Development of Design Values for Wood-Plastic Composite Materials
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 15, Issue 5
Abstract
As the use of wood-plastic composite (WPC) materials extends to include more structural applications, there is an increasing need to determine design values appropriate for designing structural WPC elements. Depending on specific formulations, WPCs can have significantly different stress-strain relationships. Common, however, to WPCs is a highly nonlinear relationship. Due to both the variability and nonlinearity of the responses, a consistent method for deriving design values for WPCs is needed. Variability exists not only in the material response but, to a greater extent, in the mix designs themselves. This creates added complexity in predicting a design value for all WPCs based upon the ultimate strength of a particular mix. A method for deriving WPC design values is developed herein by examining the energy dissipation ability of the material rather than using traditional ultimate strength or deflection criteria. The design values are based upon an equivalent yield point in the material response, up to which a linear-elastic response would represent the actual-material response within some reasonable level of accuracy. By comparing the energy dissipated as assumed by this approximate material model to the actual energy dissipated by the material (i.e., utilizing the actual stress-strain relation), it is found that the approximate energy-based model provides an accurate representation of the material behavior and can be used consistently to derive design values for WPC materials.
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References
American Forest and Paper Association (AFPA). (1997). National design specification for wood construction, AFPA, Washington, D.C.
ASTM. (1996). “Establishing allowable properties for visually graded dimension lumber from in grade tests of full size specimens.” ASTM D1990-96a, West Conshohocken, Pa.
Green, D. W., and Evans, J. W. (1987). Mechanical properties of visually graded lumber: Volume I, A summary, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wis.
Naval Facilities Engineering Command. (1987). Military handbook: Piers and wharfs: MIL-HDBK-1025/1, U.S. Department of Defense, Washington D.C.
Wood handbook: Wood as an engineering material: Agricultural handbook 72. (1987). U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wis.
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Copyright © 2003 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jun 26, 2001
Accepted: Dec 12, 2002
Published online: Sep 15, 2003
Published in print: Oct 2003
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