River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1910-07-07
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from the vapor condenser, gives the exact
amount absorbed by the timber, which is al
ways weighed before and after treatment as a
further means of calculating the oil absorbed
In small cylinder the preservative may be
applied at pressure of 600 pounds per square
inch for smaller specimens and the resulting
protection can be compared with that of the
lower pressure preservatives.
Open tanks are provided for tests of pre-
servatives that do not require pressure. These
are heated with steam coils and iron cage
hung above lets the railroad ties other
timbers down into the hot OIL By a trolley
arrangement the cage can be lifted and run
across to other tanks filled with cold oil, so
that it is not necessary to pump out the hot
oil and replace it with the cold, as in lab
oratories where there is but one set of tanks.
All about the inner walls of the preserva
tives laboratory are ranged shelves to accom-
modate the samples of wood for treatment and
those already submitted to the different forms
Of protection against rot and other attacks
What woods will best stand various kinds
of strain, in bridges buildings and different
structures will be determined in the timber
testing laboratory, where two seven-horse
power motors furnish the electric current to
run the machinery.
In the torsion machine tirnbers can be
twisted until the strain reaches 10000 inch
pounds Five Universal" testing machines
are provided to test the strength Of different
woods under slow pressure, one having ca
pacity of 100000 pounds, another twice that
and three other smaller ones 10000 pounds
To see what sudden strains oak, pine
maple and different woods will Withstand a
HattTurner impact machine was built in the
machine shops of the Purdue university and
sent to the forestry laboratory for expert
ments. 1t can be so gagged that the hammers,
ranging in weight from so to $50 pounds, can
be dropped from heights up to six feet upon
the beam or block of wood, exerting a.sudden
pressure of hundreds of pounds
In laboratory where so much machinery
is in constant use there must be facilities for
instant repairs. For this purpose one end Of
the laboratory is fitted up into a machine
shop. Here, too, much labor is saved by use
Of electricity to run the engine lathe, milling
machine and other necessary apparatus. Be-
side the anvil there is gas forge for heating
and tempering steel.
The equipment of the wood shop, where
timbers and samples of wood are to be pre-
pared for tests. is very complete.
Steam heated ovens for drying wood, in
order to test the shrinkage, warping tenden-
cies and water content Of different woods are
a part of the laboratory equipment, and por-
ton has also been set off for a seasoning
room.
In this connection, in another laboratory,
tests will be conducted to discover the heat
conductivity Of different woods, to assist In
the work of the kiln drying and preserving
tests ,j
Stumps and other resinous portions of the
trees now burned as trash will be put into
stills and retorts and the turpentine, tar and
gases will be extracted, carried OF, separated
and refined into the various commercial prod
ucts. II methods of doing this economically
can be fixed upon, the problem Of utilizing
much Of the big pine trees now wasted will
be solved.
All Of the many chemical tests made neces-
sary by the work Of the different departments
will be centered in big chemistry laboratory
on the second floor, where eight large win
dows on the east and south furnish admirable
light, and eight stone tables. besides those
running all about the room beneath the win