Experimental exploratory study of failure modes in models of wooden rectangular beams of hymenae spp

Abstract

According to the study of mechanical properties, wood is an elastic or elastoplastic material that presents different structural behaviour when tensioned or compressed. From the viewpoint of elasticity, wood is considered anisotropic, or rather it is a material with elastic properties that vary with the direction considered. During tree growth, the internal structure of the solid material consisting of the wood becomes highly oriented and therefore anisotropic. To study the failure modes of wooden parts and to observe their anisotropy in this process, we performed a series of exploratory tests on models of beams, taking into account the different positions of fibers and growth rings and the different relationships between height and length for a specific specie of wood, in other words, a test with tangent, radial and inclined load applied to the fibers. The pieces were made of dicotyledonous wood that was first category and free of defects, making a total of nine samples in three groups. Failure by shearing and normal stresses was observed and was well characterized in terms of records left in the samples. In addition, when describing the failure modes, the results are discussed with the presentation of images and graphics for each case.