An original impact device for biomass characterisation: results obtained for spruce and poplar at different moisture contents

This paper describes an experimental device designed to determine the mechanical behaviour of lignocellulosic products subjected to high strain rates. This impact system consists of a moving trolley equipped with an accelerometer, which is thrown against a fixed trolley. The sample is attached to the fixed trolley, and the accelerations of both trolleys during the impact are analysed to obtain stress/strain curves. A high-speed camera synchronised with a high-powered xenon flash records up to 4,000 frames/s. A set of tests on wood samples is described to illustrate the potential of this new device. In particular, the cross-effects of compression rate and moisture content were demonstrated by performing both quasi-static (1 mm min⁻¹ using a conventional testing machine) and dynamic tests (1.7 m s⁻¹ using the impact device). Poplar and spruce samples, equilibrated at three different moisture contents (air-dried, fibre saturation point (FSP) and fully saturated), were tested. Two findings are particularly worthy of mentioning: (1) despite the plasticising role of water, the sample at FSP exhibited a fragile behaviour at the high compression rate, (2) the resistance due to the expulsion of water out of saturated samples can be assessed only by performing an impact test.