Treesearch

Understanding moisture behavior in cross-laminated timber (CLT) is critical to the widespread use of CLT in construction in the United States. Currently, very little data exist on the long-term impact of moisture on CLT in real structures. The objective of this research was to collect data regarding the long-term moisture variation in the CLT panels at the University of Arkansas student residential building, named Adohi Hall. The climate of Northwest Arkansas is different from those of previously monitored buildings, mostly located in the Pacific Northwest. Comparatively, Northwest...

Spruce beetles (Dendroctonus rufipennis) are causing widespread spruce (Picea spp.) mortality in subalpine forests in western North America. Spruce beetles are changing forest structure and composition by killing a dominant overstory species, but we know little about how the understory community responds to the increase in resource availability brought about by spruce mortality, what mechanisms drive its response, or how its response affects other forest properties and processes.

Bark beetle (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) outbreaks can be spectacular, killing trees across hundreds to thousands of hectares or more of forest land. As bark beetles are a natural disturbance agent, it is hypothesized that ecosystems are adapted to such periodic disturbances. Under climate change, however, these beetle outbreaks have become more severe, persistent, and chronic on many landscapes, bringing into question the long-term resilience of these forests and the biota that depend on them. Our chapter objective is to review and generalize the effects of bark beetle outbreaks...

Ecologists use a wide variety of metrics and software tools to quantify and map spatial patterns in ecological data. For analysis of categorical raster data, we introduce the GuidosToolbox Workbench (GWB), a series of Linux-based command-line modules, implementing popular algorithms from the interactive GuidosToolbox desktop application. We provide an overview of the workbench design, features of the individual modules, and an example implementation on the FAO SEPAL cloud computing environment.

Outdoor recreation is a type of recreation that occurs in, and depends on, the natural environment. Ecosystem services are the benefits people receive from ecosystems. The outdoor recreation research (ORR) field has developed a detailed understanding of the recreation experience but has not developed a full understanding of the contribution of the natural environment to those experiences. Recreation Ecosystem Services (RES) is a newer area of research that highlights the contribution of the natural environment for recreation. The integration of these lines of research can improve our...

US manufacturers are looking to expand the use of cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels into the North American market, including states located in the southeast where termites are important pests. However, there is no current assessment method for determining CLT vulnerability to the highly destructive native termites found in many states across the United States. The impact of damage by these termites is of particularly high interest in areas with suitable climate to their proliferation, such as the southeastern United States. This study evaluated durability of CLT panels and developed a...

As the need to address climate change grows more urgent, policymakers, businesses, and others are seeking innovative approaches to remove carbon dioxide emissions from the atmosphere and decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors. Forests can play a role in reducing atmospheric carbon. However, there is disagreement over whether forests are most effective in reducing carbon emissions when left alone versus managed for sustainable harvesting and wood product production. Cross-laminated timber is at the forefront of the mass timber movement, which is enabling designers, engineers, and other stakeholde...

This study is expanding the previous studies that were focused on the material properties and transportation costs of the two alternative feedstocks for manufacturing wood-plastic composites (WPCs): wood flour and pellets. Besides the material properties and cost analysis, life-cycle assessment (LCA) is equally important to assess the environmental impacts of these two alternative wood feedstocks to manufacture WPCs and gain the knowledge of influences from the manufacturing and transportation processes. The main goal of this study was to compare the environmental impacts from the productio...

Fast growing Eucalyptus grandis W. Hill ex Maiden (EG), E. amplifolia Naudin (EA), Corymbia torelliana (F.Muell.) K.D.Hill & L.A.S.Johnson (CT), and Populus deltoides W.Bartram ex Marshall (PD) may be deployed in Short Rotation Woody Crop (SRWC) systems in the lower Southeastern USA, especially in Florida. To evaluate these species for possible use as medium density fiberboard (MDF) and other composites, 2.5 m logs of three EG clones, three PD clones, six EA progenies, four CT trees, and one P. tremuloides Michx. (PT) tree from northern Wisconsin as a control were characterized for basic...

Energy crops grown on marginal lands offer an alternative supply of renewable resources while avoiding competition with food crops and supporting feed crops. To sustainably grow energy crops, the economic and environmental impacts of various crop management practices such as the adoption of cover crops, fertilization rates, harvesting methods and its end use applications for animal feed or biofuels should be investigated. In this study, we investigated the life cycle analysis (LCA) and economic evaluation of growing two energy crops (energy cane, and napier grass) on the marginal lands...