Mechanical processing for improved products made from Swedish hardwood

Swedish hardwood is today used in the energy, pulp and mechanical hardwood industries. Only very small volumes of Swedish hardwood are, however, consumed by the mechanical industry that normally pays the highest timber price. The smallness of the volumes used for mechanical refinement is a result both of forestry not focusing on the production of hardwood for these uses, and of the fact that the mechanical hardwood industry, particularly the sawing industry, is not designed to process the existing raw material in an optimal manner. This thesis discusses the possibilities of improving the conditions for the mechanical refinement of hardwood. The aim of the work has been to investigate the possibilities of developing products and methods for processing of Swedish hardwood. The thesis proposes a new manufacturing system for Swedish hardwood to better utilize the inherent properties of the wood material. The system is based on the so-called PrimWood Method and the star-sawing concept. Compared to normally sawn wood, the sawing concept utilizes the raw material more efficiently with regard to volume yield, and increases the distance between knots in the sawn wood. The material produced has vertical annual rings which give the wood smaller movements as a result of moisture variations and a different textural appearance. Using the PrimWood Method for hardwood would make it possible to more closely match customer requirements regarding hardwood products. Since Swedish hardwood is nowadays mainly used indoors, a possible way of expanding the market would be to increase the outdoor use of the material. Here the durability is of great importance, and one important factor is then the capillary characteristics of the material. The thesis therefore focuses on the characterisation of the capillarity in wood for the future improvement of its durability. It is shown that with the material produced by the proposed manufacturing system, i.e. wood with vertical annual rings, the possibility of using hardwood outdoors increases, because the susceptibility to cracking decreases