Specific gravity and shrinkage coefficients of wood of six species of eucalypts cultivated on the coast of Santa Catarina.

Abstract

This work aims at determining and comparing the basic and 12% moisture content specific gravity and radial, tangential and volumetric shrinkage coefficients of five species and a hybrid of eucalypts. The samples of Corymbia torelliana, Eucalyptus cloeziana, Eucalyptus pilularis, Eucalyptus resinifera were extracted from 17 years old trees; ones of Eucalyptus grandis from 14 years old trees and the ones of Eucalyptus grandis x Eucalyptus urophylla from eight years old trees, all of them planted on the North Coast of Santa Catarina State. The wood of the hybrid Eucalyptus grandis x Eucalyptus urophylla, of the Eucalyptus grandis and of the Eucalyptus pilularis can be classified as light, the others can be classified as moderately heavy. Independently on the shrinkage analyzed, the groups formed during the multiple mean comparing are the same. The radial shrinkage coefficient of Eucalyptus cloeziana and that of Eucalyptus resinifera are high. However, the tangential and volumetric shrinkage coefficients of Eucalyptus grandis and the volumetric shrinkage coefficient of Eucalyptus pilularis are low; the others can be classified as medium. The variation on specific gravity is not followed by proportional variation on the shrinkage coefficients, resulting in low and moderate correlations between coefficients even tough significant.

Keywords: 

This work aims at determining and comparing the basic and 12% moisture content specific gravity and radial, tangential and volumetric shrinkage coefficients of five species and a hybrid of eucalypts. The samples of Corymbia torelliana, Eucalyptus cloeziana, Eucalyptus pilularis, Eucalyptus resinifera were extracted from 17 years old trees; ones of Eucalyptus grandis from 14 years old trees and the ones of Eucalyptus grandis x Eucalyptus urophylla from eight years old trees, all of them planted on the North Coast of Santa Catarina State. The wood of the hybrid Eucalyptus grandis x Eucalyptus urophylla, of the Eucalyptus grandis and of the Eucalyptus pilularis can be classified as light, the others can be classified as moderately heavy. Independently on the shrinkage analyzed, the groups formed during the multiple mean comparing are the same. The radial shrinkage coefficient of Eucalyptus cloeziana and that of Eucalyptus resinifera are high. However, the tangential and volumetric shrinkage coefficients of Eucalyptus grandis and the volumetric shrinkage coefficient of Eucalyptus pilularis are low; the others can be classified as medium. The variation on specific gravity is not followed by proportional variation on the shrinkage coefficients, resulting in low and moderate correlations between coefficients even tough significant.

Keywords: Physical properties; shrinkage coefficients; Eucalyptus; Corymbia.