The overall purpose of this project is to devise improved quality acceptance procedures to examine quality characteristics of utility poles at the factory of the supplier (FAT) and on-site upon receipt by the customer (SAT). To that end, the thesis draws upon available standards, literature, and industry practices regarding wood, fiberglass and steel poles. As far as the design of the research, a single case study of a major power company was chosen. Then, a data collection plan was developed in order to build upon the existing knowledge found in the literature, and upon the data that can be collected from three of the Company’s suppliers, in addition to the Technical Research Institute of Sweden (SP). Documents’ analysis, interviews, observations, and a survey were the tools of that plan. It was found that criteria, inspection and test methods of wood poles are all sufficiently covered in the standards and the literature; for wood is the most commonly used material for utility poles. Next, in coverage of research, are the steel poles; while there is currently no standard that covers fiberglass utility poles. Indeed, quality characteristics, criteria, and acceptance procedures can altogether form parts of a sustainable solution, as long as the quality is managed as a process whether at the Company’s end or at the fabrication sites; that is especially true if there is some form of backward partnership between the Company and its suppliers.

Hydro One, a major distribution of electricity in Ontario, has reported that approximately 16,000 of the wood utility poles in its network of two million poles have been damaged by woodpeckers. With a cost of replacement of approximately $4000 per pole, replacing all affected poles is an expensive enterprise. Previous research conducted at UW attempted to quantify how different levels of woodpecker damage affected the pole strength. In the course of this research, some shear failures were observed. Utility poles being slender cantilevered structures, failures in shear are not expected. The objectives of this study were to determine the effective shear strength of wood utility poles and to determine the reliability of wood utility poles under different configurations, including poles that had been damaged by woodpeckers. An experimental programme was developed and conducted to determine the effective shear strength of wood poles. Red Pine wood pole stubs were used for this purpose. The stubs were slotted with two transverse half-depth cuts parallel to one another but with openings in opposite directions. A shear plane was formed between these two slots. The specimens were loaded longitudinally and the failure load was recorded and divided by the failure plane area to determine the shear strength. The moisture content of each specimen was recorded and used to normalize each data point to 12 % moisture content. The experimental study showed that the mean shear strength of the Red Pine specimens adjusted to 12 % moisture content was 2014 kPa (COV 47.5 %) when calculated using gross shear area, and 2113 kPa (COV 40.5 %) when calculated using net area. The shear strength of full-size pole specimens can be represented using a log-normal distribution with a scale parameter of λ = 0.5909 and a shape parameter of ζ = 0.5265. iii The reliability of Red Pine wood utility poles was determined analytically. A structural analysis model was developed using Visual Basic for Applications in Excel and used in conjunction with Monte Carlo simulation. Statistical distribution parameters for wind loads and ice accretion for the Thunder Bay, Ontario region were obtained from literature. Similarly, statistical data were obtained for the modulus of rupture and shear strength from previous research conducted at UW as well as the experimental programme conducted in this research. The effects of various properties on reliability were tested parametrically. Tested parameters included the height of poles above ground, construction grade, end- of-life criterion, and various levels of woodpecker damage. To evaluate the results of the analysis, the calculated reliability levels were compared to the annual reliability level of 98 % suggested in CAN/CSA-C22.3 No. 60826. Results of this reliability study showed that taller poles tend to have lower reliability than shorter ones, likely due to second-order effects having a greater influence on taller poles. The Construction Grade, a factor which dictates the load factors used during design, has a significant impact on the reliability of wood utility pole, with poles designed using Construction Grade 3 having a reliability level below the 98 % threshold. Poles designed based on Construction Grade 2 and 3 having reached the end-of-life criterion (60 % remaining strength) had reliability below this threshold whilst CG1-designed pole reliability remained above it. Wood poles with exploratory- and feeding-level woodpecker damage were found to have an acceptable level of reliability. Those with nesting-level damage had reliability below the suggested limits. Poles with feeding and nesting damage showed an increase in shear failure. The number of observed shear failure depended on the orientation of the damage. Woodpecker damage with the opening oriented with the neutral axis (i.e., the opening perpendicular to the direction of loading) produced a greater number of shear failure compared to woodpecker damage oriented with the extreme bending fibres.

Hydro One, a major distribution of electricity in Ontario, has reported that approximately 16,000 of the wood utility poles in its network of two million poles have been damaged by woodpeckers. With a cost of replacement of approximately $4000 per pole, replacing all affected poles is an expensive enterprise. Previous research conducted at UW attempted to quantify how different levels of woodpecker damage affected the pole strength. In the course of this research, some shear failures were observed. Utility poles being slender cantilevered structures, failures in shear are not expected. The objectives of this study were to determine the effective shear strength of wood utility poles and to determine the reliability of wood utility poles under different configurations, including poles that had been damaged by woodpeckers. An experimental programme was developed and conducted to determine the effective shear strength of wood poles. Red Pine wood pole stubs were used for this purpose. The stubs were slotted with two transverse half-depth cuts parallel to one another but with openings in opposite directions. A shear plane was formed between these two slots. The specimens were loaded longitudinally and the failure load was recorded and divided by the failure plane area to determine the shear strength. The moisture content of each specimen was recorded and used to normalize each data point to 12 % moisture content. The experimental study showed that the mean shear strength of the Red Pine specimens adjusted to 12 % moisture content was 2014 kPa (COV 47.5 %) when calculated using gross shear area, and 2113 kPa (COV 40.5 %) when calculated using net area. The shear strength of full-size pole specimens can be represented using a log-normal distribution with a scale parameter of λ = 0.5909 and a shape parameter of ζ = 0.5265. iii The reliability of Red Pine wood utility poles was determined analytically. A structural analysis model was developed using Visual Basic for Applications in Excel and used in conjunction with Monte Carlo simulation. Statistical distribution parameters for wind loads and ice accretion for the Thunder Bay, Ontario region were obtained from literature. Similarly, statistical data were obtained for the modulus of rupture and shear strength from previous research conducted at UW as well as the experimental programme conducted in this research. The effects of various properties on reliability were tested parametrically. Tested parameters included the height of poles above ground, construction grade, end- of-life criterion, and various levels of woodpecker damage. To evaluate the results of the analysis, the calculated reliability levels were compared to the annual reliability level of 98 % suggested in CAN/CSA-C22.3 No. 60826. Results of this reliability study showed that taller poles tend to have lower reliability than shorter ones, likely due to second-order effects having a greater influence on taller poles. The Construction Grade, a factor which dictates the load factors used during design, has a significant impact on the reliability of wood utility pole, with poles designed using Construction Grade 3 having a reliability level below the 98 % threshold. Poles designed based on Construction Grade 2 and 3 having reached the end-of-life criterion (60 % remaining strength) had reliability below this threshold whilst CG1-designed pole reliability remained above it. Wood poles with exploratory- and feeding-level woodpecker damage were found to have an acceptable level of reliability. Those with nesting-level damage had reliability below the suggested limits. Poles with feeding and nesting damage showed an increase in shear failure. The number of observed shear failure depended on the orientation of the damage. Woodpecker damage with the opening oriented with the neutral axis (i.e., the opening perpendicular to the direction of loading) produced a greater number of shear failure compared to woodpecker damage oriented with the extreme bending fibres.

This work focused on decay and dimensional stability of southern pine lumber and environmental issues associated with emissions released during kiln drying of southern pine. In one study decking boards were treated with a 3% resin acid solution to increase the dimensional stability. The boards were placed on a roof and weathered for two years. The increased water repellency reduced moisture gain following summer rainstorms by one-third compared to untreated matched samples, this significantly reduced splitting by half and cupping by one-third. In one study decking boards from matched samples were weathered for two years in the roof setup described above, and in a fungal ground proximity test. The ground proximity samples had slightly more decay than the roof samples. Correlation between decay ratings for the matched samples was 37%, suggesting above-ground decay susceptibility is dependent on the macro- and micro-environment. Decay in roof exposure was modeled based on moisture content factors, whereas decay in ground proximity was modeled by the resin and fatty acids. One study tested pole sections with varying amounts of sapwood, heartwood, and knots dried in a pilot-scale kiln. A sample of the kiln exhaust was measured for volatile organic compounds. Emissions from poles were similar to clear lumber. Emissions from heartwood poles were less than for heartwood lumber, perhaps due to the poles’ sapwood band. The final study was conducted with clear and knotty lumber kiln dried to below 8% moisture content using three kiln schedules. Wood dried to this lower moisture content is used in interior applications or exported. During drying, a sample of the kiln exhaust was analyzed for total VOCs, and a sample of the kiln exhaust was collected and analyzed for hazardous air pollutants via gas chromatography and spectrophotometry. For all three kiln schedules, mills would reach 10 tons of methanol and thus must comply with maximum achievable control technology standards before reaching 25 tons of methanol, formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, acrolein, and propionaldehyde.

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