Embedment Strength of Recovered Spruce and Oak

Abstract

The circular use of construction materials is an essential step in the drive to reduce the environmental impact of the construction sector. One of the factors that currently limits the ability to reuse timber recovered from demolition in structural applications is the lack of data relating to its structural performance, which would allow for the certification of its characteristics and the development of design guidelines.This paper presents a study on the embedment performance of recovered timber by determining the embedment strength of spruce and oak specimens recovered from demolition sites in Ireland and Slovenia. Tests were carried out in the parallel and in the perpendicular to the grain directions using three different dowel diameters. The results were comparable with mean values reported in the literature and with the empirical Eurocode 5 predictions. Based on these findings, it can be concluded that the embedment performance of the recovered spruce and oak is equivalent to that of new timber. Further studies on recovered timber of different origin, species, ages and history of use are needed to confirm these findings.