Effect of hot pressing temperature on the density profile of compressed solid wood

Abstract

To expand the applications of low-density wood, solid white poplar (Populus tomentosa) wood with a moisture content of 10.6% was compressed 5 mm radially at 90°C, 120°C, 150°C, 180°C, and 210°C, and the density profile characteristics were analyzed. It was found that compressed wood with a non-uniform density profile contributed to the peak density and average density of the compressed layer, where the highest values were 0.87 g/cm 3 and 0.72 g/cm 3 , respectively. The density peak and compressed layer were formed at various distances from the wood surface according to the pressing temperatures tested. It was concluded that the pressing temperature had a great effect on the density profile of the compressed wood and the pressing temperature effectively controlled the shape of the density profile.