turn are organized into the larger
structural elements comprising the cell wall of wood fibres.


Hemicelluloses comprise 20 to 40 percent of woods cell wall weight. A
polysaccharide, lower in molecular weights than cellulose, has a weak
undifferentiated structure compared to crystalline cellulose. Softwoods contain an
average of 15 to 20 percent hemicelluloses and hardwoods contain an average of 20
to 30 percent hemicelluloses with xylems as the major sugar.


Lignin is natures cemented and along with hemicelluloses, exploits the strength
of cellulose while conferring flexibility. It comprises 25 to 35 percent of woods cell
wall weight; softwoods comprise 23 to 33 percent but only 16 to 25 percent of
hardwoods. As a chemical, lignin is an intractable, insoluble material, probably
bonded at least loosely to the cellulose.

6




Dry wood also made up by extractives that contribute to such properties of
wood as colour, odour, taste, decay resistance, strength and density. Extractives are
organic compounds found in the heartwood structure of a log where it comprises up
to 25 percent of the cell wall weight. The colour of heartwood will be different than
sapwood because of extractives and as a general rule; a dark colour may represent
heartwood in a wood sample.


c. Rubber Wood

Hevea Brasillensis is the scientific name for natural rubber tree and it is the most
important commercial sources of natural rubber that grown in about 9 million
hectares in the tropical regions of Asia, Africa and America. While, the rubber wood
is wood from the Par rubber tree often called the rubber tree or parawood and used
in high-end furniture.


Nowadays, rubber wood (RW) is the most ecologically friendly lumber used in
furniture industry. This is because after the economic life of rubber tree which is
generally at the age of 22 to 29 years, latex production becomes extremely low and
the trees are then cut and replant. Source from RISDA said that in Malaysia, rubber
tree will be replant after 15 to 20 years of growing due to uneconomic factor.


Hence, unlike other woods that are cut down for the sole purpose of producing
furniture, rubber wood is used only after it cycle of latex producing complete and
dies. This wood is also eco-friendly due to using tree that was going as waste.




7



i. Physical Properties

Rubber wood is a light wood and the wood is whitish yellow or pale cream when
freshly cut and seasons to light straw or light brown. It is a moderately
hardwood which density ranging from 435 to 626 kg/m
3
at 12% of moisture
content. It is diffuse porous wood with medium texture and straight grain.


The other physical properties of rubber wood are shown in Table 1.1 below.
The tangential and radial shrinkage coefficient is 1.2% and 0.8% of wood. The
properties of rubber wood in Table 1.1 below can be used as a guide for further
study of rubber wood in wood polymer composite.


Table 1.1: Properties of rubber wood
Properties Details
Density (at 16% moisture content) 560-640 kg/m
2

Tangential Shrinkage Coefficient 1.2%

Radial Shrinkage Coefficient 0.8%

Hardness 4350 kN

Static Bending (at 12% moisture content) 66 N/mm
Modulus of Elasticity (at 12% moisture content) 9700 N/mm


ii. Mechanical Properties

The following tables give the properties of rubber wood under bending (Table
1.2), compression (Table 1.3), tension (Table 1.4), shear (Table 1.5) and
hardness (Table 1.6) for dry moisture content of 12%.


8



Bending properties in Table 1.2 is shown for two conditions - static and
dynamic. For mechanical properties under compression strength as given in
Table 1.3, the wood is tested in parallel and perpendicular to grain. Under
tensile strength, mechanical properties may be known from direction
perpendicular to grain where the force applied is at radial and tangential as
given in Table 1.4 below.


Table 1.2: Bending Properties
Properties Units Dry Moisture
Content of 12%
Static Condition
Fibre stress at elastic limit kg/cm
2
368
Modulus of elasticity 1000 kg/cm
2
82
Modulus of rupture kg/cm
2
756
Dynamic Condition
Fibre stress at elastic limit kg/cm
2
820
Modulus of elasticity 1000 kg/cm
2
118.2
Max height of drop of 25kg hammer cm 43


Table 1.3: Compression Strength
Properties Units Dry Moisture
Content of 12%
Parallel to Grain
Compressive stress at elastic limit kg/cm
2
187
Maximum crashing stress kg/cm
2
374
Modulus of elasticity in compression 1000 kg/cm
2
99.3
Perpendicular to Grain
Compressive stress at elastic limit kg/cm
2
101

9



Table 1.4: Tensile Strength
Properties Units Dry Moisture
Content of 12%
Perpendicular to grain maximum
tensile stress, radial
kg/cm
2
56.7
Maximum tensile stress, tangential kg/cm
2
62.8


Table 1.5: Shear Strength
Maximum Shear Strength (kg/cm
2
)
Condition of Moisture Content (%) Radial Tangential Average
Dry 12% 107.7 119.5 113.1


Hardness of wood is very important for application like flooring and decking
where absorption of surface is taking place. Table 1.6 below gives the hardness
measured by indention of steel ball and it can be seen that dry rubber wood at
moisture content 12% has better hardness than teak wood.


Table 1.6: Hardness on Different Surface
Condition of Moisture
Content (%)
Maximum Shear Strength (kg)
Radial Tangential End Average
Dry 12% 549 526 627 567


iii. Application

Rubber wood has been using for making building components such as
doors, windows, steps, railing and many more. It is also used in furniture
and cabinet making, flooring, packing cases, wood carvings, veneer and
10



plywood, pulp and paper and fibre board-medium density fibre and hard
boards.


1.1.2 Polymer

For centuries, the versatility of polymers gives a lot of advantages in the form of oils, tars,
resins and gums to human being. Polymers are the large class of materials consisting of
many small molecules known as monomers that can be linked together to form long chains,
otherwise known as macro-molecules (Mano and Mendes, 1999). The term monomer refers
to the small molecule from which a polymer is synthesized. Polymers are widely used in
composite as fibres or as matrix (Challa, 1993) and polymers are vary from liquids and soft
rubbers to very hard and rigid solids.


Polymer is also used in modification of wood chemical to improve the dimensional
stability and mechanical properties of wood. The chemical modification of poplar wood with
foaming polyurethane resins, leading to the improvement of the dimensional stability due to
wood hydroxyl groups blocked by the isocyano groups and of the mechanical properties due
to reinforcement of foam in the cell walls and void space (Goa and Li, 2007).


a. Synthesis of Polymer (Polymerization)

The synthesis of these large molecules (polymers) is termed as polymerization; it is
simply the process by which monomers are linked together to generate long chains
composed of repeat units (William, 2007) where the reaction mechanism of polymers
are grouped into two general classification - addition and condensation .




11



Addition polymerization or sometimes called chain reaction polymerization is a
process by which monomer units are attached one at a time in chainlike fashion to
form a linear macromolecule. The composition of the resultant product molecule is
an exact multiple for that of the original reactant monomer. Three distinct stages-
initiation, propagation and termination are involved in addition polymerization.
During the initiation step, an active centre capable of propagation is formed by
reaction between initiator (or catalyst) species and the monomer unit.


Propagation involves the linear growth of the polymer chain by the sequential
addition of monomer units to this active growing chain molecule. Propagation may
end or terminate in different ways. First, the active ends of two propagation chains
may link together to form one molecule according to the following reaction and this
type of termination reaction is known as combination. The other termination
possibility involves two growing molecules that react to form two dead chain that is
called as disproportionate. Addition polymerization is used in the synthesis of
polyethylene, polypropylene, poly (vinyl chloride) and polystyrene, as well as many
copolymers.


Condensation (or step reaction) polymerization is the formation of polymers by
stepwise intermolecular chemical reactions that may involve more than one
monomer species. There are usually small molecular weight by-products such as
water that is eliminated (or condense). No reactant species occurs every time a
repeat unit is formed. The thermosetting polyesters and phenol-formaldehyde, the
nylons, and the polycarbonates are produced by condensation polymerization.






12



b. Physical Characteristics of Polymer

Modern polymer synthesis techniques permit considerable control over various
structural possibilities of molecular- linear, branched, cross-linked and network.
Figure 1.5 shows the schematic diagram of the molecular structure.



Figure 1.5: Schematic representations of (a) linear, (b) branched, (c) cross-
linked, and (d) network molecular structures. Circles designate individual repeat
units.


Linear polymers are those in which the repeat units are joined together end to
end in single chains. These long chains are flexible where each circle represents a
repeat unit. For linear polymers, there may be extensive van der Waals and
hydrogen bonding between the chains. Some of the common polymers that form
with linear structures are polyethylene, poly (vinyl chloride), polystyrene, poly
(methyl methacrylate), nylon and the fluorocarbons.


Branches polymer is considered to be a part of the main-chain molecule, may
result from side reactions that occur during the synthesis of the polymer. The chain
packing efficiency is reduced with the formation of side branches which results in a
lowering of the polymer density. Those polymers that form linear structures may also
13



be branched. For example, high density polyethylene (HDPE) is primarily a linear
polymer, while low density polyethylene (LDPE) contains short chain branches.


In cross-linked polymer, adjacent linear chains are joined one to another at
various positions by covalent bonds. The process of cross-linking is achieved either
during synthesis or by a non-reversible chemical reaction. Often, this cross-linking is
accomplished by additive atoms or molecules that are covalently bonded to the
chains.


Network polymer is multifunctional monomers that forming three or more active
covalent bonds, make three-dimensional networks. A polymer that is highly cross-
linked may also be classified as a network polymer. These materials have distinctive
mechanical and thermal properties; the epoxies, polyurethanes and phenol-
formaldehyde belong to this group.


c. Thermoplastic Polymer

Thermoplastic soften when heated and harden when cooled-process that are totally
reversible and may be repeated. On a molecular level, as the temperature is raised,
secondary bonding forces are reduced by increased molecular motion so that the
relative movement of adjacent chains is facilitated when stress is applied. Irreversible
degradation results when a molten thermoplastic polymer is raised too high of a
temperature. In addition, thermoplastic are relatively soft. Most linear polymers and
those having some branched structures with flexible chains are thermoplastic.
Examples of common thermoplastic polymers include polyethylene, poly (vinyl
chloride), polystyrene, poly (ethylene terephthalate).



14



d. Thermosetting Polymer

Thermosetting polymers are network polymers and become permanently hard during
their formation but do not soften upon heating. Thermoset polymers are generally
harder and stronger than thermoplastics and have better dimensional stability. Most
of the cross-linked and network polymers which include vulcanized rubbers, epoxies
and phenolics and some polyester resins are thermosetting.


e. Unsaturated Polyester Resin

Polyesters were polymers with repeating carboxylate groups in their backbone chain
and the polyester backbone was generally composed of three basic types of
structural units, saturated acids, unsaturated acids and glycols (Azura, 2007). For
this study, unsaturated polyester resin that will be used is classified under thermoset
polymer due to the effect of heat on the properties where the curing time for
polyester resins depends on the decomposition rate of the catalyst, which can be
increasing the curing temperature reported by Azura (2007).


Linear unsaturated polyesters were prepared batch wise by heating and cooling
and fitted for distillation. A typical formulation for a general-purpose material were as
follows; propylene glycol, 100 parts by weight (100%wt), maleicanhydride, 72 parts
by weight (72%wt) and phthalic anhydride 54 parts by weight (54%wt) with typical
reaction conditions were 150-200 C for 6-16 hours, and hydroquinone was
commonly used as the inhibitor (Azura, 2007).


Their advantages are low viscosity, fast cure time and low cost, but their
properties are generally lower than those for epoxies (Schwartz, 1997). The
disadvantage of polyester resin is their high volumetric shrinkages because this

15



allows easier release of parts from the mould but the different shrinkage between
the resin and fibers results in uneven depression on the moulded surface (Schwartz,
1997). Schwartz (1997) in his book also wrote one way of reducing these surface
defects is to use low shrinkage polyester resins containing a thermoplastics
component (such as polystyrene or polymethyl methacrylate).


1.1.3 Composite

A composite is composed of two or more individual materials which come from the different
of combination metals, ceramics and polymers and additionally, some natural source such as
wood and bone also considered to be composite (William, 2007). Composite is invented to
achieve a combination of properties that is not displayed by any single material and to
incorporate the best characteristics of each of the component materials (William, 2007).


1.1.4 Wood Polymer Composite

In recent years, wood polymer composite (WPC) have experienced significant market
development as a replacement for solid wood. WPCs have found commercial application
where the specific physical property improvements can be used to advantage and with the
finish integrated through the WPCs, maintenance problems are kept to a minimum. An
advanced of mechanical properties of WPCs give confidence to countries such as United
States, Germany, England, Poland, Italy, Japan, Taiwan and New Zealand to produce WPC
(Meyer, 1982).


Unlike other materials, wood is recycled with difficulty, however, since it is porous
material its pores can be filled with various chemicals to modify its properties. According to
Kowalski et al (2002), it is seen that fillings of wood pore structure with polymer rises the
hardness of the composite several times. This is proven by Meyer (1982), in principle; WPCs

16



should display superior mechanical properties, dimensional stability, greater resistance to
chemical and biological degradation and less moisture absorption than non-impregnated
wood.


Wood polymer composite also have emerged as a viable replacement for industrial
structural applications such as water-front structures and bridge decking due to their
resistance to moisture and decay. WPC has resistance against biological deterioration for
outdoor applications such as landscaping timbers, fencing, playground equipment, railings,
decking, windows and door frame where conventional wood products are not appropriate.


1.1.5 Mechanical Properties

The ultimate capacity of wood is determined by the forces in bending, compression, shear,
hardness and tension in the three directions or planes.


a. Fracture Toughness

Fracture toughness is measure of ability of a material to resist extension of a pre-
existing crack, despite the stress concentration that is built up there. For a
quantitative measure of toughness which can be used to relate the apparent
toughness values observed in the different practical test or in conducting a stress
analysis of functional parts, the fracture toughness test is used.


By using fracture mechanical principles, an expression has been developed that
relates this critical stress for crack propagation
( )
c
o and crack length
( ) a as
c c
K Y a o t = . In this expression
c
K is the fracture toughness, a property that is

17



measure of a materials resistance to brittle fracture when a crack is present.
c
K has
the unusual units of MPa m or psi in (alternatively, ksi in ).


b. Crack Modes

Crack for surface of wood displacement is take place in three modes of crack as
illustrated in Figure 1.6 below.




Figure 1.6: The three modes of crack surface displacement - (a) Mode I, (b) mode
II and (c) mode III, tearing mode


In Figure 1.6 (a), mode of crack is known as Mode I or opening or tensile mode.
For mode I, the ends of a pre-cracked specimen are pulled apart in a direction
perpendicular to the plane of crack. While in Figure 1.6 (b), the direction of crack is
parallel but transverse to the plane and identified as mode II. In a third mode (mode
III) test, the plane of the crack is sheared by sliding motion in the direction of the crack
and it is shown in Figure 1.6 (c) above.






18



In addition, the crack mode also develop in combination of modes I and III as
shown in Figure 1.7 where the mode is developed at the tip of a circumferential crack in
a solid circular cylinder loaded by superimposed tensile and torsion loading. A crack
which is inclined to the direction of loading in a plate will show a combination of modes
I and II (Figure 1.7).


Figure 1.7: Combined mode I and II loading


A complex mixed mode state is the other mode of crack as illustrated in Figure
1.8 below. The element shown represents a free body element cut from a structural
component. With the boundary loading indicated an embedded semi-elliptical surface
crack could exhibit all three crack modes. Modes I and II are developed at points A and
B. At point C a combination of modes I and III would be indicated.



Figure 1.8: Complex mixed mode state

19



There are six principle systems of crack propagation in woods named by a pair of
letters (Smith et al., 2003) which are TL, RL, LR, TR, RT and LT as illustrated in Figure 1.9
below. First letters mean the direction of the normal to the crack plane and the second letter
indicates the direction of crack propagation. The crack propagation in the LR or LT system
(i.e., across wood fibres) is rarely observed (Ashby et al., 1985). The RL and TL systems
constitute the most frequent of the remaining systems of crack propagation (i.e., along
wood fibres) because of the particular design of timber structure.








Figure 1.9: Principal crack propagation systems for wood


c. Flexural Behaviour

Flexural strength is the resistance of a material to breakage by bending stress. The
strength of material in bending expressed as tensile stress of the outermost fibres of
a bent test sample at the instant failure. The unit of resistance to the maximum load
failure by bending usually in kips per square inch (mega Pascals). Usually, there is a
standard of testing will be followed such as American Standard Testing Materials
(ASTM) and to determine the flexural properties of material, ASTM test method
D790-81 is used.


Figure 1.10 shows the method of testing for flexural behaviour of wood (a)
simple beam, (b) three-point bending and (c) four-point bending test.

Longitudinal (L)
Tangential (T)
Radial (R)
20





Figure 1.10: Types of flexural tests


Three-Bending Point Test

In the recent study about wood, a three-point bend end-notched flexural (3-ENF)
test conducted under controlled loading point displacement was found to be a
promising way to determine the fracture toughness (Yoshihara and Ohta, 2000).
Based on Williams (1989) modified bending theory, Kageyama et al., (1991), Tanaka
et al., (1995) and Hojo et al., (1995) proposed a method for evaluating the crack
length in the 3-ENF test, and Qiao et al., (2002) extended this approach to propose a
double tapered specimen with constant compliance crack-length for evaluating
bonded interfaces.


In the 3-ENF test under this loading condition, however, the initial crack
length should be at least 0.7 times of the half specimen length (refer Figure 1.11) to
stabilize the crack propagation and the crack length range is quite restricted.





(a)
(c) (b)
21



Figure 1.11: Three-point loading end-notched flexural (ENF) test scheme for
measuring the flexural strength of composite material (Yoshihara and Ohta, 2000)


An ENF specimen with the crack length of a is loaded by
P
at the centre of
the sample of 2L. In this case, the equation of bending is given by the elementary
beam theory as follows; (Yoshihara and Ohta, 2000)

( )
( )
( )
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
0
8 4
1

2
1
2
2
x
x
x
E I d y
Px x a
dx
d y
E I Px a x L
dx
d y
E I Px PL L x L
dx
= s s
= s s
= s s
(1.1)

where
x
E is Youngs modulus in the longitudinal axis and I is the second moment of
cross-sectional area in the crack-free region. Solving this equation, we can obtain the
displacement at the loading point, v as follows by Equation (1.2).

( )
3 3
2 3
12
x
P L a
v
E I
+
= (1.2)

The loading point compliance C is defined as follows:

3 3
2 3
12
x
v L a
C
P E I
+
= = (1.3)
22


For rectangular cross section, the flexural strength
fs
o is equal to Equation (1.4) as
shown below;

max
2
3
2
fs
F L
bh
o =
(1.4)



From the previous study, 3-ENF or three-point bending test have frequently
used to measure the mode II fracture toughness (Yoshihara and Ohta, 2000;
Kageyama et al., 1991; Tanaka et al., 1995; and Schuecker et al., 2000). Fracture
toughness was measured according to Kageyama et al. (1991). Ten specimens were
used in this experiment.


Four-Bending Point Test

Figure 1.12 is illustrated the other method for flexural test which is four-point
bending test. As shown in Figure 1.12, a four end notch fracture (4-ENF) specimen
supported with a span of 2L is located by
2
P
at the points of
2
L
x = and
3
2
L
by the
left and right rollers, respectively and the crack length a ranges from
2
L
until
3
2
L



Figure 1.12: Schematic diagram of four-point bend end-notched flexure
(4-ENF) test (Yoshihara, 2004)
23



To induce the pure mode II (sliding) fracture in the 4-ENF test, crack surface
should coincide with the neutral axis and configuration of cross-section should be
symmetrical about the neutral axis (Williams, 1988, 1989 and Hashemi et al., 1990).
The equation for flexure is given by the beam theory as follows; (Martin et al., 1999)

2
'
2
2
'
2
2
2
2
2
1 1
0
4 2
1 1

8 2
1 3

4 2
1 3
2
2 2
x
x
x
x
d y
E I Px x L
dx
d y
E I Px L x a
dx
d y
E I Px a x L
dx
d y
E I Px PL L x L
dx
| |
= s s
|
\ .
| |
= s s
|
\ .
| |
= s s
|
\ .
| |
= s s
|
\ .
(1.5)

where
x
E is the Youngs Modulus in the long axis, and I and
'
I are the second
moments of cross-sectional areas in the crack free and cracked portions,
respectively.


In a previous paper, four-point bend notched flexure (4-ENF) tests were
conducted to obtain the relation between the mode II fracture toughness and crack
length of wood using a specimen with an I-shaped cross-section (Yoshihara, 2004).


The I-shaped of cross section is also applied for three-point bending test.
Figure 1.13 below shows the cross section of I-shaped specimen for 4-ENF test and
the dimension given is as follows; W = 15mm, b = 3mm, B = 6mm, H = 7.5mm, t
= 0.75mm, T = 6.75mm.

24


Figure 1.13: Shape of cross-section of the specimen (Yoshihara, 2004)


d. Strength Characteristics

Strength of material is its ability to withstand an applied stress without failure.
Compression, tension and shear are the possibility of stress applied that can obtain
the strength characteristics of materials as illustrated in Figure 1.14 below.


Figure 1.14: A material being loaded in (a) Compression, (b) Tension and (c)
Shear


There are some studies on the material behaviour that concerning the
mechanical properties under compression. Some studies were performed for uniaxial
compression in the longitudinal direction investigating elastic material characteristics
(Kollmann, 1967; Sliker, 1985, 1989; Conners and Medvecz, 1992; Yoshihara and
Ohta, 1994). Studies on the deformation and failure mechanism under compression
in longitudinal direction were performed by Kucera and Bariska (1982), and also
using foam models for compression in longitudinal, radial and tangential direction by
25


Maiti et al. (1984) and Gibson and Ashby (1997). Moreover, some studies on biaxial
compression (Yoshihara et al., 1996), dynamic uniaxial crushing (Reid et al., 1989;
Reid and Peng, 1997) and compressive fatigue in the longitudinal direction (Clorius
et al., 2000) can also be found in the literature.


e. Hardness

Another mechanical property that is important to consider is hardness which is a
measure of a materials resistance localized plastic deformation. Hardness test are
performed more frequently than other mechanical test for a few reasons; (William,
2007), 1) They are simple and inexpensive ordinarily no special specimen need be
prepared and the testing apparatus is relatively inexpensive, 2) The test is non-
destructive where the specimen is neither fractured nor excessively deformed; a
small indention is the only deformation and 3) Other mechanical properties often
maybe estimated from hardness data, such as tensile strength. There are three types
of hardness testing which are Brinell hardness test, Rockwell hardness test and
Knoop tets.


Brinell Test

Brinell hardness test is a hard, spherical indenter (usually 10mm in diameter) is
forced into the surface of the material to be tested. The hardness number (HB or
HBN) is calculated from the Equation (1.6) below;


( )
2 2
2F
HB
D D D d t
=




(1.6)

where HB is the Brinell hardness (MPa), F is the applied load (kg), D is the steel
ball diameter (mm) and d is the steel ball mark diameter (mm).
26


Rockwell Test

This test is the most common method used to measure hardness because they are
so simple to perform and required no special skills. With this system, a hardness
number is determined by the difference in depth of penetration resulting from the
application of an initial minor load followed by a large major load; utilization of a
minor load enhances test accuracy. For Rockwell, the minor load is 10kg whereas the
major loads are 60, 100 and 150kg. The indenters include spherical and hardness
steel balls and conical diamond. The depth of the penetration of the indentor is
automatically measured and converted to Rockwell hardness number (HR).


Knoop Test

Knoop test is a micro hardness measurement because the applied loads are much
smaller than Rockwell and Brinell, ranging between 1 and 1000g. For each test a
very small diamond indenter having pyramidal geometry is forced into the surface of
the specimen.


1.2 Problem Statement

Physical properties of rubber wood itself have limitation for application in long time due to
its mechanical failure such as reducing in strength and compression failure. Porosity is the
main reason for the failure of wood and to reduce the failure in application, WPC is produce
as an alternative. Hence, for this study of wood polymer composite, rubber wood will be
used as the matrix and impregnated with unsaturated polyester resin. Mechanical testing of
flexural properties and strength characteristics of WPC will be done and analysed.





27


1.3 Objective

There are a few objectives to achieve in this study base on the problems that was occurred
in the previous discussion. The objectives of this study are:


i. To prepare rubber wood samples and synthesis rubber wood samples with
unsaturated polyester resin.

ii. To study the flexural behaviour and strength characteristics of rubber wood
species impregnated with unsaturated polyester resin and compare impregnated
and non-impregnated rubber wood samples.

iii. To study and observe the characteristics of rubber wood species and rubber
wood species impregnated with unsaturated polyester resin by scanning electron
microscopy (SEM).

28


Chapter 2


Literature Review



2.1 Wood Chemical Modification

Modification to the wood chemical is mostly done with intension to study about the
dimensional stabilisation and mechanical properties of wood and this is well-known as wood
polymer composite (WPC). Nowadays, a few researches is done to study about the
mechanical properties of wood polymer composite by impregnating different types of wood
and polymer.


In 1995, a study in this field had done by Shane and his friends that focused on the
research of wood polymer composites based on two Australian commercial timbers, radiata
pine (pinus radiata) a soft wood and fast growing plantation timber and blackbutt
(eucalyptus piluliaris), a hard wood which is also a plantation timber. WPC using these types
of woods were prepared using the vinyl monomer which is methyl methacrylate (MMA).
Catalyst-accelerator method was used to prepare these composite and involves the
impregnation of wood samples using MMA containing benzoyl peroxide (1%), lauroyl
peroxide (0.5%) and accelerator; N,N-dimethylaniline (0.5%) but before that, wood samples
were pre-treated with the silane coupling agent (vinyltriacetoxysilance) and then the
polymerization process was initiated at room temperature (Shane et al., 1995). From the
results obtained by Shane et al. (1995), all the WPC samples showed increase in resistance
to compression and this finding was expected because the incorporation of polymer into the
wood would reduce the proportion of void spaces in the wood and hence a greater force
would be required to deform the WPC specimen than for wood alone.



29


The other research of study on WPC was performed by Kowalski et al. (2002) where
the study is regarding to the physical and mechanical properties of pine sapwood and
heartwood modified with mehylmethacrylate. The process of wood saturation with
methylmetacrylate was carried out in vacuum conditions in a special autoclave of partial
vacuum 0.08 MPa where the air was executed from the wood pore for a period of 1h and
the stabilized methacrylate was supplied to the autoclave (Kowalski et al., 2002). It was
shown that wood with methacrylate polymer filler is not only more resistive against water
soaking, but also has improved mechanical properties such as strength, hardness and
impact strength (Kowalski et al., 2002).


Wood-Polymer Composite: Physical and Mechanical Properties of Some Wood
Species Impregnated with Styrene and Methyl Methacrylate was studied about the possibility
of obtaining wood-polymer composite (WPC) displaying a performance superior to that of
untreated wood from reforested genera (Stolf and Lahr, 2004). Wood samples of Pine (Pinus
caribaea) and Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus grandis), whose density is compatible with this
process, were impregnated under vacuum pressure method with the polymeric monomers
styrene and methyl methacrylate, using benzoyl peroxide (monomer-initiator solution) to
initiate the polymerization process forming free radicals (Stolf and Lahr, 2004). The
comparison between Pinus caribaea impregnated with the styrene and methyl methacrylate
monomers showed a significant increase of compression strength, hardness and abrasion
resistance related to the non-impregnated samples (Stolf and Lahr, 2004).


In recent study of WPC by Mohamad et al., (2007), rubber wood was impregnated
with glcidyl methacrylate (GMA), dially phthalate (DAP) and the combination of GMA and
DAP. The samples firstly were oven dried and then measured for their dimensions and
weight. Vacuum pressure method was also used by Mohamad et al., (2007) similar as the
previous researcher for impregnation process but different level of vacuum pressure was
applied (5, 15 and 25 mm Hg) and held for 5 min and then, polymerization process was took
place in an oven dried for 24 hours at 105
0
C. Bending and compression tests (ASTM D790)


30


were performed on the cured and control samples using Universal Testing Machine Model
STM 10 at a crosshead speed of 2 mm/min resulted modulus of rapture (MOR) and modulus
of elasticity (MOE) of the impregnated samples were higher than the untreated samples
(Mohamad et al., 2007).


31


Chapter 3


Project Planning



3.1 Gantt Chart

Planning is very important to make sure the project that will be done is in arrangement and
complete in the given period. Gantt chart is one of the way to arrange and planning work for
a project. For this project, the planning is base on the work that will be done in each
semester.


Gantt chart for semester one is shown in Table 3.1 and it is started from the first
week of July until end of week in December. As planning in Table 3.1, review of literature is
done from July until October for writing a proposal. This is done to propose a title of project
that will be done and also to review the methodology that had done by the previous
researcher. For this study, the title that was suggested is Wood Polymer Composite (WPC):
A Study on Flexural Behaviour and Strength Characteristics of Rubber Wood Impregnated
with Unsaturated Polyester Resin.


The next planning is proceeding with sampling and synthesis of rubber wood and
this is should be done in November. After that, impregnation and polymerization process will
take place around December. Mechanical testing also will be done in the first semester to
study and compare the mechanical properties of rubber wood and composite of rubber
wood.




32


Hence, the expected outcome for planning of project especially in first semester is to
finish up the proposal writing, sampling and synthesis, polymerization process and
mechanical testing of wood (rubber wood) polymer composite. Analysis will be done in the
next semester as shown in Table 3.2 and the expected outcome is to observe the new
properties of rubber wood.




Table 3.1: Activity for Semester 1
No. Activity Semester 1
July August September October November December
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4

1.

Literature Review





2.

Proposal Writing



3.

Sampling and
Synthesis



4.

Polymerization
Process



5.
Mechanical Test
i. Three Bending
Point
ii. Axial
Compression
iii. Hardness

34

Table 3.2: Activity for Semester 2





No. Activity Semester 2
January February March April
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4

1.

Analyzing



2.

Completion of
experimental phase



3.

Report Writing


- Progression of activity



Chapter 4


Project Progress



4.1 Design of Experiment

The other progress in this semester is completed the design of experimental (DOE) which is
included samples preparation, impregnation and polymerization, testing and analysis. Figure
4.9 was illustrated the DOE in flow chart diagram.


4.1.1 Preparation of Samples

Rubber wood is the base material for this study will be cut in a specific dimension (length x
width x thickness). The dimension of samples for bending test is 300 x 20 x 20 mm
3
as
shown in Figure 4.1 and Figure 4.2 shows the dimension for compression test which is 50 x
20 x 20 mm
3
.



Figure 4.1: Dimension of sample for bending test





36


Figure 4.2: Dimension of sample for compression test


The dimension for hardness test will be cut in dimension as shown in Figure 4.3
which is 50 x 50 x 5 mm
3
.


Figure 4.3: Dimension of sample for hardness test


For all of these tests bending, compression and hardness, the direction of wood
cutting is same which is in RL direction as illustrated in Figure 4.4. This is according to the
particular design of timber structure where the RL and TL systems constitute the most
frequent ones. Six samples of rubber wood species and rubber wood species impregnated
will be used for each test.






Figure 4.4: RL direction of wood sample


37


After all the samples are cutting into the dimension required, the part of the water in
the wood has to remove from its pores due to the woods moisture content. The test
samples are oven-dried at a temperature of 40
0
C until their moisture content decrease to
12% and then, the temperature of oven will be raise gradually to 50
0
C to reduce the
possibility of cracking or wrapping (Stolf et al., 2004).


The moisture content (MC) in the test sample will be calculated by using formula below:

(%) 100
WAD WBD
MC x
WBD

=
(4.1)


where WAD is the weight of test sample after oven-dried; WBD is the weight of test sample
before oven-dried at certain temperature and MC is the moisture content.


The moisture content of wood has to be reduced to the equilibrium moisture content
(EMC) and this is about 12% for dimensional stability and for obtaining good machining and
finishing properties.


4.1.2 Impregnation Process

The method for impregnation process of wood with the polymer is by using vacuum-
pressure method (Stolf et al., 2004). The test samples will be placed in the autoclave which
is then closed and the air removed from its interior to archive full vacuum where it is less
than 70 mmHG or 9.33kPa and 20, 520 mL of monomer will be injected into the autoclave
for each test samples (Stolf et al., 2004). The impregnation process will be completed in 30
minutes under applied pressure of 0.66MPa (Stolf et al., 2004). Afterwards, the sample need
to keep immerse in the monomer solution for four hours (4 hours) at ambient (room)
temperature and atmospheric pressure to obtain further impregnation.


38


4.1.3 Polymerization Process

Polymerization process will take place after the process of impregnation is done. The test
sample is removed from the autoclaved and wiped with paper towel to remove the extra or
any excess impregnation resin. The samples are weighed and measured before wrapping
them in an aluminium foil and placing them in the oven at temperature 60
0
C, left for 48
hours (Stolf et al., 2004). The process will be repeated for another period of 72 hours at
temperature 50
0
C (Stolf et al., 2004). This is done to combine and strengthen the structure
of wood with polymer during polymerization process inside the wood.


Finally, the samples are removed from the oven and the samples are then measured
to determine volume increase after cure and weighed to determine the polymer loading
(PL).

1 2
1
(%) 100
W W
WPG x
W

=
(4.2)

where WPG is wood percentage gain of polymer, W
1
is the weight of wood samples after
curing and W
2
is the weight wood samples (oven dry) before impregnation and curing.


4.1.4 Mechanical Testing

The mechanical test for flexural behaviour and strength characteristics will be done for
impregnated and non-impregnated wood. The test that will be done is three bending point,
axial compression and hardness test. Then, the analysis of the microstructure of composite
is examined by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM).




39


Three- Point Bending Test

The test is performed by three-point bending test method using 30kN capacity Universal
Testing Machine (UTM) and 3 mm min
-1
deflection rate is applied until breaking occurred
(Nol et al., 2009). The method of three bending point is illustrated in Figure 4.5 where F is
the force applied to the sample and L is the length of the sample.


Figure 4.5: Three-point-loading technique

Universal Testing Machine (UTM) is used to conduct this test. The point of loading is at the
centre of the surface sample and at that point, compression is taking placed while the
bottom surface is in tension state.


The parameter of flexural strength which is modulus of rapture (MOR) and modulus
of elasticity (MOE) might be known from the result of testing using the machine that already
mention above. But, there is also a theory to calculate bending (flexural) strength for
rectangular cross section of sample by referring to Equation (3.3) below.

2
3
2
f
B
F L
bh
o =
(4.3)

where F
f
is the applied load at fracture, L is the distance between support points, b is
thickness and h is width of the sample.

Support
Crack
40


The dimension used for control and treated samples is similar as illustrated in Figure
4.1 and six tests are carried out for each group.


Axial Compression Test


Universal Testing Machine is also used to conduct axial compression test in this study.
Similar constant deflection rate is applied but the applied force for compression strength
parallel to the fibres or grain (refer Figure 4.6) is 100kN capacity (Nol et al., 2009).



Figure 4.6: Axial compression test

Observing the load (F
max
) compression strength of samples is calculated according to
Equation (3.4) below.

C
F
bh
o =
(4.4)


By referring to equation (3.4),
C
o is the compression strength (MPa), F is maximum load
(N), h

is the width of the sample and b is the sample thickness. The control and treated
samples used is same dimension as illustrated in Figure 3.2 and for each group, six tests are
carried out.

Grain direction
F
41


Hardness Test

Research that had done by Nol et al. (2009) on the mechanical properties of wood polymer
composite also include test for composite materials resistance or known as hardness test.
By referring to Figure 3.7 below, a 10mm diameter steel ball is pressed into the tangential
section of treated and control sample of solid wood (refer to Figure 3.3) using Brinell
hardness test (Nol et al., 2009). The deflection, indention force and surface mark are
recorded.


Figure 4.7: Schematic diagram for Brinell hardness test (side view)

Equation (3.5) (William, 2007) below is given as the theory to calculate the Brinell hardness
of samples.

( )
2 2
2
i
F
HB
D D D D t
=




(4.5)


where HB is the Brinell hardness (MPa), F is the applied load (N), D is the steel ball
diameter (mm) and D
i
is the steel ball mark diameter or diameter of immersion in mm. The
steel ball used is sphere in shape so; the diameter of steel ball mark is calculated by using
Equation (3.6) below.

( )
1 2
2
i
d d
D
+
= (4.6)


42


Figure 4.8 below shows the top view of mark that is created after a steel ball is pressed into
the sample of solid wood.


Figure 4.8: Top view of steel ball mark


4.1.5 Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) Observation

SEM observation will be done to observe the microstructure of the wood before and after
the process of impregnation of wood polymer composite. According to Nol et al. (2009),
the samples surface are coated by gold or palladium blend in a sputter coater. This is to
produce the electron surface of samples because wood is non-electromagnetic material.













43


































SAMPLING

Sample is cut in a specific dimension (length x width x thickness):

- Flexural test: 300 x 20 x 20 mm
3
(Figure 4.1)
- Compression test: 50 x 20 x 20 mm
3
(Figure 4.2)
- Hardness test: 50 x 50 x 5 mm
3
(Figure 4.3)

Quantity: Six samples for each test (control and treated sample)


ANALYSIS
Compare the properties of control and treated rubber wood sample:

- Flexural behaviour
- Strength characteristics
- Microstructure
POLYMERIZATION PROCESS

Sample is wrapping in an aluminium foil and placing in the oven:
Initial temperature: 60
0
C
Period: 48 hours
IMPREGNATION PROCESS

Method: Vacuum pressure (vacuum applied-less than 70 mmHG)

Monomer: 20, 520 mL of unsaturated polyester resin will be
injected into the autoclave for each test samples.
TESTING

Universal Testing Machine is used for three-point bending, axial
compression and Brinell hardness test

SEM OBSERVATION

Surface of sample need to coat with gold or palladiums blend in a
sputter coater.
OVEN DRIED

Initial temperature: 40
0
C
Moisture content required: decrease to 12% (Equation 4.1)

CONTROL SAMPLE

Non-impregnated rubber
wood sample is prepared.
Figure 4.9: Flow chart of methodology
44


4.2 Progression of Project

After the methodology of experiment is designed (refer Figure 4.9), raw materials which are
rubber wood and unsaturated polyester resin are prepared. Rubber wood sample that will be
used in this study is supplied by Rubber Industry Smallholder Development Authority
(RISDA) where the samples are cut from a few logs of uneconomic wood tree. As well,
unsaturated polyester resin will be purchased from one of chemical factory in Kota Kinabalu,
Sabah named Double Gain. This factory also supplies the cross-linking of this polymer for
polymerization process.


Additionally, a few instruments also required in this study for sampling, synthesis,
testing and analysis process. Sekolah Perhutanan dan Tropika Antarabangsa (SPTA) has
complete instrument such as bend saw to cut rubber wood samples into several dimension
that required in this study. The other instrument that will be used at SPTA is Scanning
Electron Microscopy (SEM) for the analysis of wood microstructure and Universal Testing
Machine (UTM) for mechanical testing (three-point bending and compression test).


For synthesis, rubber wood sample has to oven dried, and then vacuum pressure
method will be used as the method to impregnate rubber wood and unsaturated polyester
resin. The instruments that need to be used for these processes are oven and autoclave or
vacuum chamber. But, there is a problem to find this instrument.


As a conclusion for progression in first semester, SPTA already give the permission to
use their instrument and do the sampling of rubber wood, mechanical testing and SEM
observation. But, synthesis and polymerization process cannot be done until the instrument
for these processes is found.




45


Chapter 5


Future Work



The remaining work for this project will be done in the next semester as planed (refer Table
3.2). The rest of work such as analysing, project completion and final report will be done in
the first week of January until April.


Analysing for this study will start from first week of January until February after all
the testing is done. The mechanical properties of impregnated and non-impregnated rubber
wood will be analysed from the results of the mechanical testing. Then, the microstructure
of rubber wood sample will be compared to see if there is any different in chemical
composition of wood by using SEM. The comparison of results for mechanical properties will
be figured out by using graph and discussed in final report.


Lastly is writing final report for project completion. Discussion and conclusion for
final report will be done after analysing and observation of the mechanical properties and
microstructure of rubber wood and rubber wood polymer composite.










46


Summary

Firstly, review of literature is done to get full understanding of undergoing project in
this semester. Literature review is also done from various sources such as journals, books
and website to identify the suitable material and method to conduct this project.
Introduction, problem statement and objective of the study were also stated in this project
progress. This is as a guide for doing final year project until the entire project is complete.


Then, the progression is flowed base on Gantt chart as figured out in Table 3.1 for
activity in semester one. The activity in this semester was simplified in the design of
experiment as shown in Figure 4.9 and it is according to the literature review. After
experimental method was identified, preparation of material and instrument is proceed.


Last but not least, future works for project progress is as well mentioned. The
remaining work that still undergoing will be continued in the next semester (semester two)
which is including completion of experimental phase and report writing. The planning was
arranged in the Table 3.2 for activity in the next semester.





16 November 2010 ____________________________
Nik Izzati Atheerah Bt Nik Razali
BK07110138



47


References

Ashby, M.F., Easterling, K.E, Harryson, R. and Maiti, S.K. 1985. The Fracture and Toighness
of Woods. Proc R Soc Lond A. 398:261-80.


Bariska, M. and Kuera, L.J., 1985. On the Fracture Morphology in Wood Part 2:
Macroscopial Deformations upon Ultimate Axial Compression in Wood. Wood Sci.
Technol. 19, 19-34.


Challa, G. 1993. Polymer Chemistery: An Introduction. Ellis hardwood Series in Polymer
Science.


Clorius, C.O., Pedersen, M.U., Hoffmeyer, P. and Damkilde, L. 2000. Compressive Fatigue in
Wood. Wood Sci. Technol. 34, 21-37.


Conners, T.E. and Medvecz, P.J. 1992. Wood as Bimodular Material. Wood Fiber Sci. 24,
413-423.


Fengel, D. and Wegener, G., 1989. Wood Chemistry, Ultrastructure, Reactions. De
Gruyter, Berlin.


Gao, Z., Li, D., 2007. Chemical Modification of Poplar Wood with Foaming Polyurethane
Resins. Journal of Applied Polymer Science. 104, 2980-2985.


Gibson, L.J., Ashby, M.F. 1997. Cellular Solids. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.


Hojo, M., Kageyama, K. and Tanaka, K. 1995. Prestandarization Study on Mode I
Interlaminar Fracture Toughness Test for CFRP in Japan. Composites. 26(4):2543-
55.


Kageyama, K., Kikuchi, M. and Yanagisawa N. 1991. Stabilized End Notched Flexural Test.
Characterization of Mode II Interlaminar Crack Growth. In: ASTM STP 1110. p. 210-
25.


Kollmann, F.F.P. and Ct, W.A. 1968. Principles of Wood Science and Technology. Volume
1. Solid Wood. Springer Verlag.


48


Kollamnn, F. 1967. Verformung und Bruchgeschehen bei Holz als einem anisotropen,
inhomogenen und por sen Festkrper, VDI Forsch.-Heft 520. VDI-Verlag, D
sseldorf.


Kowalski, S.J., Kyziol, L. and Rybicki, A. 2002. Composite of Wood and Polymerization
Methacrylate. Composite: Part B 33:77-86.


Kuera, L.J. and Bariska, M. 1982. On the Fracture Morphology in Wood Part 1: A SEM Study
of Deformation in Wood of Spruce and Aspen Upon Ultimate Axial Compression Load.
Wood Sci. Technol. 16, 241-259.


Little E. L. 1993. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North America Trees. Knopf, New York,
25-26.


Maiti, S.K., Gibson, L.J. and Ashby, M.F. 1984. Deformation and Energy Absorption Diagrams
for Cellular Materials. Acta Metal. 32, 1963-1975.


Mano, E.B. and Mendes, L.C. 1999. Introduo a Polmeros. Ed. 2, So Paulo, Editora
Edgard Blcher Ltda.


Martin, R.H. and Davidson, B.D. 1999. Mode II Fracture Toughness Evaluation Using Four
Point Bend, End Notched Flexural Test. Plast, Rubber Compos. 28(8):401-6.


Meyer, J.A. 1982. Industrial Use of Wood-Polymer Materials: State Of The Art. Forest
Products Journal. 32(1):24-29.


Mohamad Jani S., Rozman H D and Rahim S. 2007. Rubberwood-polymer composite: The
Effect of Chemical Impregnation on the Mechanical and Physical Properties.
Malaysian Polymer Journal (MPJ). 2(2):1-11.


Noorshashillawati Azura Binti Mohammad. 2007. Synthesis, Characterization and Properties
of the New Unsaturated Polyester Resins for Composite Applications. Master Thesis.


Nol, M., Mougel, E., Fredon, E. Masson, D. and Masson, E. 2009. Lactic Acid/Wood-Based
Composite Material. Part 2: Physical and Mechanical Performance. Bioresource
Technology 100, 4717-4722.



49


Qiao, P., Wang, P. and Davalos, J.F. 2002. Mode-II Fracture of Wood-Composite Bonded
Interfaces Using Tapered ENF Specimens. In: Proc 34
th
In SAMPLE Tech Confer,
Baltimore. p. 872-84.


Reid, S.C and Peng, C. 1997. Dynamic Uniaxial Crushing of Wood. Int. J. Impact Eng. 19,
531-570.


Reid, S.R., Peng, C. and Reddy, T.Y. 1989. Dynamic Uniaxial Crushing and Penetration of
Wood, in: J. Harding (Ed.), Inst. Phys. Conf. Series, vol. 102, Bristol, pp. 535-542.


Schwartz, M.M. 2007. Properties, Non-Destructive, Testing and Repair. Composite Materials,
Volume 1, pp. 55. Prentice Hall.


Shane B. Elvy, Gary R. Dennis and Loo-Teck Ng. 1995. Effects of Coupling Agent on the
Physical Properties of Wood-Polymer Composite. Journal of Materials Processing
Technology 48, 365-372.


Sliker, A. 1985. Orthotropic Strains in Compression Parallel to Grain Tests. Forest Products J.
35, 19-26.


Sliker, A. 1989. Measurement of the Smaller Poisson Ratios and related Compliances for
Wood. Wood Fiber Sci. 21, 252-262.


Smith, I., Lindis, E. and Gong, M. 2003. Fracture and Fatigue in Wood. England: Wiley.


Stolf, D.O. and Lahr F.A.R. 2004. Wood-Polymer Composite: Physical and Mechanical
Properties of Some Wood Species Impregnated with Styrene and Methyl
Methacrylate. Materials Research. 7(4):611-617.


Tanaka, K., Kageyama, K. and Hojo, M. 1995. Prestandarization Study on Mode II
Interlaminar Fracture Toughness Test for CFRP in Japan. Composites. 26(4):257-67.


U.S Department of Agriculture. 2000. Wood Handbook: Wood as an Engineering material.
University Press of the Pacific.


William D. Callister. 2007. Material Science and Engineering: An Introduction. (Seventh
Edition). New York: John Wiley and Sons.

50


Williams, J.G. 1988. On the Calculation of Energy Release Rates for Cracked Laminates. Int J
Fract. 36:101-19.


Williams, J.G. 1989. The Fracture Mechanics of Delamination Tests. J Strain Anal.
24(4):207-14.


Wood. Art. Encyclopaedia Britinnica Online. Web.
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic-art/-1/66141/Cross-section-of-a-tree-
trunk. Retrieved 19 October 2010.


Yoshihara H. 2004. Mode II R-curve wood measured by 4-ENF test. Engineering Fracture
Mechanics 71, 2065-2077.


Yoshihara, H. and Ohta, M. 2000. Measurement of the Mood II Fracture Toughness of Wood
by End-Notched (ENF) Test. J Wood Sci. 46(2):273-8.


Yoshihara, H. and Ohta, M. 1994. Stress-Strain Relationship of Wood in the Plastic Region II.
Mokuzai Gakkaishi 40, 263-267.


Yoshihara, H., Sasaki, K. and Ohta, M. 1996. Deformation of Wood in Biaxial Stress State I.
Examination of the Biaxial Compression Testing Method. Mokuzai Gakkaishi 42, 327-
332.