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Forests
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Emerging Potential of Hardwood Resources for Innovative Uses
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Emerging Potential of Hardwood Resources for Innovative Uses

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Wood Science and Forest Products".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 May 2025 | Viewed by 2159

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Dominika Gornik Bučar

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department for Wood Science and Technology, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Interests: material characterization
Prof. Dr. Manja Kitek Kuzman

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Wood Science and Technology, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Interests: building; civil engineering; environmental impact assessment; design programs; SAP2000

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The emerging climate changes will lead to a redistribution of existing forest types and a change in their tree species composition, which will also have an impact on the entire forest-wood chain. Model predictions about tree composition in the future are rather vague, but despite everything, experts agree that the ratio between conifers and deciduous trees will change quite strongly in favor of the latter. The decline in the share of spruce in the wood supply of forests has already been observed in the last decade and is mainly due to strong fluctuations in growing conditions, natural damage and bark beetle infestations. According to current forecasts on the development of climate indicators, forest production and wood properties, deciduous tree species are of great importance.

Although the traditional use of the various deciduous tree species is very diverse, it does not exploit their full potential. Due to the chemical-physical and processing properties of wood, hardwoods should be used in new ways based on advanced environmentally friendly (processing) technologies to produce innovative products with great substitution potential and high added value. The criteria of sustainability, circularity and marginal quality must be considered.

Articles addressing the utilization of hardwood potential and focusing on new innovative products and/or new environmentally friendly technologies or improving existing ones will be considered for this Special Issue. Original papers, reviews and short communications are all welcome.

Dr. Dominika Gornik Bučar
Prof. Dr. Manja Kitek Kuzman
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • hardwoods
  • deciduous tree
  • wood properties
  • processing
  • machining
  • technology
  • wood products
  • forest-wood value chain
  • sustainability
  • marginal quality

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 19839 KiB  
Article
Catalytic Pyrolysis Characteristics of Potassium Chloride on Ash Branch Wood and Its Kinetic Study
by Lanxin Zhang, Jingjing Gao, Tinghuan Wang, Tengfei Hao, Yizhi Lu, Yurong Hu, Xiaoxu Wang, Zhengbin He, Zhenyu Wang and Songlin Yi
Forests 2025, 16(1), 57; https://doi.org/10.3390/f16010057 - 31 Dec 2024
Viewed by 765
Abstract
Branch wood, as a renewable biomass resource, presents certain challenges due to its high volume, complex physical properties, difficulty in handling, and relatively high production costs. Potassium chloride (KCl) treatments were applied to ash branch wood (ABW) using solutions with concentrations of 5%, [...] Read more.
Branch wood, as a renewable biomass resource, presents certain challenges due to its high volume, complex physical properties, difficulty in handling, and relatively high production costs. Potassium chloride (KCl) treatments were applied to ash branch wood (ABW) using solutions with concentrations of 5%, 10%, and 15% via immersion. Pyrolysis tests were performed at different pyrolysis temperatures (450 °C, 600 °C, 750 °C) and different pyrolysis times (2 h, 3 h, 4 h). The thermal degradation behavior was meticulously examined through Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA). Furthermore, the pyrolysis kinetics were assessed using the Flynn–Wall–Ozawa (FWO) model, which allowed for the determination of the kinetic parameters and the exploration of the catalytic influence of KCl on the pyrolysis process. The morphology and adsorption properties of the biochar were evaluated employing SEM-EDS and BET characterization methods, respectively. The results show that the higher the impregnation concentration of ABW, the greater the shift in the TG and DTG curves, and the lower the initial temperature and maximum weight loss temperature in the devolatilization stage. The calculation of pyrolysis kinetic parameters indicates that adding a higher concentration of KCl to ABW results in a lower initial temperature and activation energy for the volatile phase of ABW. At the same time, a higher KCl concentration leads to an increased biochar yield; under single-factor conditions, a biochar yield of up to 35.81% can be achieved with an impregnation concentration of 15%. A lower KCl is more conducive to the pyrolysis reaction, with a lower activation energy throughout the devolatilization stage compared to raw ABW. Additionally, ABW treated with a low concentration of KCl results in a higher specific surface area and pore volume of the biochar. The maximum values are achieved when the KCl solution concentration is 5%, with a specific surface area of 4.2 m2/g and a pore volume of 0.00914 cm3/g. Based on these results, this paper explores the catalytic pyrolysis patterns of KCl on branch waste, providing theoretical guidance for the effective utilization of branch wood and the preparation process of biochar. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Potential of Hardwood Resources for Innovative Uses)
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17 pages, 6738 KiB  
Article
Structural Yield of Fast-Growing Hardwood vs. Softwood Glulam Beams
by Vanesa Baño, Carolina Pérez-Gomar, Daniel Godoy and Laura Moya
Forests 2025, 16(1), 8; https://doi.org/10.3390/f16010008 - 24 Dec 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 924
Abstract
This paper focuses on analysing the structural performance of fast-grown hardwood versus softwood glued laminated timber (GLT or glulam) beams with the aim to evaluate the potential structural use of the two main species planted in the country. In Uruguay, the first forest [...] Read more.
This paper focuses on analysing the structural performance of fast-grown hardwood versus softwood glued laminated timber (GLT or glulam) beams with the aim to evaluate the potential structural use of the two main species planted in the country. In Uruguay, the first forest plantations date from the 1990s and are comprised mainly of Eucalyptus ssp. and Pinus spp. No one species were planted for a specific industrial purpose. However, while eucalyptus was primarily destined for the pulp industry, pine, which is now reaching its forest rotation, had no specific industrial destination. Timber construction worldwide is mainly focused on softwood species with medium and long forest rotation. The objective of the present work is, therefore, to analyse and compare the potential of eucalyptus (Eucalyptus grandis) and loblolly/slash pine (Pinus elliottii/taeda) to produce glulam beams for structural purposes. Experimental tests were made on sawn timber and GLT beams manufactured under laboratory conditions for both species. The relationship between the physical and mechanical properties of sawn timber showed that, for similar characteristic values of density (365 kg/m3 for pine and 385 kg/m3 for eucalyptus), and similar years of forest rotation (20–25 years for pine and around 20 years for eucalyptus) and growth rates, the structural yield of eucalyptus was higher compared to that of pine. The superior values of modulus of elasticity found in the hardwood species explained this result. Since there is no strength classes system for South American wood species, the European system was the basis for estimating and assigning theoretical strength classes from the visual grades of Uruguayan timbers. For sawn timber, a C14 strength class for pine and C20 for eucalyptus were assigned. Results showed that pine GLT could be assigned to a strength class GL20h, and eucalyptus glulam to GL24h and GL28h, demonstrating the potential of both species for producing glulam beams. Even though eucalyptus showed a better yield than pine, the technological process of manufacturing eucalyptus glulam was more challenging in terms of drying time and gluing than in the case of pine, which derivates in higher economic costs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Potential of Hardwood Resources for Innovative Uses)
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