CT scans used to analyze wood

WOOD PILE

disclaimer: image is for illustration purposes only

by staff writers
Oak Ridge, Tenn. (UPI) Dec 18, 2006
U.S. government scientists say they are developing ways to use computerized tomography imaging to analyze various types of wood.

The U.S. Department of Energy researchers at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory say their findings might lead to important applications in the pulp, paper and nascent bioenergy industries.

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researcher Justin Baba is working to develop analytical tools to determine parameters such as fiber length and arrangement, cell wall thickness and density from CT scans. Those scans could replace more destructive, chemical-dependant, methods of analyzing wood samples that currently compromise the information collection process.

For bioenergy, after some basic measurement standards are established, Baba says the scans will be able to show the cellulosic content of wood to help create a cellulose-based biofuel supply.

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WOOD PILE

Case Western Reserve University Biologists Suspect Lightning Fires Help Preserve Oak Forests

Cleveland OH (SPX) Dec 18, 2006
Oak forests may be approaching extinction but lightning fires may play a vital role in their regeneration, according to Case Western Reserve University biologists. Paul Drewa, assistant professor in Case's biology department, and graduate student Sheryl Petersen, suspect that these kinds of fires may provide a natural mechanism to deter encroachment of shade tolerant hardwoods, especially red maples that are crowding out oaks and other plants on the ground floors of numerous forests throughout the eastern United States.

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