Primary Wood Processing

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-x

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2. The structure of wood: form and function

   • Brian Butterfield

   Pages 1-22

3. Basic wood chemistry and cell wall ultrastructure

   • John C. F. Walker

   Pages 23-67

4. Water in wood

   • John C. F. Walker

   Pages 69-94

5. Dimensional instability in timber

   • Morwenna Spear, John C. F. Walker

   Pages 95-120

6. Wood quality: in context

   • Shakti Chauhan, Robert Donnelly, Chih-lin Huang, Ryogo Nakada, Yin Yafang, John C. F. Walker

   Pages 121-158

7. Wood quality: multifaceted opportunities

   • Shakti Chauhan, Robert Donnelly, Chih-lin Huang, Ryogo Nakada, Yin Yafang, John C. F. Walker

   Pages 159-202

8. Sawmilling

   • Philip Blackwell, John C. F. Walker

   Pages 203-250

9. Drying of timber

   • Tim Langrish, John C. F. Walker

   Pages 251-295

10. Wood preservation

    • Kevin Archer, Stan Lebow

    Pages 297-338

11. Grading timber and glued structural members

    • David E. Kretschmann, Roland Hernandez

    Pages 339-390

12. Wood-based composites: plywood and veneer-based products

    • Sheldon Shi, John C. F. Walker

    Pages 391-426

13. Wood-based panels: particleboard, fibreboards and oriented strand board

    • Kelvin M. Chapman

    Pages 427-475

14. Pulp and paper manufacture

    • John C. F. Walker

    Pages 477-534

15. The energy sector: a hidden goliath

    • Chris Williamson

    Pages 535-556

16. Back Matter

    Pages 557-596

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Samuel Johnson (of Boswell fame) said about writing, ‘whatever is written without effort is in general read without pleasure’ and ‘the unexamined word is not worth reading.’ However, even the most thoughtfully written text is unlikely to be described as a good read. This book is not an exhaustive review. Rather it is an uneven selection of examples whose interplay across disciplines hopefully illuminates what drives the practice of forest production, wood processing and consumer preferences. The choice of material is arbitrary reflecting personal biases. It is a summary of material presented to students at the NZ School of Forestry at the University of Canterbury. This book takes liberties with other peoples’ ideas, weaving them into fresh themes that are at best a work in progress. The philosopher Francis Bacon argued that ‘science is a debate in progress not a body of knowledge’ and also ‘truth emerges more readily from error than confusion’. We have taken the position that it is preferable to venture a reasoned opinion and be proved wrong than to waffle; so don’t swallow every sentence – ‘doubt everything’. The reader’s task is to unravel the conceits of generalizing and the risks of particularizing.

• Silviculture
• composite
• forest
• paper
• wood
• Forestry Management
• Wood Science and Technology

• University of Canterbury, New Zealand

  John C. F. Walker

Policies and ethics