Hardness and Hardness Modulus of Wood-Polymer Composites

Hardness tests were made on untreated and treated (PMMA) samples of red oak, hard maple, and aspen. Both the standard hardness test (ASTM D143) and that for modified wood (ASTM D1324-60) were used. A regression analysis was run on hardness, hardness modulus, density, and grain angle of the untreated samples at 5 percent MC. Hardness and hardness modulus of untreated samples were found to be significantly related to sample density, but neither was a consistently better test for individual species. Treated and untreated wood hardness moduli were not significantly related. Face grain aspect had more influence on treated than untreated hardness values. There were highly significant relationships between treated hardness modulus and density, mass loading, and volumetric loading of red oak, but not for aspen or hard maple. A highly significant relationship was obtained between hardness moduli at 5 and 12 percent MC for the combined samples and for red oak individually. A multiple regression equation was developed to predict treated hardness modulus from species density and polymer mass loading.

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