Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1914-12-29
HEAT CONTENT OF
DIFFERENT WOODS
DETERM|NEDHERE
Experiments Conducted at
Forest Service Laboratory;
Heavier Wood More Nearly
Equal 10 Coal

The fuel value OF two pounds OF
wood Is roughly equivalent TO that OF
u pound Of coal This Is given as the
result of certain calculations now be-
ing made in the forest service labora-
tory here. which show also about how
many cords Of certain kinds OF wood
are required to obtain an amount OF
heat equal to that In ton Of coal.
Certain kinds OF wood, such as hic-
kory. oak. beech, birch. hard maple,
ash. elm, locust. longleaf pine and
cherry. have fairly high heat values.
ana only one cord Of seasoned wood
Of these species u required to equal
one ton of good coal.
IL takes a cord and "a half of short
leaf pine. hemlock. red gum, Douglas.
fir. sycamore and soft maple to equal
ton OF coal, and two cords of cedar,
redwood. poplar catalpa, Norway
pine, cypress. Eastwood, spruce and
white pine.
More Heat In Heavy Wood.
Equal weights OF dry, non-resinous
woods. however, are said to have
practically the came heat value re-
gardlcss OF species, and as a consc-
uucnce II can be stated as general
proposition that the heavier the wood
the more heat TO the cord. Weight
for weight. however. there Is very IT.
tie difference between various species,
the average heat for all that have
been calculated is 1900 calories. oil
heat units. per kilogram. A kilogran
of resin will develop 9,400 heat units
or about twice the average for wood
AS consequence, resinous woods
n Ia
than non-resinous woods, and this in.
creased value varies. Of course. Will
! the resin content
Resin Important Factor.
The available heat value of core
OF wood depends ON many dlfferent
factors II has relation moi
only to the amount of resin 4
contains. but to the amount Of
moisture present. FurthermoI cords
vary as to the amount Of solid woot
they contain. even when they are d
| the standard dimension and occup,
lies cubic feet OF space A certain
proportion of this space Is made vi
Of air spaces between the sticks. ant
this air space may be considerable ~
cord made Of twisted, crooked ant
knotty sticks. out of the 12S cubic
4
about eighty cubic feet.
1t Is pointed out. however, that hea
value is not the only test OF useful
ness In fuel wood and since 95 pei
cent of all wood used for fuel is con
sumed for domestic purposes. Target.
In farm houses. such factors as rapid
ity of burning and ease Of llghtinl
are important
Hickory Has High Value.
Each section OF the country has it
favored woods and these are said t.
be, in general. the right ones to use
Hickory. of the non-resjnous woods
has the highest fuel value per uni
volume of wood. and has other ad
vantages. 1t burns evenly, and. a
housewives say. holds the heat. TIL,
oaks come next, followed by beech
birch and maple Pine has a relativel,
low heat value per unit volume. bu
has other advantages. Ii ignite
readily and gives out a quick. no
| flame, but one that soon dies down
This makes 1t favorite with rura
| housekeepers as a summer wood. be
| Cause IL Is particularly adapted TO
hot days In the kitchen.
The fuel qualities OF chestnut adap
II particularly to work in brass foun
dries. where ii gives Just the requires
amount of heat and II Is therefore Il
favor. Coastwise vessels In Florid
pay twice as much for Florida button
wood as for any other, because
burns with an even heat and with
minimum amount OF smoke and ash
The principal disadvantage of tn
rcsinous pines is their oily, blacl
smoke.