Azeotropic Drying of Yellow Birch and Hard Maple Lumber

Azeotropic drying of yellow birch and hard maple with trichloroethylene was conducted by spraying the solvent over the lumber and also by total submersion of the lumber in solvent. The spray method was more satisfactory with drying times for 2-inch birch and maple heartwood reduced 24 and 56 percent, respectively, compared to conventional kiln-drying. Reductions for 1-inch heartwood were considerably less (11 and 20 percent). Drying time for sapwood was reduced 32 to 50 percent. Degrade in heartwood dried by either method was excessive as a result of severe honeycombing, collapse and checking; degrade in sapwood was only slight, comparable to that of conventional kiln-drying. Retention of solvent in heartwood after drying by the spray method ranged from 1 to 4 percent of the ovendry weight of wood. For sapwood retention was about 3 percent in yellow birch and 10 percent in hard maple. The quantity of extractives removed from the wood during drying varied from 5 to 13 lb./Mbf of lumber.

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