The purpose of the present degree project was to investigate the possibilities of assessing social sustainability and, on this basis, to carry out an equality analysis of wood as a construction material. The latter part of the purpose was met by carrying out social life cycle assessments focusing on gender equality: one for wood as anengineering material and one for house with wooden frame. The result was presented as a gender index which indicated the proportion of the work carried out by women. To gain more knowledge about wood as an engineering material a complete social life cycle assessment is necessary. A complete social life cycle analysis should not be reduced to a single measurement number by merging different effect categories of social sustainability. The conclusion in the report was that such an analysis is better to present in so-called polar diagrams where each individual impact category can be distinguished, but not necessarily all indicators. The method used to assess gender equality can be used to assess other impact categories.

Thermal stresses can arise in glass used in architectonic realisations in buildings as a result of solar irradiation:  that is, sunlight.  The magnitude of these thermal stresses depends on the temperature conditions in the glass in terms of the temperature differences between warm and cold areas.  The work described here has verified the existence and distribution of thermal stresses in glass, both theoretically and experimentally, in a load-bearing element made of glass and wood, when exposed to incident solar radiation and various degrees of shading.  The finite element method was used in order to simulate the temperature distribution in the glass, together with the resulting associated thermal stresses.  Parts of these model results were then compared with results and data from experimental investigations in a solar simulator.  The experimental trials were carried out on a plain glass sheet and on a wood-framed glass sheet.  This frame assembly saw the glass fitted in a wooden frame such that its edge was flush with the edges of the frame and therefore freely exposed to the surroundings.  Two different grades of glass were analysed in the theoretical modelling and used in the experimental solar exposure:  a clear glass, with a low absorption coefficient, and a tinted glass having a relatively high absorption coefficient.  The experimental part of the work included two different finishes to the glass edge:  as-cut, with no further attention, and cut and smoothed.  The results from the finite element method calculations agree relatively well with the experimental results.  When simulating the temperature values and distributions, the value of the coefficient of heat transfer is an important factor in determining the results.  The coefficient can be given either a constant value, taken from a standard, or a calculated value that varies depending on the surface temperature and ambient temperature at every instant.  For the clear glass with a low coefficient of absorption, the calculated temperatures did not differ significantly depending on which method had been used to provide a value for the coefficient of heat transfer.  However, for the glass with a high coefficient of absorption, and when exposed to high solar intensity, a calculated value of coefficient of heat transfer should be used in order to arrive at relevant values of surface temperatures and stresses.  Thermal tensile stresses have more effect on the total stress level than have stresses arising from typical in-service vertical loads.

Markkompaktering ökar risken för stress och skador på träden, såsom stormfällningar och rotröta. Idag spelar klimatfrågan en viktig roll, både i samhället och inom skogsbruket. Därför är det intressant att undersöka intresset för att använda alternativa skogsskötselmetoder. Syftet med denna studie var därför att undersöka skogsägares attityder till att använda hästar till drivning. Studien genomfördes som en enkätundersökning bland skogsägare i fem kommuner i Dalarna, med en svarsfrekvens på ca. 36%. Baserat på inkomna svar gick det inte att se några skillnader mellan certifierade och icke certifierade skogsägare. Däremot spelade inställningen till hyggesfritt skogsbruk och storleken på skogsinnehavet in. Slutsatserna var att det fanns ett intresse av att använda häst till drivningen av virket, speciellt vid uttag av vindfällen och fröträd. Skogsägarna bör ta ett större ansvar för sina kunskaper inom skogsskötsel och skogsbruk, medan hästentreprenörer och skogsbolag har ett stort ansvar i att visa på lämpliga alternativ till skogsmaskinerna.

Cellulosans tillgänglighet och reaktivitet är nyckelparametrar vid framställning av regenererad cellulosa och cellulosaderivat. Det är välkänt att på grund av cellulosans kristallina struktur är tillgängligheten begränsad för lösningsmedel och olika reagens. Till exempel kan en inhomogen substitution av hydroxylgrupperna i cellulosakedjan resultera i cellulosaderivat av sämre kvalitet. Baserat på detta har en del av arbetet i denna studie fokuserat på att förbättra cellulosans tillgänglighet och reaktivitet genom att studera effekten av olika enzymatiska behandlingar med monokomponent endoglukanaser. Resultaten visar att närvaron av en cellulosabindande domän fyller en viktig funktion för att öka cellulosans reaktivitet, men strukturen för den katalytiska domänen visade sig ha den största inverkan på cellulosans tillgänglighet. I kompletterande studier har även effekten av en mekanisk förbehandling i kombination med enzymatisk behandling utvärderats. Kombinationen av förbehandlingarna resulterade i en positiv effekt, cellulosans reaktivitet kunde ökas i större omfattning. I dag används huvudsakligen dissolvingmassor som råvara vid framställning av cellulosaregenerat och cellulosaderivat. Kraven för dessa s.k. specialmassor är högt cellulosainnehåll samt lågt hemicellulosa- respektive lignininnehåll. På grund av dessa specifika krav är produktionskostnaderna för dessa massor högre än konventionella sulfatmassor. Den andra delen av studien har därför fokuserat på möjligheten att använda dessa sulfatmassor som dissolvingmassa. Det har visats att kombinationen av enzymatiska behandlingar med monokomponent endoglukanas och xylanas följt av ett alkaliskt steg kan resultera i massor där kraven uppfylls med avseende på cellulosans reaktivitet, och cellulosa- respektive hemicellulosainnehåll. / The accessibility and reactivity of cellulose are key parameters on the manufacturing of cellulose derivatives and regenerated cellulose. It is well known that, due to the crystalline structure of cellulose, the accessibility of solvents and reagents is limited. For instance, an inhomogeneous substitution of the hydroxyl groups of the cellulose chain might lead to the production of derivatives of low quality. As a consequence, part of this work has focused on improving the accessibility and reactivity on cellulose by studying the effect of different monocomponent endoglucanases. It has been demonstrated that the presence of the cellulose-binding domain plays an important role on the enhancement of cellulose reactivity; however, the structure of the catalytic domain has been showed to have the highest influence on this parameter. Furthermore, the influence of mechanical treatment prior to enzymatic treatment has been examined. The combination of pretreatments showed a positive effect enhancing to a larger extent the cellulose reactivity. Currently, dissolving-grade pulps are commonly used for the production of cellulose derivatives and regenerated cellulose. The requirements for these so-called “special pulps” are a high cellulose content and a low hemicelluloses and lignin content. As a result of these specific demands, the production costs of these pulps are higher than those of common kraft pulps. The second part of this work, therefore, has been focused on the study on the viability of converting kraft pulps into dissolving pulps. It has been demonstrated that the combination of enzymatic treatments using a monocomponent endoglucanase and a xylanase together with the addition of an alkaline step could fulfil the requirements of a commercial dissolving pulp in terms of cellulose reactivity and cellulose and hemicellulose content. / QC 20101117

The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of measuring movement, deformation and displacement in wooden façade-systems by terrestrial laser scanning. An overview of different surveying techniques and methods has been created. Point cloud structure and processing was explained in detail as it is the foundation for understanding the advantages and disadvantages of laser scanning.    The boundaries of monitoring façades with simple and complex façade structures were tested with the phase-based laser scanner FARO Focus 3DS. In-field measurements of existing facades were done to show the capabilities of extracting defect features such as cracks by laser scanning. The high noise in the data caused by the limited precision of 3D laser scanners is problematic. Details on a scale of several mm are hidden by the data noise. Methods to reduce the noise during point cloud processing have proven to be very data-specific. The uneven point cloud structure of a façade scan made it therefore difficult to find a method working for the whole scans. Dividing the point cloud data automatically into different façade parts by a process called segmentation could make it possible. However, no suitable segmentation algorithm was found and developing an own algorithm would have exceeded the scope of this thesis. Therefore, the goal of automatic point cloud processing was not fulfilled and neglected in the further analyses of outdoor facades and laboratory experiments. The experimental scans showed that several information could be extracted out of the scans. The accuracy of measured board and gap dimensions were, however, highly depended on the point cloud cleaning steps but provided information which could be used for tracking development of a facade’s features. Extensive calibration might improve the accuracy of the measurements. Deviation of façade structures from flat planes were clearly visible when using colorization of point clouds and might be the main benefit of measuring spatial information of facades by non-contact methods. The determination of façade displacement was done under laboratory conditions. A façade panel was displaced manually, and displacement was calculated with different algorithms. The algorithm determining distance to the closest point in a pair of point clouds provided the best results, while being the simplest one in terms of computational complexity. Out-of-plane displacement was the most suitable to detect with this method. Displacement sideways or upwards required more advanced point cloud processing and manual interpretation by the software operator. Based on the findings during the study it can be concluded that laser scanning is not the correct methods for structural health monitoring of facades when the tracking of small deformations, especially deformations below 5 mm and defects like cracks are the main goal. Displacements, defects and deformations of larger scale can be detected but are tied to a large amount of point cloud processing. It is not clear if the equipment costs, surveying time and the problems caused by high variability of scans results based on façade color, shape and texture are in a positive relation to the benefits obtained from using laser scanning over manually surveying.

Tack vare vissa önskade egenskaper gjordes en storsatsning på contortatall (Pinus contorta) i Sverige på 70-talet. Idag finns cirka 600 000 ha i Sverige som det gjorts provsågningar på och är nu dags att hitta användningsområden till. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka skillnaden i utbyte mellan contortatall och gran (Picea abies) efter hyvling. Målet var att undersöka om sidobrädor av contortatall kan vara ett substitut till sidobrädor av gran vid hyvling ämnat för den amerikanska marknaden.Efter skanning av brädor samt manuell visuell sortering visade det sig att 92 % av granbrädorna var utan defekt medan 24 % av contortatallen var det. 34 % av contortatallen nedklassades för hål och 3 % av granen. Slutsatsen av studien visar att mängden och storleken på kvistarna är ett problem för contortatallvirket. För att få ett högkvalitativt virke behövs en djupare översyn av tillvägagångssättet för torkning och trädens tillväxtförhållanden.

Trä är ett biologiskt och organiskt material vars egenskaper möjliggör att det vid rätt förhållanden kan växa mögel på det. Mögeltillväxt på trä som människor hanterar och har i sin närhet kan skapa hälsoproblem då vissa mögelarter kan orsaka respiratoriska problem samt allergisk alveolit.En undersökning av vilken mögelsvamp som växer på brädor vid ett sågverk i södra Sverige har utförts. Utöver detta har möjliga tillväxtmiljöer för mögel undersökts under brädgårdstorkning samt en torkprocess. De undersökta parametrarna var temperatur och relativ luftfuktighet.Mögelsvampen Paecilomyces hittades samt Aspergillus niger och jäst. Klimatet under brädgårdstorkning samt torkprocessen visade att de under stor del av den tidiga hanteringen av virket fanns ett klimat gynnsamt för mögeltillväxt. / Wood is a biological and organic material whose properties makes it possible for mold to grow on it under the right conditions. Mold growth on wood that humans handle and get in contact with can create health problems as some mold species can cause respiratory problems and allergic alveolitis.An investigation of which mold that grows on boards at a sawmill in southern Sweden has ben carried out. In addition to this, possible growth environments for mold have been investigated during lumber yard drying and a kiln drying process. The parameters examined were temperature and relative humidity.Mold of Paecilomyces, Aspergillus niger and yeast was found on boards. The climate during lumber yard drying and the kiln drying process showed that a large part of the early handling of the wood had a favourable climate to mold growth.

Thermal insulation materials made from natural fibrous materials, such as cellulose fibers, have advantages over others from a sustainability point of view. However, cellulosic materials are generally prone to mold and absorb moisture, and these have negative effects on the insulation properties, the durability of insulation materials, and interior air quality. In this thesis, cellulose-fiber-based insulation foams were prepared from bleached chemithermomechanical softwood pulp, and these foams showed promising thermal insulation properties and fungal resistance. Hydrophobic extractives were isolated from birch (Betula verrucosa) outer bark and used to improve the water resistance of the foams, which were impregnated in solutions of extractives and then dried. The modified foams showed greater water resistance, and the modification had no negative effects on the thermal insulation, fungal resistance, and compressive strength of the foams. Another potential problem with low density cellulosic thermal insulation materials is their poor reaction-to-fire properties. Cellulose-fiber-based insulation foams were prepared from formulations containing bleached chemithermomechanical softwood pulp and commercial fire retardants to improve the reaction of the foams to fire. Single-flame source test results showed that the foams containing 20% expandable graphite (20% EG) or 25% synergetic (25% SY) fire retardant had significantly improved reaction-to-fire properties and passed class E, which reflected that they can resist a small flame attack without substantial flame spreading for a short period according to EN 13501-1. Compared with the reference without any fire retardant, the peak heat release rate (Peak-HRR) of the 20% EG and 25% SY decreased by 62% and 39% respectively when the samples were subjected to a radiance heat flow of 25 kW m-2 in a Cone Calorimeter. The thesis demonstrates that it is possible to produce cellulose-fiber-based insulation materials with improved properties in terms of fungal, improved water resistance and reaction-to-fire properties. / <p>QC 20170428</p> / Energy-efficient cellulosic insulation products/panels for green building solutions

Aspen (Populus tremula L.) accounts for about 2% of the total wood stock in Sweden. Sawmills use only a small part (about 5,000 m³fub) of round wood aspen per year. Since there are no Swedish gradings and design values for aspen, no aspen is used for structural purposes. This also applies to other hardwood trees in Sweden. Aspen is mainly used for pulp and paper with a mass consumption of 800,000 m³fub per year of which about 50% is imported. Most imported aspen is from Russia and the Baltics. The other major use of aspen is in match industries. Consumption for matches amounts to approximately 30,000 m³fub per year in Sweden. The aim of the research work was to increase knowledge on the wood quality of aspen used in the production of matches. Aspen (Populus tremula L.) logs were collected from two different sites in Sweden and a non-destructive tools weas used to estimate the modulus of elasticity in logs. To measure the dynamic modulus of elasticity (MOEdyn), Fakopp resonance log grader used. Other properties like density and moisture content were measure and were correlated with the MOEdyn values in order to identify the site that has a better log quality. Besides, horizontal and vertical variation of different wood properties were measured and compared within and between trees from two different sites in order to justify the variation of log quality. A total of 20 trees from Askaremåla and Vimmerby, Sweden were felled and used in this study. From each tree, 3 m long logs were sampled from each base, middle and top. After that, non-destructive evaluations were performed in those logs. Besides, 5 cm thick discs were collected in every tree height (base, middle and top) to measure horizontal and vertical variations. This study shows that there were differences in MOEdyn between and within trees. It was evident that trees collected from Vimmerby had a better log property than that in Askaremåla. Using non-destructive tools, it is possible to sort out quality logs for the production of Swedish matches.

The primary cell wall is a complex multipolymer system whose composite structure has been mostly determined from chemical and biochemical studies. Although the primary cell wall serves a central role, with regard to the connective properties of fibres, knowledge about the interactions among the polymers, when it comes to the mechanical properties, is very limited. The physical properties of the polymers, i.e. their elastic and viscous deformations, as well as the ultrastructure of the polymers, i.e. the interactions among the polymers in the outer fibre wall layers that lead to this behaviour, are still not fully understood. The aim of this study was to examine how the different wood polymers, viz. lignin, protein, pectin, xyloglucan and cellulose, interact in the outer fibre wall layers of the spruce wood tracheid. The initial objective was to separate an enriched primary cell wall material from a first stage TMP, by means of screening and centri-cleaning. From this material, consisting of the primary cell wall (P) and outer secondary cell wall (S1) materials, thin sheets were prepared and analysed using a number of different analytical methods. The major measuring technique used was dynamic Fourier transform infra-red (FT-IR) spectroscopy in combination with dynamic 2D FT-IR spectroscopy. This technique is based on the detection of small changes in molecular absorption that occur when a sinusoidally stretched sample undergoes low strain. The molecular groups affected by the stretching respond in a specific way, depending on their environment, while the unaffected molecular groups provide no response to the dynamic spectra, by producing no elastic or viscous signals. Moreover, the dynamic 2D FT-IR spectroscopy provides useful information about various intermolecular and intramolecular interactions, which influence the reorientability of functional groups in a polymer material. Measurements of the primary cell wall material, using dynamic FT-IR spectroscopy, indicated that strong interactions exist among lignin, protein and pectin, as well as among cellulose, xyloglucan and pectin in this particular layer. This was in contrast to the secondary cell wall, where interactions of cellulose with glucomannan and of xylan with lignin were dominant. It was also indicated that the most abundant crystalline cellulose in the primary cell wall of spruce wood fibres is the cellulose Iβ allomorph, which was also in contrast to the secondary cell wall, where the cellulose Iα allomorph is more dominant. The presence of strong interactions among the polymers in the primary cell wall and, especially, the relatively high content of pectin and protein, showed that there is a very good possibility of selectively attacking these polymers in the primary cell wall. The first selective reaction chosen was a low degree of sulphonation, applied by an impregnation pretreatment of chips with a very low charge of sodium sulfite (Na2SO3). This selective reaction caused some structural modification of the lignin, a weakening of the interactions between lignin;pectin, lignin;protein and pectin;protein, as well as an increased softening of the sulphonated primary cell wall material, when compared to the unsulphonated primary cell wall material. All this resulted in an increased swelling ability of the material. / QC 20101123