Abstract

Acacia melanoxylon and Acacia dealbata are two Australian species well acclimated in Chile, both wood species with an interesting industrial potential. In this work, has been studied kiln drying runs and the wood drying quality of the sawn wood of Acacia melanoxylon and Acacia dealbata during kiln drying at conventional temperatures. Eight tests of kiln drying to conventional temperatures are made, using a convective drying of 0,3 m3 of capacity. The experimental design includes as variable the species (A. melanoxylon an A. dealbata), the wood thickness (25 and 50 mm) and the cut-type (flatsawn-wood and quartersawn-wood). The wood drying quality on the basis of European and Chilean standards is evaluated. The results show that for a same thickness, both species A. melanoxylon and A. dealbata, in flatsawn and quartersawn-wood could be satisfactorily kiln dryied under a similar program of conventional temperatures. The wood drying quality is performed due to both species are free of collapse and they are an low transversal shrinkage.