Wood Physical Properties

Wood has unique physical properties compared to other materials. Those bring advantages and characteristics that cannot be found in other types of materials.

Wood Color
Wood color is very important for decorative use of the product. Dark or lighter colors will determine which wood species to use for product's exposure or finishing type to use. At certain wood species, such as Acacia, Teak, or Mahogany, the sapwood color is lighter than the heartwood. Wood color will be darker than its original color when it's wet.



Odor and Taste
The odor and taste of wood is influenced by the natural resin content in it. Teak wood, for example, has a very unique odor because of its natural oil content. This odor and taste is usually only found in timber that freshly split or cut. After a while the odor and taste will fade.

Wood Grain
Wood is formed from thousands of pores that are composed during the growth of tree. The shape and pattern of timber grain depend on the method of sawing. The grain direction in the radial cut tends to be straighter, and the tangential cut direction tends to be more wavy. The growth rings also determines the shape and direction of the wood grain.


Wood Density
Wood density is related to the amount of wood and its substance in wood without water or air. This refers to the amount of wood per unit, divided by the volume of wood. Wood density is measured in kg/m3 or grams/cm3.

Wood Hardness
The cross section of wood has higher hardness level than the other side (tangential or radial) because of the direction of the wood grain or pores. And wood with high density can also be interpreted as hard wood.

Moisture Content
Trees have pores which one of the functions is to channel water and food sources from the roots to other parts of the tree to grow. These pores allow wood to expand or shrink according to the water content. The moisture content in the wood is affected by the humidity of the environment around the wood.
If the environment humidity is high, the moisture content in the wood will increase, and will make the wood expand. If the humidity of the environment is lower, the moisture content in the wood will also decrease and it makes the wood shrink. The level of wood moisture content will reach its equilibrium point between 8-12%. It's also called Equilibrium Moisture Content (EMC).

Wood Shrinkage
Wood can have a shrinkage, if the dryness of the wood is below the EMC. The wood will shrink and change its shape. In an extreme shrinkage situation, the size of the wood can change by up to 8%.




Thermal and Electrical Conductivity
Wood has the ability to transmit heat and electricity with relatively very small power, especially when the wood is dry under its EMC. Electricity and heat are basically easier to move through water, and if the wood moisture content is very high, then the conductivity of heat and electricity will be higher.

Aboutwood

Because wood is sustainable and more eco-friendly

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