Physical and mechanical properties of wood of northern red oak in the vicinity of Belgrade (Serbia)

Abstract

The wood of northern red oak (Quercus rubra L.), considered to be a very high-quality material for processing in the wood industry, has not been tested in Serbia so far. To date, there are only small areas under northern red oak in Serbia, but there are significant stands of this species in the vicinity of Belgrade. In this paper, the basic physical and mechanical wood properties of northern red oak in Serbia were tested. The examined 57 years old tree was located in the forest of Lipovica, near Belgrade. The tree was cut down and two small logs were taken to the laboratory for analysis. The results show that the properties of wood of northern red oak do not differ significantly from the properties of native oak species in Serbia - sessile and pedunculate oak. In addition, the values of basic mechanical properties of wood of northern red oak in Serbia were similar to the relevant values obtained by other researchers in Europe and the USA. Thus, the utilization of wood of northern red oak in the local wood processing industry should be considered.