WOODWISE Fire Experiments Improve Mass Timber Safety: Phase I
| Authors: | Laura Hasburgh, Kara Yedinak, Jenna Zukswert |
| Year: | 2026 |
| Type: | Other |
| Station: | Forest Products Laboratory |
| Source: | FS |
Abstract
While buildings have been constructed of wood for centuries, mass timber has revolutionized wood as a building material by enabling construction of high-rise wood buildings, thereby rivaling concrete and steel. Using cross-laminated timber—a form of mass timber made by stacking and adhering dried lumber in alternating directions into solid panels—can increase construction speeds while sequestering carbon, reducing emissions, and providing a market for sustainable forest products.
As the number and complexity of structures made with cross-laminated timber continue to increase, critical fire research is necessary to ensure that these structures remain safe during fire. Understanding fire behavior in full-scale structures is difficult, however, due to the expense and limited laboratory facilities where such experiments can be conducted.