United States

Department of

Agriculture

Forest Service

Forest

Products

Laboratory

Research

Paper

FPL 404

Candidate Woodbase Standard

Reference Materials

For Fire TestingRed Oak
Abstract

A need is presented for wood-base materials suitable

as Standard Reference Materials (SRM’s) for nationwide

fire testing. Need is based on increasing trend toward

large-scale fire testing and use of non-characterized

wood materials indiscriminately as a performance

reference for other building materials. Research objectives are outlined and studies needed toward the

ultimate goal of recommending a procedural guide for

selection and processing of wood-base materials for

fire testing to ASTM Subcommittee D07.12 on Fire Performance of Wood and Wood-Base Products. This

paper presents results of first study which examined

red oak as a candidate material from standpoint of present usage, forest resource, growth variability, and fire

performance variability in the 8-foot tunnel furnace. The

effort toward red oak as an SRM is abandoned primarily due to anticipated decreased usage. A recommendation is made that a reconstituted wood product be investigated as a potential SRM and the 8-foot furnace

(ASTM E 286) be used as the reference standard test

method for its evaluation.

Introduction

Use of Wood as a Reference Material in Fire Testing

Wood as a Reference in Building Codes

Need for Wood Reference Materials

Standard Reference Materials

Candidate Materials

Red Oak in Fire Testing

The Red Oak Resource

Production of Red Oak Lumber

Production of Red Oak Strip Flooring

Red Oak Specific Gravity

Red Oak Strip Flooring Costs

Relevance of ASTM Standard E 286 and the

Red Oak Calibration Reference

The 8-Foot Furnace

Density of Red Oak Used for Furnace Calibration

Effect of Red Oak Density on Flame Travel

Effect of Gas Supply Heating Rate on Flame Travel

Need for Changing the ASTM Standard

Conclusions and Recommendations

Conversion of Units

1 bd ft (1 ft by 1 ft by 1 in.) = 0.00236 m3

1 Btu/min = 17.57250 watts

1 ft = 0.305 m

1 in. = 25.4 mm

1 lb = 0.454 Kg

1° F = 0.556°C

T(°F) = 1.8T(=C) + 32
United States

Department of

Agriculture

Forest Service

Forest

Products

Laboratory1

Research

Paper

FPL 404

July 1981

Candidate Woodbase Standard

Reference Materials

For Fire TestingRed Oak

By

CARLTON A. HOLMES, Technologist

and

MARTIN CHUDNOFF, Technologist

Introduction

The fire problem in the United States is enormous in

terms of personal injuries and deaths, and in direct and

indirect loss of property and services. Increased government attention and public concern, together with advent of many new building products, have brought

about a considerable increase in fire research activities

and literature. Wood performance is often the

reference. But a cursory examination of such fire

research literature referencing wood usually shows Iittle or no characterization or identification of the wood

product tested. Often only the generic, common (or uncommon) name is used. Performance of wood, plywood,

fiberboard, hardboard, particleboard, or cabinet birch is

compared with other materials without giving such

minimum information as species name, density,

moisture content, or even dimensions. It is well

known-at least in the wood industry-that wood

species generally vary considerably in their physical,

chemical, and mechanical properties. Experience has

shown that wood species also have considerable

variability in fire performance. This degree of variability

may be less, but still present, within a species.

1

 Maintained at Madison, Wis., in cooperation with the University of

Wisconsin.

2

 Italicized numbers in parentheses refer to literature cited at the end of

report.

A procedure is needed for the selection and processing

of wood-base materials suitable as standard reference

materials (SRM) for nationwide fire testing. The general

procedure might be applicable to any solid wood product to determine the physical and fire performance

properties of interest. If successful, a recommended

procedural guide for selection and processing of a

wood-base product as an SRM for fire testing would be

submitted to ASTM Subcommittee D07.12 on Fire Performance of Wood and Wood-Base Products.

Red oak was selected as the first candidate material

upon which to base the development of such a procedure, because of its important use as the calibration

standard for the ASTM E 84 25-foot furnace (1)2

. This

test method is used for rating building material surface

flammability hazard for code purposes. Strip flooring

has been used for this calibration standard for over 30

years because of its uniformity of grade and heretofore

wide availability.

In the course of this study on material availability and

of the fire performance variability of red oak flooring,

information was obtained which altered the approach

needed to achieve the ultimate objective. In ASTM

Committee E-5 on Fire Standards, the chairman of the

Task Group on the Standardization and Updating of

ASTM Standard E-84 reported that the task group is

working on means of calibrating the 25-foot furnace
without the use of red oak as a calibration standard (1).

Success in this effort would considerably reduce the

current supply requirement for red oak strip flooring

used for fire testing.

it is expected there would be only minimal, if any, use

of red oak strip flooring in the anticipated increase of

large (room) scale fire testing of wall and ceiling finish.

The need for red oak for the above uses is questionable

at this time. Some useful information has been obtained, however, and is reported in this paper. This includes evaluations of existing test data on red oak in

the FPL 8-foot furnace (ASTM E 286) and the red oak

resource. These evaluations will be useful both for continued use of red oak as a standard in certain fire tests

and for insights into the supply and performance requirements of other wood-base materials as reference

standards in fire testing.

Use of Wood as a Reference Material in Fire

Testing

Wood as a Reference in Building Codes

Flame spread index limitations on the use of building

materials, evident in all building codes, are based on

the flame spread performance of Select grade red oak

flooring in the ASTM E 84-79a (3) procedure using a

25-foot furnace. The BOCA Basic Building Code (7)

states that the products of combustion from approved

light-transmitting plastic materials shall be no more

toxic than those of untreated wood when burned under

similar conditions. The 1976 issue of the Uniform

Building Code contains the same limitation, but it has

been deleted in the 1979 edition (9).

Need for Wood Reference Materials

Standard wood-base reference materials are needed for

nationwide fire testing, particularly for larger-scale fire

testing such as room and corridor fire tests, wall tests

by ASTM E 119 (4) and the 25-foot flame spread test furnace by ASTM E 84. The use of selected wood

materials that have a known fire performance property

or properties will give more meaning and credibility to

comparative-type test results. Their use also provides a

calibration check to determine precision of the test

equipment and procedure or method.

Standard Reference Materials

The National Bureau of Standards (NBS), the largest

supplier of SRM’s, defines SRM’s as well- characterized

and certified materials, produced in quantity: (1) to help

develop reference methods of analysis or test, i.e.,

methods proven to be accurate; and/or (2) to calibrate a

measurement system, and/or (3) to assure the long-term

adequacy and integrity of the quality control process

(8). The only wood-base material presently listed as an

SRM by NBS (12) is SRM 1-002b, a hardboard sheet

used for checking operation of the radiant panel test

equipment, ASTM E-162 (5). Flame spread index for this

SRM is certified as 190 and heat evolution factor, Q,

45.4.

2

The property or properties of interest in an SRM must

be determined and certified on the basis of accuracy.

Three different routes are used at NBS to do this. in the

first, the property is measured by two or more analysts

working independently but using the same reference

method. A reference method of test is one which has

been demonstrated to be accurate such as an ASTM

method. If a reference method does not exist, then the

measurements are made using two or more different

but reliable methods which have high precision

although their systematic biases are not fully known.

The third route is like the second but a candidate

renewal SRM is evaluated by several or many laboratories using a previous issue of an SRM as a check.

A wood-base SRM would have to be provided in large

quantity, considering the cost and care necessary in its

production and certification and considering the potential volume of usage. NBS usually stores a 6- to 10-year

supply.

Candidate Materials

if a wood product is to be used as a standard reference

material for fire testing it must have the following

characteristics: (1) Adequate supply at a reasonable

cost, and (2) uniform fire performance-either naturally

nonvariable or variability limits are acceptable.

Based on volume of use in construction, candidate

wood-base SRM’s would be particleboard, hardboard,

Douglas-fir plywood, southern pine plywood, Douglas-fir

lumber and southern pine lumber. Red oak strip flooring may be considered a candidate material based on

its present important use for calibration of the 25-foot

furnace, although, as indicated elsewhere its use as a

flooring is decreasing.

A reconstituted wood product such as particleboard or

hardboard should be superior to solid wood as an SRM.

A large production lot of candidate SRM would have to

be produced at one time. With current fiber or particleboard technology and quality control, it is believed

a more uniform product could be produced. Panel-size

material would be more suitable than board-size for

most fire test applications and be lower in cost to produce and handle.

Red Oak in Fire Testing

The 25-foot furnace of ASTM E 84-79a (3) is calibrated

to obtain a flame progression on red oak flooring of

19.5 feet in 5.5 minutes. Flame spread index (FSI)

values for all materials tested by this method are based

on idealized straight line flame spread distance-time

curves. The FSI for red oak is 91.4 by the calculation

method employed in the 79a revision of the Standard.

Asbestos-cement board establishes the zero FSI.

Smoke development by ASTM E 84 is also referenced in

some building codes to set limitations (7, 9, 13). The

numerical index for smoke development is based on

the performance of materials compared to that of

asbestos-cement board and Select Grade red oak flooring arbitrarily established as 0 and 100, respectively.
About seventeen 25-foot furnaces are in operation in

the United States and Canada.

ASTM Standard E 286 (6) prescribes use of red oak

flooring for calibration of the 8-foot furnace, (specimen

size 8 ft by 13.75 in.). The small 2-foot furnace of ASTM

D 3806 (2), used primarily for evaluating coatings, uses

red oak lumber for establishing the flame spread rating

scale. The proposed ASTM Standard Method of test for

surface burning characteristics of flooring, floor covering and other materials exposed in a floor-like orientation would use red oak flooring as a standard

reference. This test utilizes the 25-foot furnace and the

calibration sample (about 24 ft long by 17 in. wide) will

be tested on the furnace floor.

The volume of red oak required annually in the United

States and Canada for calibration of the three tunneltype test furnaces is estimated at 5,000 to 10,000 board

feet. Use of red oak for other large scale testing would

most likely be negligible.

The Red Oak Resource

Inventory data are available for the volume of hardwood

sawtimber growing on commercial forest land; volumes

are in trees 11 inches and over in diameter at breast

height. See “Forest Statistics of the U.S., 1977” table

22 (16). Inventory for the Eastern United States for total

hardwoods and red oaks is given in table 1. Net volume

of sawtimber for all hardwoods on commercial

timberlands in the Eastern United States as of January

1, 1977, was 527 billion board feet. In the North, select

red oaks make up about 50 percent of the total red oak

volume. In the South, they constitute 20 percent. For

the Eastern region (North and South combined), all red

oaks have a stumpage of 127 billion board feet or 24

percent of all hardwoods combined. In 1970, the red

oak sawtimber inventory was 106 billion board feet. The

red oak resource is substantial and is increasing.

Production of Red Oak Lumber

The above is a measurement of the resource “on the

hoof.” Total hardwood lumber production for 1976 in

the Eastern United States was about 6 billion board

feet, of which some 50 percent was in the red and

white oaks (table 2), (19). Roughly half of this again

would be in the red oaks, as suggested by the forest

statistics for 1977 or about 1.5 billion board feet in

1976.

Production of Red Oak Strip Flooring

After World War II, production of oak strip flooring

peaked at about 1 billion board feet and then declined

rapidly to a low of 200 million board feet in 1972 (last

year data available). Current oak strip flooring production is probably down to less than 100 million board

feet. There are 20 members of the National Oak Flooring Manufacturers’ Association that process oak strip

flooring at mill sites located in the lower Mississippi

Valley and in the Southeast (see fig. 1). Production of

oak strip flooring has decreased at least tenfold over

the past 25 years and production is concentrated in the

Southeastern United States.

Red Oak Specific Gravity

In this report, emphasis will be on specific gravity

distribution patterns in the red oaks. The possible effect of other wood variables, aside from moisture content on flame spread is not defined.

The specific gravity of various species of red oak are

given in table 3. Only black oak (Quercus velutina) and

red oak (Quercus borealis syn. Quercus rubra) were

sampled from more than one site. Species averages

range from 0.52 to 0.61. Six of the nine species have

average basic specific gravities that ranged from 0.56

to 0.58.

Quercus borealis syn. Quercus rubra was sampled from

6 sites located in 5 states, see figure 2–33 trees. Site

averages are given in table 4. Analysis of variance

shows no significant differences at the 5 percent level.

The specific gravity distribution pattern is given in

figure 3. Single tree averages range from 0.45 to 0.64,

with a grand average of 0.566 and a standard deviation

of 0.039.

Figure 1.–Mill sites of members of the National Oak Flooring Manufacturers’ Association. (M 149 530)

Figure 2.–The range of northern red oak (Quercus rubra, L.)

and sample locations for two different property

evaluations. (M 149 531)

3
R. R. Maeglin sampled 240 Quercus rubra trees-see

figure 2 for locations- and reported on their specific

gravity values.3 These ranged from 0.46 to 0.66 with a

mean value of 0.56 (fig. 4), almost identical to Technical

Bulletin No. 479 (11) distribution. It should be noted

that the Technical Bulletin 479 trees were probably old

growth as compared to Maeglin’s second-growth trees.

Maeglin’s trees had ring counts of 7 to 17 rings per

inch, whereas, the average ring count by site measured

on the compression parallel-to-grain test specimens

used for the Bulletin 479 study ranged from 7.1 to 11.5.

Benson H. Paul reported on specific gravity and growthrate in second-growth red oak trees in the Appalachian

region of West Virginia, Kentucky, and North and South

Carolina (74). Sample locations are given in figure 5. A

comparison of specific gravity values reported by Paul

to those in Technical Bulletin 479 is given in table 5.

Second growth tends to be somewhat denser than the

old growth. Bottom-land growth versus mountain

growth may be an overriding influence. Within the

growth-rate limits of 8 to 17 rings per inch measured by

Paul, there was no apparent influence on density. Except for three locations, Maeglin finds the growth-rate,

specific gravity relationship in red oak tenuous. Based

on 993 compression parallel-to-grain test specimens of

red oak (Quercus rubra) that have specific gravity, ringcount data recorded (Tech. Bull. 479), the coefficient of

determination (r2) was 0.213. From all of the preceding,

growth rate has little influence on density in red oak.

Red Oak Strip Flooring Costs

In selecting or developing an SRM, cost should have

some consideration. From the current “Hardwood

Market Report,” (10) oak strip flooring prices were as

follows:

Grade

Mill price adjusted

Memphis, Tenn.

(as of Mar. 8, 1980)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dol/1000 bm

Clear 665 - 710

Select 655 - 675

No. 1 Common 555 - 600

It would be expected that the cost of material from a

certified lot of red oak SRM would be considerably

higher than the above mill prices. This would make

tests which use a large footage of red oak such as

the 25-foot furnace and large-scale tests costly.

3

 Maeglin, R. R. “The effect of site factors and growth rate on the

anatomical proportions of northern red oak (Quercus rubra, L.) wood.

Submitted for the degree of doctor of philosophy to the University of

Michigan 1974. 156 p.

4

Relevance of ASTM Standard E 286 and the Red

Oak Calibration Reference

The 8-Foot Furnace

ASTM E 286, Standard Test Method for Surface Flammability of Building Materials Using an 8-Foot (2.44 m)

Tunnel Furnace, was selected as a possible reference

test method for measuring the flame spread property of

any candidate SRM (6, 17, 18). This method, developed

at the FPL in the early 1950’s, is designated in the standard for use in research and development and not to be

used to develop a basis of ratings for building code

use. However, it has proven to have considerable merit

in research studies on untreated and fire-retardanttreated wood products. As a reference test method, the

8-foot furnace would be used to evaluate potential SRM

candidates. A single candidate needs to be selected by

using a test method that has good precision and adequate sensitivity. The final candidate material shown to

have low variability in the 8-foot furnace testing would

then undergo certification testing by a selected method

or methods such as ASTM E-84.

About 1,700 tests have been conducted in the furnace

at the FPL following the current standard. A computer

file of the data from about 1,000 of these tests has

been established. An indication of its precision was

determined from the results of 48 tests conducted

since May 1956 on Douglas-fir plywood, exterior grade,

3/8-inch thick:

Flame Heating rate

spread index Btu/min

.................................................................................................

Mean 115.8 3,487

Standard deviation

(N-1 weighting)

Variance

5.49 36

(N weighting)

Coefficient of

29.56 1,261

variation, percent 4.74 1.0

The coefficient of variation of 4.7 percent for FSI indicates quite good precision considering that the

results included operator and specimen variability as

well as that inherent in the test itself.

ASTM E 286 prescribes that calibration of the 8-foot furnace be accomplished with plain-sawed, Select Grade

red oak flooring with a density range from 37 to 42

pounds per cubic foot. The flooring is to be nailed to a

backing of plywood 0.25-inch thick. The heating rate of

the gas supplied to the main burner is adjusted so that

the time required for the flames to travel the length of

the red oak specimen is 19.0 ± 1.0 minutes. As indicated earlier, a flame spread index value of 100 is arbitrarily assigned to this calibration and comparison

standard. In subsequent tests, this heating rate is
Figure 3.–Basic specific gravity distribution of red oak

(Quercus rubra, L.) as reported in Bulletin 479 (11)

(Louisiana, Arkansas, Indiana, Tennessee, and

New Hampshire–33 trees) in comparison to the

density requirements of ASTM E 286.

(M 149 537)

Figure 4.–Basic specific gravity distribution of red oak

(Quercus rubra, L.) by Maeglin (Missouri, North

Carolina, West Virginia, Indiana, New York,

Michigan, and Wisconsin–240 trees) in comparison to density requirements of ASTM E 286.

(M 149 536)

maintained the same until a periodic calibration check

indicates the flame travel time is not within the required 18- to 20-minute period. Readjustment of the gas

supply heating rate and recalibration with red oak is

then carried out to establish a new standard test time

period.

Results of ASTM E 286 tests on 1-inch lumber in the

FPL 8-foot furnace indicate that flame spread index

(FSI)4 increases with decrease in wood density (18).

Figure 6 shows this relationship from individual test

results on 29 species of hardwoods and softwoods. The

equation for the regression line is y = 165 – 1.72x,

where y is the flame spread index and x is density in

pounds per cubic foot. Density was based on weight

and volume of the wood specimens conditioned at

4

The flame spread index is a number indicating the comparative flame

travel rate on the surface of a specimen. The end point is 87 inches in

the 8-foot furnace. The index for red oak is assigned the value 100. So

FSI numbers lower or higher than 100 indicate flame travel time to the

end point slower or faster, respectively than that on red oak.

Figure 5.–Locations and elevations of samples of second.

growth red and white oaks by Paul (74).

(M 113 541)

80° F (26.7° C) and 30 percent relative humidity, or

about 6 percent equalibrium moisture content (EMC).

Standard deviation of y about the regression line is 9.1

and the coefficient of determination is r

2

 = 56 percent.

A test of the F statistic indicates the regression to be

significant at the 1 percent level. A casual examination

of the plotted points showed no significant difference

between hardwoods and softwood. A similar, withinspecies, density-flame spread relationship is reported

in a limited sampling of red oak, figure 7 (17).

Density of Red Oak Used for Furnace Calibration

Earlier work with the 8- foot furnace showed that density of red oak affected the time for flames to travel the

full specimen length, figure 7, (17). The standard,

therefore, was written to limit selection of red oak

specimens in the density range of 37 to 42 pounds per

cubic foot. The standard is not clear regarding the

moisture content of the oak at the stated density. It is

assumed that it would be calculated on weight and

volume at the conditioned moisture content. The EMC

of wood at the required conditioning atmosphere, 75 ±

5° F (24 ± 2.8° C) and relative humidity of 35 to 40 percent, is 6.8 to 7.7 percent (15). Specimens to be tested

in the 8-foot furnace at the FPL are conditioned at

80° F (26.7° C) and 30 percent relative humidity or 6

percent EMC. The density of each individual piece or

5
Figure 6.–Test results on 1-inch lumber of 29 species in the

FPL 8-foot furnace of ASTM E 286. Flame spread

index decreases with increasing wood density.

(M 149 532)

(Z M 110 707)

Figure 7.–Effect of red oak density on flame travel time is

reported in a previous FPL Research

Note (17) using limited sampling.

strip of red oak flooring is determined at the FPL with

weight and volume based on the 6 percent EMC. Figure

8 shows the relationship of density based on weight

and volume at 6 and 8 percent moisture content to

basic specific gravity, the more common method for expressing density, based on ovendry weight and green

volume. The equation for the relationship at 6 percent

moisture content is y = 0.0134 x + 0.002; at 8 percent

it is y + 0.0134 x.

The density range of 37 to 42 pounds per cubic foot

given in the standard can be interpreted from figure 8

to be equivalent to a basic specific gravity range of

about 0.50 to 0.56. This density range is shown in

figures 3 and 4 to be in the lower part of the density

distribution of red oak as determined from the selected

growth areas.

Effect of Red Oak Density on Flame Travel

Since May 1965, 65 flame spread tests have been conducted at the FPL on red oak in accordance with the

ASTM standard. No modifications to the furnace or test

procedure which would affect the results had been

made during this period. The density of the individual

pieces or strips of red oak flooring that made up each

specimen varied within an increment of 1 pound per

cubic foot. For example, the average density of a

specimen may have been recorded as 42.4 pounds per

cubic foot. The individual strips, then, were within the

density range 42.0 to 42.9 pounds per cubic foot. The

test results were examined to determine effect of density and gas supply heating rate on the time for flame

to travel the length of the specimen from ignition point

to the measurement endpoint, 87 inches.

Figure 9 shows the scatter diagram and a linear regression line of the relationship between density and flame

travel time. The regression equation is y = 7.66 +

0.273 x, where y is the predicted time in minutes for

flames to reach 87 inches and x is the density in

pounds per cubic foot with density based on weight

and volume at 6 percent EMC. The standard deviation

of y about the regression line is s = 0.653 minute. The

coefficient of determination, r2, is 0.502. A test of the

calculated F statistic indicates the regression is significant at the I percent probability level. We may conclude

from this analysis that there is a high probability that

50 percent of the variation in flame travel time on red

oak is associated with the specimen density.

Effect of Gas Supply Heating Rate on Flame Travel

Figure 10 shows the effect of gas supply heating rate

on flame travel time in the 65 tests on red oak. The

plotted points are quite scattered but the existence of

a regression line is indicated. The regression equation

is y = 42.4 - 0.0069 x, where y is the predicted time in

Figure 8.–Density based on weight and volume at 6 and 8

percent moisture content versus basic specific

gravity based on ovendry weight and green

volume.

(M 149 535)

6
minutes and x is the heating rate in Btu per minute.

Standard deviation of y is s = 0.857 minute; r2 = 0.141.

The test of the F-statistic indicates significance at the

1 percent level. The heating rate obviously must affect

the time of flame travel. If the furnace were an errorfree perfect instrument with precise control of the gas

supply, the heating rate used would be constant and r2

would be zero. Consequently, the r

2

 of 14 percent obtained is an indication of some variability in the furnace operation. In the 65 tests conducted, the heating

rate varied by only about 3 percent, or 3440 ± 110 Btu

per minute.

The combination of density plus heating rate was examined by analysis of variance for effect on flame

travel time. A comparison of the r

2

’s, 0.584 versus 0.502,

indicate that the addition of the 2nd variable (heating

rate) to the regression equation does not lend any improvement of practical significance. If there were improvement in the control of the heating rate, density

alone would explain 58 percent of the variation in the

flame travel time on red oak.

Need for Changing the ASTM Standard

The ASTM E 286 standard on the 8- foot tunnel furnace

test prescribes a red oak calibration specimen having a

density within 37 to 42 pounds per cubic foot, or a

basic specific gravity range of 0.50 to 0.56. To better

represent the resource, the density range should be

changed to 40 to 45 pounds per cubic foot at 6 to 8 percent moisture content (basic specific gravity 0.53 to

0.60) (figs. 3 and 4). In addition, since it has been

shown that density of red oak affects the flame travel

time, the information developed in this study should be

used to correct for density when establishing the standard heating rate for operation of the furnace. Consideration should also be given to calibration of the furnance without use of red oak since its use introduces a

density variable.

Figure 9.–Scatter diagram and linear regression line for

flame travel time on red oak density in the FPL

8-foot furnace (ASTM E 286).

(M 149 533)

Conclusions and Recommendations

Figure 10.–Scatter diagram and linear regression line for

flame travel time on heating rate in the FPL

8-foot furnace (ASTM E 286).

(M 149 534)

1. The red oak inventory in the forest is substantial, and

about 1.5 billion board feet of red oak lumber is produced annually.

2. A high cost is indicated for use of a red oak SRM

that appears not to be warranted for the variability encountered.

3. A need for red oak (flooring) as a standard reference

material for use in calibration of the 8- and 25-foot

standard test furnaces, or for large-scale fire testing, is

not indicated at this time. This does not preclude,

however, any future development of a red oak standard

reference material to meet potential needs for a wood

SRM for use in small-scale tests such as in ignition,

smoke development, rate of heat release, and toxicity

of combustion products.

4. It is recommended that a reconstituted wood panel

product be considered as an alternative to red oak as a

wood-base standard reference material for fire testing.

5. It is recommended that the 8- foot furnace be used

as the reference standard test method for the initial

evaluation of any candidate wood SRM’s.

Literature Cited

1. American Society for Testing and Materials.

1979. Minutes of meeting, Subcommittee E 05.22

on Surface Burning, at San Diego, Calif. Dec. 11,

1979.

2. American Society for Testing and Materials.

1979. Standard test method for small-scale

evaluation of fire-retardant paints–2- foot tunnel

method. ASTM D 3806- 79. Philadelphia, Pa.

7
3. American Society for Testing and Materials. 12. National Bureau of Standards.

1979. Standard test method for surface burning 1975. Catalog of NBS standard reference

characteristics of building materials. ASTM E materials, NBS special publication 260, 1975-76

84-79a. Philadelphia, Pa. edition. USDC NBS, Washington, D.C.

4. American Society for Testing and Materials.

1979. Standard methods of fire tests of building

construction and materials. ASTM E 119-79.

Philadelphia, Pa.

5. American Society for Testing and Materials.

1978. Standard test method for surface flammability of materials using a radiant heat energy

source. ASTM E 162-78. Philadelphia, Pa.

6. American Society for Testing and Materials.

1975. Standard test method for surface flammability of building materials using an 8- foot

(2.44-m) tunnel furnace. ASTM E 286-69 (reapproved 1975). Philadelphia, Pa.

7. Building Officials and Code Administrators,

International.

1978. BOCA basic building code. BOCA, Chicago,

III. 497 p.

8. Cali, J. P., et al.

1975. The role of standard reference materials in

measurement systems. U.S. Dep. of Commerce,

Nat. Bureau of Stand., Monograph 148.

Washington, D.C.

9. International Conference of Building Officials.

1979. Uniform building code. ICBO, Whittier, Calif.

704 p.

10. Lemsky, A.

1980. Hardwood market report, Mar. 15. Abe

Lemsky, editor and publisher.

11. Markwardt, L. J., and T.R.C. Wilson.

1935. Strength and related properties of woods

grown in the United States. USDA Tech. Bull. No.

479. Washington, D.C. 99 p.

13. Nationally Recognized Model Codes.

1975. One and two family dwelling code, second

edition, with revisions, 1976 and 1977. Published

jointly by the Southern Building Code Congress

International, the International Conference of

Building Officials, and the Building Officials

Conferences of America. 252 p.

14. Paul, B. H.

1963. Application of silviculture to controlling the

specific gravity of wood. USDA, Tech. Bull. No.

1288. Washington, D.C. 97 p.

15. U.S. Department of Agriculture.

1974. Wood Handbook: Wood as an Engineering

Material. U.S. Dept. Agric. Handb. 72, (Rev.) USDA,

Washington, D.C.

16. U.S. Department of Agriculture.

1978. Forest statistics in the U.S., 1977. USDA

For. Ser. Washington, D.C.

17. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service.

1967. Small tunnel-furnace test for measuring surface flammability. USDA FS Res. Note FPL-0167.

For. Prod. Lab., Madison, Wis.

18. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service.

1968. Surface flammability of various work-base

building materials. USDA FS Res. Note FPL-0186.

For. Prod. Lab., Madison, Wis.

19. U.S. Department of Commerce.

1977. Current industrial reports: Lumber production and mill stocks. U.S. Bur. of the Census.

Washington, D.C.

8
Table 1 .–Total net volume of hardwood and red oak sawtimber in trees 11 inches and

greater in diameter as of January 1, 1977 (16)

Region Total Select Other

hardwoods red oaks red oaks

Northeast

North Central

Total North

Total Red Oaks

Southeast

South Central

Total South

Total Red Oaks

Total Eastern Regions 526,707

North and South total

Million

bfm

118,759

142,157

260,916

135,484

130,307

265,791

Million Million

bfm bfm

17,169 10,677

14,093 16,550

31,262 27,227

58,489

7,056 24,146

7,726 29,638

14,782 53,784

66,566

46,044 81,011

127,055

Table 2.– Production of hardwood lumber by region, 1976 (19)

Region Total hardwoods White and red oak

South

Northeast and

North Central

East

Million Million

bfm bfm

3,834 1,938

2,427 1,032

6,261 2,970

9
Table 3.–Basic specific gravity of red oaks1

Species Location Number

of trees

Basic

specific

gravity

Oak, black

Quercus velutina

Oak, laurel

Quercus laurifolia

Oak, pin

Quercus palustris

Oak, red

Quercus borealis2

Ark., Wis.

La.

Mass.

Ark., Ind.,

La., N.H.,

Tenn.

Oak, scarlet

Quercus coccinea Mass,

Oak, southern red

Quercus rubra2

Oak, swamp red

Quercus rubra pagodaefolia2

Oak, water

Quercus nigra

Oak, willow

Quercus phellos

La.

La.

La

La.

8 0.56

5

5

33

.56

.58

.57

5

4

3

5

2

1

 USDA Tech. Bull. No. 479 (11).

2

 Select red oaks.

Table 4.–Basic specific gravity of red oak (Q. rubra) by sites1

Table 5.–Comparison of specific gravity values

.60

.52

.61

.56

.56

Location Number Basic specific

of trees gravity Oak Species Technical Technical

Bulletin 4791

Bulletin 12882

Richland Parish, La. 5 0.56

Stone County, Ark. 5 .57

Hendricks and Marion

Counties, Ind. 6 .57

Sevier County, Tenn. 5 .53

Grafton County, N. H. 7 .56

Stafford County, N. H. 5 .59

Total 33 Average 0.57

1

 USDA Tech. Bull. No. 479 (11).

Black oak 0.56 0.60

Northern red oak .57 .58

Southern red oak .52 .57

Scarlet oak .60 .58

Water oak .56 .59

Average 0.56 0.58

1 Ref. (11).

2 Ref. (14).

2.5-13-8/81

10 U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1981/750-27/11
FIR 8

U.S. Forest Products Laboratory

Candidate Wood-base Standard Reference Materials For

Fire Testing-Red Oak, by C. A. Holmes and M. Chudnoff,

Madison, Wis., FPL 1981.

12 p. (USDA For. Serv. Res. Pap. FPL 404).

A need for wood-base materials suitable as Standard

Reference Materials (SRM) for nationwide fire testing is

presented. This paper presents results on first study

which examined red oak as a candidate material from standpoint of present usage, forest resource, growth variability,

and fire performance variability in the 8-foot tunnel furnace. A recommendation is made that a reconstituted wood

product be investigated as a potential SRM.

Keywords: SRM, reconstituted wood, 8-foot tunnel

furnace, fire performance, fire testing.