EFFECTS OF DYNAMIC COMPRESSION ON THE THERMAL CONDUCTIVITIES OF SELECTED WOOD PRODUCTS OF DIFFERENT PARTICLE SIZES (Published)
The study examines the effects of dynamic compression on the thermal conductivity of five different wood species of the families of Sterculiaceae, Moraceae and Ulmaceae. These species are; Nesogordonia papaverifera, Milicia excelsa, Antiaris africana, Celtis zenkeri and Celtis phillipensis. The results showed that, increase in compacting pressure resulted to increase in the thermal conductivities of the wood samples. It was also noted that, the thermal conductivity decreases with increase in the particle sizes of the wood material. The thermal conductivity values obtained for the samples fall within the range 0.0890 – 0.1534
Wm−1 K −1 for wood materials. This range lies within the thermal conductivity values of common material used in Asbestos, Rubber, Diatomite and Chlorinated poly- ether. In addition, 850 µ m of Nesogordonia papaverifera (Danta) pose the best insulation among the particle sizes considered Hence, the selected wood materials could find useful applications in industrial insulating devices and could also serve as good potential devices as heat resistant.
Keywords: Dynamic compression, Particle sizes, Thermal Conductivity