Abstract

Several thick board and dimension lumbers of Japanese larch(Larix leptolepis), Dahurian larch(Larix gmelini) and radiata pine(Pinus radiata) air-dried in four different seasons to compare air-drying process. Patterns of air-drying curves were influenced by climatological conditions and limber thickness. The initial drying rates of summer were the highest, followed those of fall, spring and winter. The drying times to equilibrium moisture contents for four seasons were nearly the same except for winter. However, the drying time for winter required twice more time than the other seasons. The drying time of dimension lumbers required 1.3 times more than boards. The final moisture contents were lowest during spring, highest during winter and similar between summer and fall.

Keywords

• Air-drying curve;
• climatological conditions;
• initial drying rate;
• equilibrium moisture content;
• final moisture content;
• four seasons