Physical and Mechanical Properties of Finger-Jointed Shorea leprosula Miq. Wood Waste

The demand for wood as a raw material, particularly for construction applications, continues to increase. However, the availability of large-diameter timber has declined, leading to the increased use of fast-growing, small-diameter wood species. One approach to overcoming this limitation and improving wood quality to meet construction standards is the application of finger-jointing technology. This study evaluated the strength of finger-jointed wood with different joint positions along the longitudinal direction. A completely randomized factorial design was employed with two factors: joint orientation and joint position. The evaluated parameters included moisture content, specific gravity, modulus of elasticity (MoE), modulus of rupture (MoR), and joint efficiency. The average moisture content ranged from 12.36% to 13.08%, whereas the specific gravity ranged from 0.41 to 0.50. The MoE ranged from 10,044.30 to 17,411.07 MPa, and the MoR ranged from 44.92 to 67.27 MPa. Analysis of variance showed that the treatments had no significant effects on moisture content, specific gravity, or MoE. However, joint position had a significant effect on the MoR, and the post hoc analysis showed significant differences among the joint-position treatments.