RESEARCH ARTICLE


Thermal Degradation and Charring Rate of Corymbia Citriodora and Eucalyptus Grandis Wood Species



E.M. Pinto1, G.O. Machado2, R.P.F. Felipetto3, A.L. Christoforo4, *, F.A.R. Lahr5, C. Calil Jr.5
1 Technology Center, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Lagoa Nova, 59072970, Brazil
2 Department of Forestry, Midwest State University (UNICENTRO), Irati, 3421-3000, Brazil
3 Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of the Espírito Santo, Vila Velha, 29106-010, Brazil
4 Centre for Innovation and Technology in Composites (CITeC), Department of Civil Engineering (DECiv), Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), São Carlos, 13565-905, Brazil
5 Department of Structural Engineering (SET), Engineering School of São Carlos (EESC/USP), São Carlos, 13566-590, Brazil


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Creative Commons License
© Pinto et al.; Licensee Bentham Open.

open-access license: This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial 4.0 International Public License (CC BY-NC 4.0) (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/legalcode), which permits unrestricted, non-commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited.

* Address correspondence to this author at the Centre for Innovation and Technology in Composites (CITeC), Department of Civil Engineering (DECiv), Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), São Carlos, 13565-905, Brazil; Tel: (+55) 16 33066828; E-mail: christoforoal@yahoo.com.br


Abstract

This research reports an investigation of the potential of Eucalyptus grandis and Corymbia citriodora for structural applications in civil construction with an emphasis on the wood-charring process in fire condition. Published data on wood carbonization to determine the charring rate for structural propose are sparse in Brazil as there have been only a few studies in this direction. The rate at which the wood converts in char is determinant to evaluate the fire endurance, because the failure of wooden structural elements and its composites exposed to fire occurs through reduction of cross section. The fire resistance depends on cross sections dimensions that are gradually reduced when exposed to fire. Several tests were performed to evaluate the variables that mostly affect the charring rate. The chemical composition, shrinkage, thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and measurements of calorific value were also performed. The TGA results indicated that both species were stable up to 250ºC. The average calorific value of Corymbia citriodora was slightly less than that of Eucalyptus grandis, whose value was 17849J/g. The chemical analysis revealed that Corymbia citriodora had approximately three times more ash and about 4% more content of extractives than Eucalyptus grandis. The latter had almost 6% more lignin and 2% more cellulose than Corymbia citriodora, but 8% less hemicelluloses. The charring tests showed that both woods had similar charring rates. In addition, statistical analyses showed that shrinkage and lignin content are the main factors affecting the charring process.

Keywords: Charring rate, Chemical characterization, Corymbia citriodora, Eucalyptus grandis, Thermal degradation, Wood.