ABSTRACT
Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) and High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) could be applied to study the provenance of wood, specifically the differentiation of wood resources, as well as the identification of chemical compounds that are connected to the changes that occur in wood as a result of drying treatments. To test this hypothesis, the bark of silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) from trees belonging to seven different geographical provenances was studied, using samples dried at three different temperatures (60, 80, and 100 °C). FT-IR spectroscopy revealed different band assignments in the mid-infrared region depending on fir provenances, whereas the vibrational bands of the biomass functional groups tended to shift to lower wavenumbers. Significant differences were identified between the chemical compounds in the bark depending on the provenances. The largest proportion of the total phenolics was represented by the epicatechin gallate, epicatechin, catechin, and procyanidin dimer B1. Exploratory data analysis was performed using principal component analysis (PCA), hierarchical clustering, and Pearson correlations. This allowed a comparative evaluation of the samples and interpret the findings according to the geographical provenances, respectively ecological conditions in the areas of origin, but also the influence of the drying temperatures of the samples on chemical compounds. The precipitation in the areas of origin decreased total phenolics in silver fir bark samples, and total phenolics differed not only due to the geographic provenance, but also due to drying temperature.
ABSTRACT
This article contains the results of identifying the potential of coniferous trees to act as bioinspiration for the structural design of columns in single-story warehouses subjected to high wind velocity and severe seismic action. This study starts by analyzing the biomechanics of coniferous trees, continues with an abstraction of the relevant features, and ends with the transfer of a design methodology for long reinforced and prestressed concrete columns. To verify the applicability and validity of the mathematical relationships extracted from the bibliographic study to characterize the biomechanics of coniferous trees, a study site is conducted for Norway spruce trees felled by the wind in the Bilbor area. The design methodology for long reinforced and prestressed concrete columns bioinspired by the Norway spruce trees is experimentally validated using two case studies. The first case study deals with the effect of centric prestressing on long concrete columns, and the second on the influence of the walnut shell powder on the adhesion of the reinforcement in concrete. The case studies presented aim to transfer some characteristics from trees to reinforced concrete to improve the performance of long columns under horizontal forces. The results obtained indicate a good approximation of the trees' structural behavior for this site and for ones investigated by other researchers in different forests.
