Application of Temperature and Process Duration as a Method for Predicting the Mechanical Properties of Thermally Modified Timber

This study aims to investigate the influence of thermal modification (TM) on the physical and mechanical properties of wood. For this purpose, the experimental part focused on selected influential parameters, namely temperature, residence time, and density, while the four-point bending strength is obtained as the output parameter. The obtained experimental data are stochastically modeled and compared with the model created by genetic programming (GP). The classical mathematical analysis obtained treatment parameters in relation to the maximum bending strength (T = 187 & DEG;C, t = 125 min rho = 0.780 g/cm(3)) and compared with the results obtained by genetic algorithm (GA) (T = 208 & DEG;C, t = 122 min, and rho = 0.728 g/cm(3)). It is possible to obtain models that describe experimental results well with stochastic modeling and evolutionary algorithms.

Automated summary

This study aims to investigate the influence of thermal modification on the physical and mechanical properties of wood. Experimental results show that stochastic modeling and evolutionary algorithms can be used to obtain models that accurately describe the experimental data.