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The Effect of Combined Convective and Microwave Heating on Mechanical Behaviour of Wood during Drying

A. Khouya, A. Draoui, B. Zeghmati, S. Abide, X. Chesneau

A numerical study is performed in order to analyse the effect of combined microwave and convective drying on the wood rheology behaviour. The stress model takes into account the free shrinkage, elastic deformation, viscoelasticity and mechanosorptive creep. Stress equations were solved using an implicit finite differential scheme and Thomas algorithm. Results showed that, combined convective and microwave drying reduce the drying time of wood and increasing the drying efficiency. It was found that the moisture content of wood below the fiber saturation point affect the drying stress and there was a significant effect between the drying condition and the mechanical properties of wood. The variation of moisture content during drying intended to produce a mechano-sorptive creep that is able to reduce drying stress. The stress model is used to optimize drying process and to effectively relieve the residual stresses after drying.