The Effects of Densification and Heat Post-Treatment on Hardness and Morphological Properties of Wood Materials

This study investigated the effects of densification and heat post-treatment on the Janka hardness and microscopic structure of relatively low-density Uludag fir, linden, and black poplar woods. Wood samples were densified with compression ratios of 25% and 50% at 100 °C and 140 °C, respectively. Heat post-treatment was then applied to the samples at 185 °C and 212 °C for 2 h. The hardness in the radial and tangential directions was determined, and morphological changes in the cell structures were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The hardness values in the radial and tangential directions of the densified samples increased depending on the compression rate and treatment temperature. The hardness values in both directions were higher in the 50% compressed samples. For samples compressed at 140 °C, the hardness values were higher in the tangential direction, whereas the samples compressed at 100 °C were higher in the radial direction. After the heat post-treatment process, the hardness values of all samples decreased. As the treatment temperature increased, more adverse effects on the hardness was noted. According to the SEM analyses, the densification and heat post-treatment deteriorated the cell structure of the samples. The more cell deformation was observed in the samples densified at 100 °C with compression ratio 50% and high heat post-treatment temperature.