Location of the neutral axis in wood beams: A preliminary study

Abstract It is commonly accepted in the analysis of wood beams that the neutral axis coincides with the beam's centroid. However, wood is not an isotropic material, has different elastic properties in the tangential, radial and longitudinal directions, and is non-homogeneous, as it contains characteristics such as knots. Therefore, there is need for an analysis of the neutral axis for anisotropic, non-homogeneous materials, such as wood, to predict deformations and strains. Specifically, digital imaging correlation, a non-contact technique to measure deformation of an object's surface, is used to examine how knots influence neutral axis location. Output from digital imaging correlation software provides a clear image of the location of the neutral axis. The neutral axis in a clear wood beam remains close to the centroidal axis throughout loading, while the location of a knot determines the size of the compression and tension zones as well as the location of the neutral axis. Keywords: Anisotropic materialsinelastic behaviourknotsneutral axiswood Acknowledgements The authors acknowledge the invaluable efforts of Milo Clauson and Arijit Sinha and the support provided by the Centre for Wood Utilization Research grant.