Thesis Abstract

The versatility of wood is due to the level of moisture content in wood which determine the performance of wood in service. This performance is as a result of the process used in the drying of the wood species. Wood can be dried through natural and artificial drying method but natural method required little skills and cost in obtaining desirable result. This project was based on the improvement of the natural method of wood drying, in order to reduce the cost of drying wood. Some wood species were selected and used for this project work and the result obtained at the end of the experiment, was presented in this report.
Wood exchanges moisture with air; the amount and direction of the exchange (gain or loss) depend on the relative humidity and temperature of the air and the current amount of water in the wood. This moisture relationship has an important influence on wood properties and performance. This paper discussed the physical properties of most interest in the use of wood products. Some physical properties discussed are influenced by species as well as variables like moisture content; other properties tend to be independent of species.

Thesis Overview