STRUCTURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF WOOD COMPOSITE I-BEAMS

In this study, wood composite I-beams consisting of F11 slash pine flanges and either hardboard or particleboard webs were fabricated and evaluated for flexural stiffness. Prior to fabrication, both the web and flange materials were evaluated for flexural stiffness. The mean modulus of elasticity of the flange material was 16 900 MPa, while that for the particleboard and hardboard was 4250 and 4450 MPa respectively. The mean effective modulus of elasticity for the particleboard-webbed beams was 16 300 MPa and for the hardboard-webbed beams was 16 400 MPa. The implications of the findings are discussed.