Thermal and Mechanical Characterization of Oak Wood

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to improve building living conditions and energy consumption, promoting new regulations and policies that promote construction, guaranteeing thermal comfort and mechanical design in buildings. For this, the thermal and mechanical tests of the oak, from the Costa region (Manabí and El Oro) and Sierra (Loja), from Ecuador, were evaluated. In this study, characterization was carried out using thermal conductivity, moisture content tests, and tensile, flexural, parallel and perpendicular compression tests, applying International and National standards. The results of the thermal test of the samples of the oak hardwood show that in 88.9 % of specimens the thermal conductivity has to be between the range of 0.16 and 0,19 (W/m K). These values correspond to the ASTM-C177 standard.