Characterization of Amazon woods

Abstract

The high demand for quality wood by the forestry and timber sector, the knowledge of the properties of new forest species becomes essential to have a stocked and diversified trade, thus reducing the exploitation of a small group of species due to the unfamiliarity of the other species. Thus, the objective of this work was to analyze the physical, chemical, and surface properties of the wood of four species of the Amazon. Samples of timborana (Piptadenia suaveolens), pequiá (Caryocar villosum), sucupira (Bowdichia nitida) and maçaranduba (Manilkara huberi) were obtained. The wood was evaluated for their chemical constitution, physical properties (density, porosity, shrinkage, and moisture content) and surface properties (color and wettability). The highest percentage of holocellulose (73,42%), extracts (5,10%) and ashes (1,06%) were obtained in the pequiá wood. It was observed that the maçaranduba and sucupira were the densest, with apparent density values of 0,96 and 0,98 g/cm³, respectively. In timborana wood the greatest dimensional stability was registered, obtaining values of 2,03 (βr), 4,45 (βt) and 7,23 (βv). In the surface properties, according to the values of the colorimetric parameters, the woods were classified as pinkish gray (timborana), yellowish olive (pequiá), olive (sucupira) and dark brown (maçaranduba). Regarding wettability, there was a reduction in the water contact angle from 5 s to 10 s, in both wood and planes. And it was found that the timborana woods differed statistically when the contact angle in relation to the face of the wood and the time was analyzed. Thus, the tropical woods evaluated presented relevant properties for various applications in the timber trade.