Wood Physical and Mechanical Properties of Clonal Teak (Tectona grandis) Stands Under Different Thinning and Pruning Intensity Levels Planted in Java, Indonesia

Swietenia mahagoni is one of the commercial timbers in Indonesia. Mahogany heartwood is an important characteristic as it relates to the natural durability and aesthetics of the wood. Lipophilic extractives are known to be involved in the heartwood formation process. Therefore, this study aims to determine the lipophilic compounds associated with heartwood formation. The n-hexane extract from sapwood and heartwood samples (1 to 5 years) was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The results showed that the content of n-hexane extract ranged from 0.76% to 2.45% based on dry wood. The main group of compounds identified in the lipophilic fraction consisted of sterols (β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, campasterol, and cyclolaudenol), fatty acids (palmitic, oleic, linoleic, and stearic acid), and hydrocarbons (pentadecane, 1-octadecane, hexadecane, cyclotetracosane, cycloeicosane, and cyclooctacosane) after heartwood formation. In addition, the hydrocarbon fraction was the largest, followed by sterols, fatty acids, and 1-heneicosanol. In the radial variation, the distribution of fatty acids was greater in the sapwood than in the heartwood (4-year-old). However, the reverse pattern was found at the age of 5 years. The lipophilic fraction was generally more abundant in the heartwood compared to the sapwood, especially at 5 years of age, with much higher levels than when the heartwood was forming (4 years). These findings show that when the heartwood formation begins, the lipid composition was not fully metabolized at the beginning of heartwood formation compared to 5-year-old trees.

Analysis of Lipophilic Constituents Related to Heartwood Formation in Young Swietenia mahagoni (L.) Jacq Trees

ARISANDI,

TAKAHASHI,

NIRSATMANTO

et al. 2024

Evaluation of the Basic Properties for the Korean Major Domestic Wood Species

PARK,

KIM,

JEONG

et al. 2024

Wood has different properties depending on the species or growth area. Therefore, in order to use wood efficiently, it is necessary to have a proper understanding of the characteristics of wood depending on the species and the appropriate use for them. In particular, in order to effectively use more than 1,000 species of woody plants in South Korea as wood, it is necessary to evaluate the characteristics of various Korean domestic woods and make a database of them. In this study, the anatomical properties (length and width of tracheid, cell wall thickness), physical properties (specific gravity and shrinkage), mechanical properties (bending strength, compressive strength, tensile strength, shear strength, hardness), and chemical composition (ash, extract, lignin, total sugar content) of Korean red pine which was grown in Pyeongchang-gun, Gangwon-do, South Korea were evaluated.

Utilization of Sapwood Waste of Fast-Growing Teak in Activated Carbon Production and Its Adsorption Properties

SUTAPA,

LUKMANDARU,

SUNARTA

et al. 2024

The sapwood portion of fast-growing teak is mostly ignored due to its inferior quality. One of the possibilities for utilizing sapwood waste is to convert it into activated carbon that has good adsorption capabilities. The raw materials used in this research were sapwood of 14-year-old fast-growing teak sapwood (FTS) waste, which was taken from three trees from community forests in Wonosari, Gunungkidul, Yogyakarta Special Region. FTS waste was taken from the bottom of the tree up to a height of 1.3 m. The activation process is conducted with an activation temperature of 750℃, 850℃, and 950℃. The heating duration consists of three variations: 30 min, 60 min, and 90 min. The quality evaluation parameters of activated carbon include yield, moisture content, volatile matter content, ash content, fixed carbon content, adsorption capacity of benzene, adsorption capacity of methylene blue, and adsorption capacity of iodine. The results showed that the activated carbon produced had the following quality parameters: yield of 75.61%; moisture content of 1.27%; volatile matter content of 9.98%; ash content of 5.43%; fixed carbon content of 84.58%; benzene absorption capacity of 8.58%; methylene blue absorption capacity of 87.73 mg/g; and iodine adsorption capacity of 948.19 mg/g. It can be concluded that activated carbon from FTS waste has good iodine adsorption, which fulfilled the SNI 06-3730-1995 quality standard. Due to the iodine adsorption ability of FTS waste activated carbon, the conversion of FTS waste to activated carbon is categorized as a potential method to increase the value of this material.